Florida football is heading into a new era under Jon Sumrall, and if there’s one thing the new head coach knows well, it’s how to make the most of what he’s got-even when the cupboard isn’t exactly full.
Coming off a whirlwind year at Tulane, where he weathered a mass exodus in the transfer portal and still led the Green Wave all the way to the College Football Playoff, Sumrall now finds himself at the helm of a Florida program that’s hungry for a turnaround. The Gators limped to a 4-8 finish last season, and while the roster has seen its fair share of movement, Sumrall has managed to hold onto a solid core-something he couldn’t say a year ago.
“It was more fun than losing everybody,” Sumrall said on Wednesday, reflecting on this offseason compared to the chaos he faced at Tulane. “Last year at Tulane, we started the season and we had our left tackle and left guard that were starters back.
We had a D-lineman, a linebacker, and a safety. So five total.
And I’m like, ‘I don’t know how we’re going to win seven games,’ much less what we did.”
That team did more than win seven games. It shocked the nation by punching its ticket to the CFP, proving that culture and coaching can still carry weight in the transfer portal era.
Now at Florida, Sumrall is working to bring that same edge to a program that’s been searching for stability. While he lost promising quarterback DJ Lagway to Baylor, he’s kept the bulk of the roster intact-no small feat in today’s college football climate, where portal departures can gut a team overnight.
Still, Sumrall is realistic about the challenges ahead. “We’re going to lose players at times even at Florida,” he said.
“There’s guys that left that I would have loved for them to have stayed. But they didn’t feel like it was maybe the right fit or they needed a change of scenery or whatever.”
It’s a candid acknowledgment of the new normal in college football: player movement is constant, and even big-name programs aren’t immune. But Sumrall also pointed to the resources at Florida’s disposal-both in terms of retention and acquisition-as a reason for optimism.
“It does feel nice to at least have some resourcing to be competitive and go retain guys and maybe in the open market you go acquire guys or add guys,” he said. “You ask any coach, I think they’d tell you, ‘How much is enough?’
There’s never enough. You always want more.
I feel better with more good players.”
And he’s going to need them. After missing out on Lane Kiffin and enduring another losing season, Florida fans are eager for signs of life-and wins.
The biggest question facing the Gators this offseason? Who’s taking the snaps under center.
The quarterback room is wide open, with Tramell Jones, Aidan Warner, Will Griffin, and Georgia Tech transfer Aaron Philo all in the mix. It’s a battle that will define not just the offense, but the tone of Sumrall’s first year in Gainesville.
Sumrall has shown he can win when the odds are stacked against him. Now, with a deeper talent pool and the backing of a storied SEC program, the pieces are in place. The question is whether he can put them together fast enough to get Florida back on track.
One thing’s for sure: the Gators won’t be lacking for motivation-or competition.