Breaking: Florida football expected to hire Jon Sumrall as head coach

Florida football is expected to hire Jon Sumrall as the next head coach of the Gators, according to multiple reports. According to ESPN's Pete Thamel, the Gators are finalizing a six-year deal at an average of nearly $7.5 million per year.

Sumrall arrives in Gainesville after transforming both Troy and Tulane into consistent winners, compiling a 52-11 record across fours seasons as a head coach. He went 23-4 in two years at Troy, winning a Sun Belt title and earning 2022 Sun Belt Coach of the Year honors, then followed with a record of 29-7 at Tulane, including a Top 25 finish and another conference championship appearance.

Sumrall brings some familiarity with the SEC from his time as Kentucky's co-defensive coordinator. He's going to be taking over a Florida roster that features notable underclassman talent, though roster movement is always possible in today's transfer portal landscape. What is known is that quarterback DJ Lagway has no plans of leaving the program.

But this hire didn't come without twists.

According to multiple reports, Florida had scheduled an initial meeting with Sumrall about a week ago as part of its coaching search. That meeting was canceled, with reports saying Sumrall "pulled himself from consideration." The reasons for the cancellation were never publicly confirmed.

Despite the swirl of uncertainty, Sumrall emerged as Florida's top candidate and momentum shifted quickly in recent days.

Yahoo Sports' Ross Dellenger reported that Tulane made a push to keep Sumrall with an offer of $4 million per year, while Ole Miss also remained involved in the process.

Florida Gators athletic director Scott Stricklin views this as a foundation that can be strengthened quickly with the right staff, offseason structure and portal strategy.

With the hire in place, Florida immediately shifts into operational mode. The next steps include finalizing Sumrall's on-field staff, conducting roster meetings, evaluating transfer portal targets, aligning NIL priorities and continuing work on recruiting.

The program expects these processes to move quickly as Sumrall transitions fully into the role and begins implementing his system.

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This article originally appeared on Gators Wire: Breaking: Florida football expected to hire Jon Sumrall as head coach