Five college basketball coaches on the hot seat

Several college basketball coaches will be feeling the heat in the 2024-25 college basketball season.

Here are five head coaches who will be on the hot seat:

Dennis Gates, Missouri

Record at school: 33-34 in two seasons

NCAA Tournament trips: One

Preseason conference poll: Picked to finish 13th out of 16 schools

Most coaches don’t survive a winless conference season. Dennis Gates is still at Missouri because his first year in Columbia was so promising. But after going 25-10, 11-7 in 2022-23, the Tigers fell to 8-24, 8-10. It was the program’s worst-ever record in league play. Such a rapid reversal of fortune immediately puts your job in jeopardy. They haven’t won an SEC game since beating Tennessee in the 2023 conference tournament. This year should give us a better idea of who Gates is as a coach. He brings in a top-five recruiting class, which includes seven-footers Peyton Marshall and Trent Burns. Missouri also added transfers like forward Mark Mitchell (Duke) and guard Tony Perkins (Iowa).

Porter Moser, Oklahoma

Record at school: 54-45 in three seasons

NCAA Tournament trips: None

Preseason conference poll: Picked to finish 15th out of 16 schools

You can’t get a consensus on anything in America. However, most thought Oklahoma landing Porter Moser in 2021 was a good hire. Moser lifted Loyola Chicago to a shocking Final Four run in 2018. Surely he would be an excellent replacement for the retired Lon Kruger. Well, has yet to have a winning league record. And now, the Sooners are in a new conference, leaving the Big 12 for the SEC. Expectations are low as they were picked to finish second-to-last ahead of only Vanderbilt. Oklahoma also lost eight players, including three starters who transferred out. Moser has high hopes for top-25 incoming freshman Jeremiah Fears. Moser might need to overachieve to save his job.

Kyle Neptune, Villanova

Record at school: 51-49 in two seasons

NCAA Tournament trips: None

Preseason conference poll: Picked to finish 7th out of 11 schools

Of all the coaches on this list, you have to feel bad for Kyle Neptune. He stepped into a difficult situation because Jay Wright was an impossible act to follow. One of the best coaches in Big Easy history retired after reaching the 2022 Final Four. Neptune, a former Wright assistant, seemed like a natural successor. In hindsight, this was a gamble because Neptune’s head coaching experience consisted of one season at Fordham, where he went 16-16. Last season, he lost to fellow Philadelphia schools: Penn, Saint Joseph’s, and Drexel. Of course, coaches can grow. The question is: will Neptune get the time he needs? Even Wright didn’t make the NCAA Tournament until his fourth year at Villanova. Neptune will be counting on a big season from Miami transfer and Philadelphia native Wooga Poplar.

Bobby Hurley, Arizona State

Record at school: 155–131 in nine seasons

NCAA Tournament trips: Three

Preseason conference poll: Picked to finish 12th out of 16 schools

While his younger brother is at the top of the sport, Bobby Hurley has been less successful. It took five seasons for the Dan Hurley to win a national championship at Connecticut. The younger sibling has one NCAA Tournament appearance in five years and has yet to get past the opening weekend. Arizona State is stuck in mediocrity. That’s not what anyone expected when Hurley was hired in 2015. This is the Sun Devils’ first season in the Big 12, so now they’re also in a tougher league. Hurley brings in a top-10 recruiting class, highlighted by center and former Kentucky signee Jayden Quaintance. The No. 8 prospect is the highest-ranked recruit ever at Arizona State. ASU needs to show it’s trending in the right direction.

Mike Woodson, Indiana

Record at school: 63-40 in three seasons

NCAA Tournament trips: Two

Preseason conference poll: Picked to finish second out of 18 schools

The track record of former NBA coaches in the college ranks is lousy. Because of that, there was justified skepticism when Mike Woodson returned to his alma mater in 2021. An optimist would applaud Indiana’s second-place Big Ten finish two years ago. A pessimist would point out those Hoosiers only went 12-8 and are 31-29 in conference play under Woodson. Now, there are no more excuses. Indiana has its most talented team in years. Sixth-year senior center and Arizona transfer Oumar Ballo was named to the preseason All-Big Ten team. Fellow transfers Myles Rice (Washington State) and Kanaan Carlyle (Stanford), and freshman Bryson Tucker are also expected to make immediate impacts. Anything less than Big Ten contention could spell the end of the Mike Woodson experience.