Al Golden was fired today opening up Miami.

So I believe this is the current list of teams with an opening at the end of the season.

Power 5 Conferences
USC
Miami
South Carolina
Maryland
Illinois
Minnesota
Virginia Tech
Missouri

Other FBS openings
Central Florida
North Texas
Hawaii

I was actually thinking about this at lunch, but is USC still one of the uber premier jobs.  I mean it is obviously still a great job, but at one time it was one of the two or three best (if not the best) jobs in the country and I'm not so sure it still ranks up near the top.  I mean there have been a lot of coaches coming and going through the program and it has been awhile since USC was a true title contender, so is USC still a top 3 job in the country?  The answer to that question might very dictate what type of coaching candidates they get and who they ultimately get to fill the job.

I was thinking about this earlier today also.   Not necessarily if USC was a top 3 job but, in what order, these openings would rank in terms of desirable jobs.

USC has to be first but, with quality, comes expectations.   No one wants to hear about 3 years from now.   You take that job and you win now. 

I think Illinois is last because there are low expectations and they'll be lucky to get a quality coach.

Then it gets muddy.   A B10 team that's new to the conference.   They have to have had some sort of expectations when they switched conferences but they're never been relevant for an extended period of time..   A SEC that hasn't really been much more than a .500 team but had a good 4-5 year run recently.   Expectations are probably higher than they should be and winning in the SEC is no easy task.   Then there's Miami.    For whatever reason, I get the feeling that they still think it's the 80s and that they should be Top 5 every season.   Expectations that are much higher than they should be but in a conference where a quick turnaround is possible.

Central Florida is actually a pretty good job.  Probably better than Illinois and maybe Maryland, even if they are power 5 schools and UCF is not.  Pretty solid recent history and right in the middle of one of the best recruiting areas in the country.  The AAC is clearly the 6th best conference from top to bottom as well, so it isn't a wasteland like the Sunbelt.

North Texas moving to CUSA makes it a more interesting job, though it clearly should be behind all the other schools on the list, including Illinois.

Charlie Strong is interesting if Texas does away with him.    I think that would be an indication that maybe he's not ready for a top job(we could argue what constitutes a "top job" these days but Texas does qualify while Louisville does not).    There's yapping about him/Miami but I'm not even sure why.   He coached at Florida and was born in Arkansas.    But he got his first real break in SC as D-coordinator.   That would seem like a better fit unless there's still the belief that black guys don't get a real shot in the SEC or, more specifically, SC. 

And, yes, USC is a top job while Miami/SC are not.   If either of those are destination jobs, it's for alums.    Or last stops on the coaching train for old guys(Holtz/Spurrier). 

It seems like there are a lot of reports that Beamer is going to retire at the end of the year, which would open Va Tech for the first time in a long time.  Is Va Tech a great job or is it more a one coach kind of school (like Kansas St. appears to be). 

That's a difficult question.   Beamer has been there since I really started to follow CFB.    They've been relevant for a few periods but it's all been under Beamer.   When he's gone will they fall off the map?   I can't imagine VA Tech is a recruit's dream school unless they're from the area. 

Paul Finebaum "Miami is a terrible job"  "I think this program is bankrupt. I think it has a delusional fan base thinking that this is the '80s and '90s."

Here more on the video linked below.

http://espn.go.com/espn/now?nowId=1-13985303

I haven't heard it, PF is a bit annoying, but LeBatard, equally annoying, was yapping about it today.     Shutting down the program seems like a dumb statement.   I think it's a more difficult situation than fans/alums think but it's at least a top 50 job in CFB.

Jerry Kill retires immediately for health reasons.  Minnesota is now the 8th open job

Beamer is walking away at the end of the year officially.

Hawaii is open now as well as it fired its coach over the weekend.

One of the talking heads on CFB Daily said it's USC, VaTech and SC in terms of good jobs.   And I'm pretty sure he said Maryland/Miami were comparable.   The U has to be steaming if they heard that. 

Gary Pinkel has lymphoma and is retiring from Missou at end of year

Sounds like Les Miles is on the hot seat.   But, with a 15m buyout, would LSU do it?   Miles gets his pick of any job on the board except USC.