What do you do when your head coach is on the hot seat and the entire building feels it?

In this episode, Ed Jones II takes you inside the real pressure of a hot seat season in college football. Using his experience from the 2018 University of Houston season, he shares what it is actually like to work in player development or support staff when the rumors start, the tension grows, and everyone in the building is trying to figure out what their future looks like.

This is not the version fans see online.

This is the version people inside the building live through.

Ed walks through the emotional weight, the financial uncertainty, the shifting relationships, and the quiet panic that staff members deal with when their job security is tied to a decision they cannot control. He shares how players respond, how families react, and how he personally prepared for the possibility of being let go even while still trying to serve the athletes he cared about.

You will hear:

• What it feels like when your building changes overnight

• The role Football Scoop, rumors, and buyout dates play in the tension

• How players experience fear, confusion, and frustration during a hot seat year

• Why support staff often carry the heaviest financial impact

• What player development must do to stabilize the locker room

• The behind the scenes realities that never make headlines

• The exact steps Ed took to protect his family and stay present for his athletes

This episode is for anyone in player development, coaching, support staff, administration, or anyone who wants to understand the real human side of college football.

It is honest.

It is vulnerable.

It is real.

And it might prepare you for a moment you did not expect.

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🎙 About Ed Jones II:

Founder of Beyond The Field | Author of The Player Development Guide | Host of The Player Development Pod | Creator of the Player Development Summit

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