To the list of textile worker, tobacco farmer and furniture maker, you can add another job with foggy career prospects: Carolina Panthers coach.

Dom Capers lasted four years as the Panthers’ inaugural coach. George Seifert’s ouster Monday after three years at the helm of the NFL team was abrupt but hardly unexpected. When your team performs super bad after raising hopes of a visit to the Super Bowl, it’s not likely to win points with the front office. The Panthers’ string of 15 consecutive losses was an NFL record for a single season, which, mercifully, ended Sunday with a 38-6 shellacking by New England that only underscored how dispirited the team and its followers had become.

The end was a humiliating reversal for Seifert, the former San Francisco 49ers coach who appeared to be the Panthers’ savior when he emerged from retirement in 1999 to take the head coaching job. Seifert came with impeccable credentials: During eight years in San Francisco, he had the best winning percentage in NFL history and took the team to two Super Bowl titles. That meant little here, however, where Seifert went 8-8 in his first season, and 7-9 last year. He needed a breakthrough year; instead, the youthful team suffered a complete breakdown.

Now, conjecture turns to who the next supposed savior will be, with the immediate speculation — and salivation — focusing on former Florida Gators Coach Steve Spurrier. The former Heisman standout has his own impeccable credentials, of course. At the University of Florida, he turned a moribund football program into a perennial title contender. He also has some Tar Heel history on his side. Before coaching the Gators, he marshalled a Duke football team — yes, they really do play that sport, too — to a winning record and an Atlantic Coast Conference Championship in 1989. Besides that, his parents originally hailed from Charlotte, and he still has family in the area.

Panthers fans might do well to temper their hopes, however. Spurrier is certain to be a highly sought commodity around the NFL. Tampa Bay, San Diego, Washington, Minnesota and even Atlanta are also rumored to be interested in him. Even if the Panthers did land him, the transition from the college game to the NFL can be brutal (just ask Lou Holtz), and Seifert’s experience shows that past performance is no guarantee of future success. Still, the Panthers desperately need someone who can put passion back into the team as well as points on the board — and Spurrier’s pyrotechnic offensive style and sideline histrionics might be the perfect antidote to Seifert’s man-of-ice demeanor.

As for Seifert, don’t worry too much about his post-employment prospects. NFL coaching jobs may not offer longterm security, but they usually come with platinum parachutes. For the final two years left on his contract, Seifert’s expected to pocket a $5 million final payment as he heads back home. That may not be as satisfying as a post-Super Bowl trip to Disney World, but it’s not a bad severance package — as any of those other idled workers would be quick to tell you.