Coaching Hot Seat Meter: Strong remains in limbo

Every week, theScore's Coaching Hot Seat Meter will examine those in danger of losing their jobs in college football. Follow along each week to see which coaches are feeling the heat.

Brian Kelly - Notre Dame

Kelly probably isn't going anywhere, but he continues to give those around the program more to consider every week.

Notre Dame, which blew a 17-point lead to Virginia Tech on Saturday to ensure its first losing season since 2007, won't be going to a bowl game for the first time under Kelly, and a loss against rival USC this weekend will leave a bad taste in fans' mouths for nine months.

While Kelly may not lose his job after this dreadful campaign, he's used up a mulligan. If the Fighting Irish don't take significant strides next season, he'll be in trouble.

Kliff Kingsbury - Texas Tech

Kingsbury went from not being on this list a week ago, to having some question whether he should lose his job.

That's what losing 66-10 to a 2-8 Iowa State team will do to you. The Cyclones came into Saturday's game having only beaten Kansas and San Jose State on the campaign, but Kingsbury's squad made them look like a playoff team.

Texas Tech and the Big 12 aren't known for their defense, but things are starting to get absurd. The Red Raiders have now given up 66 points or more three times in 2016.

His rugged handsomeness aside, how much has Kingsbury really done during his time in Lubbock? The 37-year-old is 23-26 overall with the Red Raiders and a dismal 12-22 in conference play.

Rich Rodriguez - Arizona

Rodriguez's seat is getting hotter by the day.

Arizona has been blown out in five straight games, and has dropped eight in a row overall. Saturday's contest against Oregon State marked a new low for the Wildcats, as the best Rodriguez and Co. could do against the 2-8 Beavers was a 42-17 defeat.

Given Rodriguez's excellent record at the program in his four previous years, only a complete disaster of a season could raise questions about his job. With the very realistic possibility of Arizona finishing 2-10 and going winless in conference play, though, a disaster is what the 2016 campaign has become.

Mark Helfrich - Oregon

Don't count Helfrich out just yet.

The Oregon head coach appeared on the brink of being fired last week after the Ducks recorded their seventh loss in the past eight games, but a last-second win over 12th-ranked Utah may have cooled things a bit. By no means should Helfrich's job be considered safe, though. If the team can't win its finale, then the Ducks would finish with their worst record since 1991.

Helfrich still has the Civil War against Oregon State to come Saturday, but will a victory over the lowly Beavers be enough to convince those around the program to give him one more shot?

Charlie Strong - Texas

This appears to be it for Charlie Strong.

Losing to Kansas, a team that hadn't beat an FBS program in two years, would be a fireable offense for anyone, let alone a head coach who was already on the hot seat. Strong appeared to realize it's only a matter of time following the embarrassing defeat.

Reports surfaced Sunday that Strong was being let go, and athletic director Mike Perrin didn't exactly squash those, saying only that his head coach would be evaluated at the end of the regular season.

Strong hasn't been able to live up to expectations in Austin, as the best the Longhorns can do now is six wins, and the 56-year-old won't have a signature win over Oklahoma this time to stand on. Instead, his loss to the Jayhawks will punctuate a tenure filled with disappointment.