Jon Sumrall addresses rumors of Auburn’s past interest: ‘They didn’t want me and I didn’t want them’
By Andrew Olson
Published:
One of the many storylines heading into Saturday night’s Florida-Auburn game involved the previous season’s coaching carousel.
On Oct. 19, 2025, Florida fired Billy Napier. Auburn fired Hugh Freeze on Nov. 2. For 4 weeks, Florida and Auburn both had head coaching openings, and there are only so many candidates.
On Saturday night, following Florida‘s 44-39 win over Auburn, Jon Sumrall was asked about some of the reports and rumors that surrounded his name last year. When one question referenced Sumrall interviewing with Auburn, he offered a strong response, saying that there was no interest either way.
Jon Sumrall's asked about Auburn and interviewing for the Tigers head coaching job: "Who said I interviewed for this job? They didn't want me and I didn't want them."
— Graham Hall (@GrahamHall) September 20, 2026
While it’s understandable Sumrall may want to move on from last year’s coaching carousel, there were plenty of reports linking the then-Tulane coach to Auburn. A Sunday opinion column by AL.com’s Joseph Goodman suggests that Sumrall was Auburn’s top target, but AU boosters seeking the retention of defensive coordinator DJ Durkin may have been a hangup that led to Sumrall looking elsewhere.
Moving on, Sumrall is 3-0 as Florida’s head coach as the Gators gear up to face a top-10 Ole Miss squad in Week 4. Alex Golesh is 2-1 at Auburn as the Tigers look to bounce back against Vanderbilt.
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Andrew writes about sports to fund his love of live music and collection of concert posters. He strongly endorses the Hall of Fame campaign of Fred Taylor.
