Just how hot is the seat under Butch Jones? Yet another outlet has mentioned Jones in their top five coaches on the hot seat list. This time it’s Fox Sports.

Last year was Jones’ window to silence his doubters and prove once and for all that he belongs as a head coach in the SEC. Instead, the Volunteers sputtered to a second straight 9-4 finish, which included an embarrassing post-bye loss to South Carolina and a defeat at Vanderbilt that cost them a trip to the Sugar Bowl. The scary part? With a less talented roster in 2017, the schedule ratchets up significantly.

Yep. If you can’t even consistently beat Vanderbilt at Tennessee, you won’t last very long. 2016 was the year to make it happen, but it didn’t. For the first time in a long time, Tennessee fans dealt with disappointment from expectations — which says something to the work that Butch and his staff has put in to this point. At some point though, you’ve got to take that next step.

In a best-case scenario (something that rarely happens under Jones) this feels like a 7-5 season. Would that be enough for him to keep his job?

Torres poses an interesting question that I’ve thought a lot about. What record gets Butch Jones fired? Is it 7-5? Or does it have to be a total flop back to the Dooley era 5-7 seasons? The tough answer here is that we just don’t know with a new Athletic Director in place.

One thing we do know is that the schedule this season won’t do Butch any favors. The Georgia Tech opener is one that Tennessee should win more times than not, but that triple option/flexbone look can give anyone fits. That’s far from a gimme. As Torres mentioned, a 3-4 start to the season is a very real possibility.

Other names in this top five included Gus Malzahn, Jim Mora, Kevin Sumlin and Brian Kelly.