Auburn coaching search: ESPN insider Pete Thamel names Tulane's Jon Sumrall as the 'prime candidate' for Tigers

As soon as Auburn parted ways with head coach Hugh Freeze following its loss to Kentucky on Nov. 1, Tulane head coach Jon Sumrall emerged as one of the prime candidates for the opening. It was an obvious link from the start.

Sumrall, who both played and coached in the SEC (both at Kentucky), has impressed in two head coaching stops at Troy and Tulane. He led the Trojans to a 23-4 record across two seasons from 2022-23, and has led the Green Wave to a 17-7 record across the 2024 and 2025 seasons.

As the search continues for Freeze’s replacement at Auburn, ESPN‘s Pete Thamel named Sumrall as the ‘prime candidate’ for the opening. He did so on Friday afternoon’s edition of ‘The Paul Finebaum Show.’

“Yeah, I think Jon Sumrall has been a prime candidate and target from the start of that job,” Thamel said. “There’s obviously complications with Tulane being a potential Playoff team. But, it wouldn’t be a surprise if that’s where Auburn ends up.”

Sumrall has had to deal with rumors of his departure all season. At first, it was Kentucky fans clamoring for him to return home when they were struggling earlier this season. He then reportedly had a meeting scheduled with Florida on Thursday, but that meeting ultimately did not end up taking place.

Sumrall says ‘there’s no distractions’ when dealing with rumors

Earlier this season, Sumrall addressed dealing with the distraction of the rumors. With two regular season games remaining, Tulane sits at 8-2 and holds the G5 No. 12 seed in the latest College Football Playoff Bracket.

“There’s no distractions with me. I addressed it in the summer with our team. I said, ‘Hey, we have success, we’re going to talk about where maybe some coaches should go or, when a player has success, they’re going to talk about where that player should transfer,’ A la Darian Mensah, our quarterback last year. Had success, and people wanted to pay him more money than we could pay him,” Sumrall said.

“There’s no distractions. Like, I’m all-in to Tulane. I’m so focused on this team. The only team I’m coaching is Tulane, and I could not be more blessed to do it. I do it with great people, at a great place and a place I love to live, and I’m excited about what I’m doing.”

While Tulane is fighting for a Playoff spot, Auburn is finishing out its season against Mercer and No. 10 Alabama in the Iron Bowl. For the sake of making a quicker hire, Auburn fans will certainly be rooting for the Green Wave to NOT make the Playoff.