[koolmoe]

I think the big difference between CEO's and football coaches is that the coaches' products are more easily subject to scrutiny.

The average joe can watch weekly football games and judge for himself whether a team looks disciplined and prepared.

CEO performance is documented in complex financial reports released once a quarter. The reports aren't as readily available as nationally televised football games, and the connection to the CEO's contributions isn't as immediately obvious. Also, recent history is replete with incidents where the bottom unexpectedly dropped out of a company because of unbeknownst-to-the-public mistakes or transgressions committed under the CEO's watch.

I think public perception about the differences in transparency is what drives distrust in CEO's but not in college coaches.