It’s no secret that Texas A&M coach Kevin Sumlin faces a make-or-break 2017 season after putting together three-straight 8-5 records.

This fall, Sumlin needs to improve on that mark in order to keep his job, but SEC Network host Paul Finebaum thinks even that might not be enough for Sumlin to stay in College Station.

On the SEC Network on Wednesday, Finebaum said even a one-win improvement from 2016 might not be enough to keep Sumlin employed:

“If he wins eight games, he’ll be gone,” Finebaum said. “I do not believe, according to the people with whom I’ve spoken to in College Station, that eight wins is going to be enough. I’m not sure there is a good number for Kevin Sumlin. There’s so much heat on him. Nine (wins) is even debatable. What he does on the field will determine whether he’s back at media days a year from today.”

Finebaum added that getting off to a good start will be crucial for Sumlin and the Aggies, highlighting their Week 1 matchup against the UCLA Bruins as one of the biggest games of the year:

“They’ll be picked fourth, maybe fifth in the SEC,” Finebaum said. “I think the biggest game of the season is a non-conference game, UCLA. They go out there and lose and the negativity will rain down on [Sumlin].”

Making that job more difficult for Sumlin is the fact that the Aggies will be breaking in a new starting quarterback after Trevor Knight graduated. Meanwhile, the team will also be without WR Josh Reynolds and star DE Myles Garrett, both of whom were selected in the 2017 NFL Draft.