Pete Thamel Uncovers Three College Football Head Coaching Positions on the Verge of Becoming Available.

The Baylor Bears, North Carolina Tar Heels, and Purdue Boilermakers caught Pete Thamel’s eye, but not in a positive manner. All three teams have not met expectations in 2024 and have lost all three conference games leading up to Week 8.

Purdue almost ended the streak in their previous game but ended up losing to Illinois 50-49 in overtime. Georgia Tech attempted to run down the clock and force overtime against North Carolina, but the Tar Heels gave up a 68-yard rushing touchdown, resulting in a 41-34 defeat. In its previous game, Baylor suffered a 43-21 defeat against the Iowa State Cyclones.

In a recent episode of the “College GameDay Podcast,” Thamel indicated that Baylor, North Carolina, and Purdue were moving towards dismissing their head coaches.

Thamel stated that it is clear that the Baylor position is still moving towards becoming available. North Carolina and Purdue, which were likely not extensively discussed before the season, have now emerged as potential contenders. There appears to be greater certainty in North Carolina. They have suffered four consecutive losses and allowed James Madison to score 70 points.

Mack Brown has led North Carolina to a 3-4 record, with one of the losses being a 70-50 defeat to James Madison. The Tar Heels have lost four consecutive games going into Week 8. Brown has a record of 41-31 since beginning his second term in 2019, following an earlier tenure as head coach from 1988-97.

Purdue head coach Ryan Walters has not had a successful transition from being a defensive coordinator at Illinois from 2021-22 to becoming a head coach. Walters has a record of 5-13 at Purdue since 2022 and is set to play the Oregon Ducks as a 28.5-point underdog in Week 8, according to ESPN BET.

Dave Aranda, head coach of Baylor, led the Bears to the Big 12 Championship Game in 2021, but things have changed since then. The team has not achieved a winning record since that season and currently has a 2-4 record in 2024 after six games.