Mussatto: Big 12 football vets Mike Gundy, Matt Campbell find themselves in tough spots

Iowa State’s loss at Ohio on Saturday was bad. Coach Matt Campbell’s behavior afterward was worse.

As the Cyclones walked off the field after a 10-7 defeat in Athens, Ohio, an Iowa State fan heckled the head coach.

“Hey, Campbell, what are you doing?” the fan shouted. “You’re on the hot seat. You’re on the hot seat.”

Campbell whipped around and had to be held back by his players and a couple of Iowa State staffers. It was an unbecoming loss of composure from a head coach, particularly a head coach of Campbell’s ilk.

In his eighth season with the Cyclones, the 43-year-old Campbell is the second-longest tenured coach in the Big 12 behind OSU’s Mike Gundy, who’s in his 19th season as Cowboys head coach. Gundy has been one of the few constants in an ever-changing league, and while Campbell is not exactly a close second, his eight years in Ames makes him a relic in Big 12 years.

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At 3 p.m. Saturday, Campbell’s Cyclones will host Gundy’s Cowboys in a game where neither coach is actually on the hot seat, but a win for either might cool down their respective fan bases. OSU's home loss to South Alabama was even more concerning than Iowa State's loss at Ohio.

“This is a tough business,” Gundy said Monday when asked about Campbell. “The age of social media and all the stuff going on. Coaches’ salaries. It’s tough to hang around.”

Iowa’s Kirk Ferentz, who’s held the same job since 1999, is the only FBS coach who’s been in place longer than Gundy.

Gundy’s longevity will be rivaled next season when Utah joins the Big 12. Kyle Whittingham is in his 19th season with the Utes, just as Gundy is with the Cowboys.

Whittingham, however, will be a first-year Big 12 coach while Gundy enters Year 20 in a conference that barely resembles its former self.

Gundy has seen schools leave the Big 12 — Texas A&M, Nebraska, Colorado, Missouri and soon, OU and Texas — and he’s seen new ones arrive: TCU, West Virginia, Houston, UCF, Cincinnati, BYU. And in the case of Colorado, about to return alongside new members Arizona, Arizona State and Utah.

OSU’s trip to Iowa State will be a throwback game to the Big Eight days with two throwback Big 12 coaches — both of whom are trying to keep up as everything around them changes.

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Big 12 coaches by tenure (record)

Mike Gundy, OSU, 19th season (158-76): The year was 2005. Mike Gundy took over at OSU and the first YouTube video was uploaded.

Matt Campbell, Iowa State, eighth season (47-44): His record, given the difficulty of the job, is better than it looks. Campbell is a three-time Big 12 Coach of the Year.

Kalani Sitake, BYU, eighth season (59-34): Only LaVell Edwards and Bronco Mendenhall have coached more games at BYU than Sitake, who was hired in 2015 a month after Campbell.

Chris Klieman, Kansas State, fifth season (32-21): The four-time FCS national champion at North Dakota State has more than held his own in the Big 12.

Neal Brown, West Virginia, fifth season (24-26): Unlike Campbell, Brown is actually on the hot seat.

Dana Holgorsen, Houston, fifth season (28-22): Holgorsen left West Virginia for Houston. Now he’s back in the Big 12.

Dave Aranda, Baylor, fourth season (21-18): The Bears are 13-14 in the Big 12 under Aranda, but Baylor is still riding the wave of a glorious 12-2 campaign in 2021.

Lance Leipold, Kansas, third season (11-17): The man has worked miracles in Lawrence.

Steve Sarkisian, Texas, third season (16-12): Sarkisian won five games in his first season and eight in his second season. Texas’ upward trend will likely continue in Year 3 under Sark.

Gus Malzahn, UCF, third season (21-9): Malzahn went 38-27 in the SEC at Auburn. Now he’s back in a power conference.

Sonny Dykes, TCU, second season (15-3): Dykes is 10-0 in the Big 12. Not a bad start.

Brent Venables, OU, second season (9-7): The Sooners are 3-0, just as they were last season before a 3-7 finish.

Joey McGuire, Texas Tech, second season (9-7): McGuire coached Cedar Hill High School to three Texas state titles from 2003-16.

Scott Satterfield, Cincinnati, first season (2-1): Satterfield spent the last four seasons at Louisville, and the six before that at Appalachian State.

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This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OSU's Mike Gundy, Iowa State's Matt Campbell face challenges in Big 12