Matt Painter listed among ESPN's "Hot Seat" coaches

"Your Favorite Team's head coach makes a national hot seat list" is never a headline you want to read. But, even after the fun win against #25 Iowa, we're here. Click here for the whole post by Jeff Goodman [EsPN Insider required]:

8. Matt Painter, Purdue Boilermakers

Painter inked an eight-year deal in 2011 when he was contemplating going to Missouri, a time when he was also in the midst of a tremendous run of six consecutive NCAA tourney appearances. Since then, the Boilermakers (12-8, 4-3 Big Ten) had back-to-back seasons under .500 and though improved in 2014-15, are in danger of not going to the tourney for the third consecutive season.

Nothing new, nothing Earth-shattering, nothing mind-blowing. Just what we all know: Matt Painter has produced two (and a half) very disappointing seasons, and has struggled to give this team an identity in the post-Baby Boilers era.

We all know the contract buyout prices by heart right now: $9.75M if Purdue parts ways with him in the summer of 2015, and $7.35 in the summer of 2016. But it might not even be about that...it might be a statement on the collegiate coaching landscape, and a key piece of evidence that it's uncommonly difficult to sustain success at one school for over a decade.

Let me be clear: I'm pretty much the only dude at this here Boiled Sports establishment who is still squarely in Coach Painter's corner. And who knows...three months from now, Purdue could be in the midst of a tournament run and this post could look completely laughable. (In other words, par for the Aneesh course.)

But as of right now, it's getting harder and harder to blindly defend the Baby Boilers' coach as that era grows fainter in the distance. And if nationally-run snippets like Goodman's continue to occur, we cynical mom's-basement bloggers won't be the only ones having this conversation.

(Also appearing on that list: Steve Lavin. The Gene Keady coaching tree ain't looking too hot right about now.)