ESPN’s Big Ten blog posted its hot seat list today and topping the list was Iowa head coach — and former much sought-after golden boy — Kirk Ferentz.

The blogger writes of Ferentz:

“(Ferentz’s) contract extension takes him through the 2012 season and includes a heavy buyout, but Ferentz needs strong results this season to solidify his status in Iowa City. He has averaged just 6.3 wins the last three years, down from 10.3 during 2002-’04. More unsettling is the wave of player arrests — 14 since last April — that have plagued the program.”

While being loyal has worked out pretty well for guys like Les Miles (for now) and Bob Stoops but one person that has not benefited by staying put is Kirk Ferentz, who’s seen his stock drop significantly since being contacted about a number of high profile head coaching jobs in college an the NFL.

In the interim, Iowa has struggled mightily against the Big Ten’s elite and even against some of the conference’s annual bottom dwellers (my beloved Indiana Hoosiers waxed the Hawkeyes in Iowa City last year, 38-20).

What’s baffling to me about Ferentz is despite the problems he’s had recently and despite that team being an annual disappointment for most of the past five seasons, Ferentz was still considered a candidate for the Michigan head coaching job. Few coaches have deserved a promotion of that level less than Kirk Ferentz.