With reports flying in that the Florida Gators had backed off Lane Kiffin as the target of their head coaching search, new rumors started cropping up about who they were eying for Plan B.
Quickly, current Tulane Green Wave head coach Jon Sumrall became the new focus of the rumor mill, despite having signed a contract extension less than a year ago.
While fans weren't exactly in love with the idea of Sumrall taking over in Gainesville, the Gators were using their past success and former head coaches to make the Florida program look even more enticing to the Tulane head coach.
Urban Meyer is still helping the Florida Gators
While Urban Meyer was the head coach of the Gators, he led the team to two BCS National Championships (alongside Heisman-winning quarterback Tim Tebow).
When reports of Florida turning its attention to Sumrall started to spread, sources were also sharing that the Gators were relying on Meyer once again as the former head coach reportedly reached out to Sumrall to talk about the job opening.
How serious is Florida @GatorsFB’s pursuit of @GreenWaveFB HC Jon Sumrall? Sources tell @FootballScoop that UF had 2-time Florida title-winning coach Urban Meyer call Sumrall, also discussed program autonomy: https://t.co/jSobZq1Iuw
— John Brice (@JohnDBrice1) November 28, 2025
Now, it has been a decade and a half since Meyer was the Gators' head coach, but he is still one of the most influential figures connected to the program, especially since Florida has been far from successful since he left for the job at Ohio State.
With Meyer throwing his weight around, it may become a lot easier for Florida to land a desirable head coach like Sumrall.
But wait, why exactly are Gator fans not enamored by Sumrall? The Tulane head coach has a 41-11 career record and already has a bowl game victory in the four years since becoming a head coach. Well, our site expert Benjamin Henderson has a whole list of reasons:
- Only has experience at the G5 level
- Lack of true success stories for coaches coming from the G5
- He is a defensive guy; Florida fans want an offensive guy
- Tulane looked awful against Florida in the bowl game last year (Gators won 33-8)
- Too many close games he should have won by a lot more (a Napier trait)
The Gators are still getting over the dumpster fire that was the Billy Napier era in Gainesville, so a head coach that reminds them of their former head coach is hitting a little too close to home for a lot of Florida fans.
No matter what, it sounds like Meyer is helping the Gators find their next guy, and assistance from a National Championship-winning head coach can never hurt.