As we learned during the “Fire/Keep Les Miles Saga” that unfurled at the end of the 2015 season, it can all go south rather fast for a head coach — even one with a .725 lifetime winning percentage, BCS title, and 11 years’ tenure under his purple windbreaker.

Same bodes for Mark Richt, sans the championships. Which could very well be the reason the former Georgia head coach exited stage south in Athens after the season, despite 15 years and a winning mark of .745 percent.

The moral is, there’s a fine line when it comes to gauging the temperature of a coach’s throne.

Here are several SEC head coaches and what they have to do in 2016 to avoid sitting in the dreaded “hot seat.”

We can initially eliminate a handful of coaches who are safe, barring any completely unforeseen disasters. It’s not dangerous to say that Alabama’s Nick Saban is safe in Tuscaloosa. First-year coaches such as Kirby Smart in Georgia, Barry Odom in Missouri and South Carolina’s Will Muschamp also get a grace period.

As do Florida’s Jim McElwain and Vanderbilt’s Derek Mason in the SEC East, as well as Bret Bielema of Arkansas and Mississippi State’s Dan Mullen out west. Their jobs appear steady … for now.

GUS MALZAHN, AUBURN

Working in Malzahn’s favor is that Auburn often seems to come up big when expectations are small. The Tigers might need a quick turnaround, somewhere in the neighborhood of, at minimum, eight wins, to keep detractors at bay. And while that’s easier said than done, especially for a team coming off a last-place finish in the SEC West, it won’t be a quick fix.

Auburn’s and Jeremy Johnson’s struggles at quarterback were well-documented in 2015. Malzahn needs to find stability at the position, whether that’s with Sean White, transfer-John Franklin III or even Johnson.

Even then, providing the quarterback with enough playmakers at wide receiver will be a challenge. Malzahn is also going to ease the transition for an Auburn defense that will be playing for its third coordinator in as many years. Fortunately, that defense should be relatively stout behind a deep defensive front.

Malzahn has some wiggle room at Auburn, but another last-place finish and you’ll start to see some people tighten up on the Plains.

MARK STOOPS, KENTUCKY

Time is running low for Stoops to guide Kentucky to a bowl game.

A third-consecutive 5-7 season could spark a serious discussion over his return to Lexington for a fifth season in 2017.

If Stoops (12-24 at UK) wants to take the Wildcats to their first bowl game since 2010 he’ll need help from new offensive coordinator Eddie Gran to revitalize the offense. More important, Stoops needs to address bigger concerns at linebacker and along the defensive line, which finished last in the SEC with 17 sacks in 2015. This could very well be a bowl-or bust-type year for Stoops.

LES MILES, LSU

There are reports that Miles shed a few tears after garnering the commitment of Myles Brennan.

Most likely it’s because of the opportunity he’s able to provide the 2017 quarterbacking prospect and the emotion of the moment that caused the waterworks.

But there’s a chance the LSU coach wept knowing that the No. 22 pro style signal-caller could one day save his job — again.

The Tigers slipped just enough in 2015 to trigger a late-season freak out by those in charge in Baton Rouge. Miles and company were able to quell talks of being fired, but they might not be so generous should LSU stumble again.

That means fixing the offense, which is too run-heavy and lagged at times last year under Brandon Harris. The coach also needs to reshuffle his offensive line and integrate new defensive coordinator Dave Aranda’s style into the fold.

Miles’ football acumen should be enough to keep his job safe in Death Valley, but, as we learned, that’s not always the case. The Tigers will need to contend for the SEC West to keep the coach off the hot seat.

HUGH FREEZE, OLE MISS

Who would have thought that Robert Nkemdiche to the Arizona Cardinals in the first round would turn out to be the feel-good story of the NFL draft for Ole Miss?

The first order of business for Freeze is to take a fire extinguisher to trail of flames that Laremy Tunsil left on his way out the door in Oxford. There likely will be fallout at Ole Miss after one of the more bizarre draft nights in history, where Tunsil copped to taking money from a coach.

There are big expectations for the Rebels this year, despite having to fill holes, including Tunsil’s left tackle spot and basically the entire offensive line, which was held down by four seniors in 2015. Holes on the defense also need to be addressed in the secondary, at linebacker and in the void left by Nkemdiche’s departure from the line.

Ole Miss has Chad Kelly and the talent to compete once again in the SEC West, but if recent allegations prove true, there’s a potential for things to snowball in Oxford into a toxic situation.

BUTCH JONES, TENNESSEE

Jones might want to send Tunsil a thank you card for taking some of the spotlight off Tennessee’s tumultuous offseason.

Jones’ Volunteers enter the 2016 season as the presumptive favorite to win the SEC East. And while that’s a tough prediction to live up to, anything short of the Volunteers’ first division crown since 2007 could cause the UT establish a bit of trepidation.

Tennessee has a loaded, veteran roster with not many holes — save for the need to break in a new left tackle and develop a playmaker or two at wide receiver.

It’s Jones’ job to make sure that Tennessee doesn’t beat itself with destructive behavior, especially given the school’s recent issues involving a Title IX lawsuit levied against the athletic program.

This could be the year the Volunteer hype train lives up to expectations, but a season in which Jones’ squad crashes and burns again could begin to warm the coach’s seat.

KEVIN SUMLIN, TEXAS A&M

There’s a potential fairytale developing at Texas A&M involving a (Trevor) Knight in shining (Under) Armour (Adidas, actually, and then some). Sumlin had a slew of weapons last season, but still the Aggies offense went flat at times.

Those struggles were magnified after two quarterbacks transferred, one citing a “Johnny Manziel-like culture” that persists under Sumlin’s watch.

The fifth-year coach can clean up any perceptions and keep off the hot seat with solid quarterback play, considering that the Aggies return arguably the best collection of receivers in the SEC and one of the conference’s best defensive fronts.

Oklahoma-transfer Knight has won Sumlin’s confidence. Now the coach might need the Oklahoma-transfer to help save his job at A&M — which might take more than eight wins and a victory in a significant bowl game for the coach whose seen his win totals drop each year in College Station.