Syracuse Football: Dino Babers is still on the hot seat, handicappers say

Syracuse football head coach Dino Babers, as we noted not too long ago, reportedly would be in line to receive a huge buyout should Syracuse University fire him this season.

Of course, that may end up being a moot point, should the ‘Cuse continue playing like it did in week one, when the Orange crushed fellow Atlantic Coast Conference team Louisville, 31-7, on the Hill.

The ‘Cuse (1-0) will play at UConn (1-1) this Saturday night, followed by a big non-conference showdown at home versus Purdue on Saturday, Sept. 17.

Even after the Orange’s 2022 season-opening victory, Dino Babers is still deemed as somewhat on the hot seat, at least according to one Web site.

Syracuse football head coach Dino Babers, in my opinion, won’t get fired during the current campaign.

It’s true that, at least on paper, the ‘Cuse has a pretty daunting schedule in 2022, including a stretch from mid-October until early November where it faces four foes in a row that are presently in the major top-25 polls.

I say let’s see how Syracuse football fares in the coming weeks before really starting to have significant discussions about whether Babers might be fired in 2022.

In any event, a few days ago, handicapper Dan Kilbridge published a piece on Bookies.com where he looked at some college football coaches on the hot seat as far as potentially getting fired this season.

At No. 1 is Nebraska’s Scott Frost, where the odds listed are -110, with an implied probability of 52.38 percent. Babers checks in at No. 7 on this list, with odds of +1200 and an implied probability of 7.69 percent.

According to Bookies.com, for the time being, the top eight in order are Frost, Georgia Tech’s Geoff Collins, Arizona State’s Herm Edwards, a tie between Stanford’s David Shaw and Louisville’s Scott Satterfield, Auburn’s Bryan Harsin, Babers and Arizona’s Jedd Fisch.

Without question, Syracuse football and its head coach got off to a great beginning in crushing the Cardinals last weekend. I’m highly confident that the Orange will get to 2-0 this Saturday at UConn.

From there, things ultimately will get more challenging for the ‘Cuse, but I also really, really like the 2022 roster, even despite several unfortunate injuries suffered by Orange players in week one.

"Kilbridge brought up an interesting and important point when he wrote, “If those coaches already skating on thin ice don’t get the most out of their players, things can go south in a hurry. College football’s climate has changed in recent years – while schools were once hesitant to fire coaches mid-season, programs have been far quicker to hit the reset button and make immediate changes once the calendar turns to November.”"

To reiterate, though, Babers is 1-0 to date in 2022. He also has a reportedly massive buyout in his contract. His athletic director has said in the past that Babers isn’t on the hot seat.

I hope that’s the case. But in all fairness, Dino Babers has only produced one winning season during his tenure in Central New York. My fingers are crossed that 2022 will prove his second stanza above the .500 mark with Syracuse football.