Report: Tulane coach Jon Sumrall the 'clear favorite' for Florida job, will decide by Sunday morning

Jon Sumrall has emerged as the “clear favorite” to become the next head coach of the Florida Gators, ESPN’s Pete Thamel reports. There were rumblings that Sumrall had been targeted for the job after Florida backed off on the Lane Kiffin sweepstakes.

The Tulane head coach is set to lead his team into Week 14 vs. Charlotte on Saturday. However, Sumrall is expected to make a decision on his future before the end of the weekend. Thamel reports the decision could be made as early as Sunday morning.

Sumrall had been considered a favorite for the Auburn job for the last several weeks before Florida moved on from pursuing Kiffin. However, the Tigers have since moved their focus on other candidates. Per Thamel, this indicates a new leader has emerged to potentially land his services.

However, earlier reports on Saturday revealed that Sumrall may be in the mix at Ole Miss or LSU, depending on where Kiffin ultimately decides to go. Though, it indicated that Florida was in the lead.

The Green Wave are squarely in the mix for the American Conference title game, as well as the College Football Playoff. Tulane is 9-2 this year, and Sumrall has a career 41-11 record in his four years as an FBS head coach. That includes two years at Troy.

In addition to Jon Sumrall’s decision, Kiffin’s future is the biggest off-field storyline in college football on Saturday. Kiffin is set to meet with the Ole Miss leadership at 3 p.m. CT to discuss his future with the program.

Ole Miss took down Mississippi State 38-19 amid the noise, and Kiffin told ESPN’s Taylor McGregor he still has not made a decision. That is expected Saturday after Ole Miss AD Keith Carter previously said an announcement would come down Saturday, following Friday’s Egg Bowl in Starkville.

For Sumrall, he is currently 41-11 as a head coach across four seasons. He was co-defensive coordinator at Kentucky, where he played, in 2021 before becoming head coach at Troy. He won at least 11 games in each of the two seasons he spent there before taking the job at Tulane before the 2024 season. He’s never not played in a conference championship as a head coach.

On3’s Nick Schultz contributed to this report.