Looking at their coaching histories, I didn’t realize both are in the Todd Graham tree. Honestly, they feel like they have very similar career trajectories. Napier is obviously on the scorching hot seat and his departure could (and should) be imminent whereas Norvell has a little more runway. But I think FSU would justified in pulling the plug if they go 4-8 or worse, regardless of the last 2 years of success.
Both programs also should have the resources to poach a decent sitting P4 head coach – the thing is do they want to compete with each other for the carousel? There’s only one Kiffin. But of course there are other good options (I think Eli Drinkwitz, Dave Doeren, and Mark Stoops are all possibilities). But to prevent the next guy from meeting the same fate, the athletic departments are going to have to rein in expectations from their rabid fanbases (to compare them to Texas, that was really what doomed Charlie Strong and Tom Herman from the start).
My ballot. Computer poll. It’s still early so I’m not going to dissect it too much. Still grossed out that it thinks so highly of oklahoma, but I’m expecting them to plummet next week once they run into the buzzsaw that is Tennessee. FSU is still too high because of their SOS. One thing I do like is how it give kudos to Indiana, who is otherwise flying under the radar with a nice start to the season.
Full ranking: