In the ultra-competitive SEC West, life can be pretty stressful for all the high-profile head coaches. That’s a given. But for those assistant coaches a wrung or two down the ladder, life can be just as miserable when things aren’t going well with their position groups.

Here are four SEC West assistants with very stressful jobs awaiting them in 2016:

Auburn defensive coordinator Kevin Steele

There’s no truth to the rumor that Kevin Steele’s nameplate at Auburn is written in pencil on a Post-It Note. It only seems like the defensive coordinator spot with the Tigers changes every year. Does that office have a revolving door?

The one-year Will Muschamp experiment last year was a disaster, and the debate rages on as to who was more to blame, the coaches or the players. In comes Steele from LSU, using basically the same terminology and philosophy – both are from the Nick Saban tree –but hoping for better health, some maturity among the young studs and a better “all-in” effort from everyone on that side of the ball.

Going 2-6 and finishing dead last in the SEC isn’t something that goes over well at Auburn, so turning this defense around in a hurry falls on Steele. They must be better in 2016, which at least seems like a distinct possibility. The Tigers did play better late in 2015, and there’s a ton of young talent on that side of the ball.

LSU offensive coordinator Cam Cameron

There’s more top-five and win-the-SEC hype around LSU this year, which is understandable. But those Tigers fans with good memories still remember what happened last year, when the 7-0 Tigers who were No. 2 in the CFP rankings lost three straight games, and looked horrible doing it.

Especially on offense. Many found it shocking that head coach Les Miles kept his job, but what was really stunning was that offensive coordinator Cam Cameron kept his job. The complete meltdown of the LSU offense, despite the presence of stud running back Leonard Fournette, was head-shaking. No one expected Cameron to survive.

But he did. Now, his job is to make Brandon Harris better at quarterback, and for him to get the max out of all 11 players on the field. There was a good vibe throughout spring practice that the passing game was going to be much better in 2016, and that another year of experience for Harris and his talented receivers was going to be obvious. Fournette is back, and he’s a given. Can Cameron put all the pieces together?

Alabama running backs coach Burton Burns

Burton Burns coaches running backs at Alabama, and all he has to do this year is replace a Heisman Trophy winner who was an all-time workhorse and guarantee that the running game still clicks along at a high rate behind a rookie quarterback.

Burns is one of the most respected assistant coaches in the country and has the awards to prove it, but replacing Derrick Henry might be the biggest challenge he’s had in a long, long time. All Henry did last year was rush for 2,219 yards and 28 touchdowns on a whopping 395 carries. He made life easy for the Alabama coaching staff in big games, simply taking over all by his lonesome. He had 46 carries in the season-ender with Auburn and 44 more a week later in the SEC title game with Florida. For good measure, he carried it 36 times in the national title game win over Clemson.

However, Henry is gone now and so is backup Kenyan Drake. Damien Harris (157 yards) and Bo Scarbrough (104) were non-factors in 2015, but let’s not forget that they each arrived in Tuscaloosa with five-star recruit reputations. Finally given the opportunity to shine, everyone is expecting big-time success this season. Will that happen? It’s something Burns will have to fret about every night.

Arkansas defensive backs coach Paul Rhoads

Watching Arkansas play pass defense last year was almost comical. Opponents literally threw at will against them, and it showed in the stats when only 10 of the NCAA’s 127 teams gave up more yards per game through the air. It’s certainly an area that needs massive improvement.

Bret Bielema’s solution to the big problem was to bring in Paul Rhoads, which is a heck of a get. Rhoads, the former head coach at Iowa State and defensive coordinator at Pittsburgh and Auburn, had a long history of coaching defensive backs prior to that. He’s sent dozens to the NFL, including future Hall of Famer Derrelle Revis.

Rhoads has made an immediate impact in the spring, pushing basically the same players to play a different way with a focus on playing with their eyes and not being caught out of position. For the Razorbacks to continue trending upward, this group will have to step up. Hiring Rhoads was a good first step.