Speculations for hiring Tualne HC Jon Sumrall are not new. LSU, Auburn, and Florida have circled in on the 43-year-old. For now, the Texarkana native with a 40-11 record as an FBS head coach is locked in with the Green Wave. That’s why even with a strong 8–2 overall record and 5–1 conference standing, Sumrall believes his team is still “average.”

“Yeah, I think detail has to be higher all the time with consistency,” Sumrall said in a conversation with WGNO’s Jon Sokoloff. “I think our urgency has to continue to improve. Our control of the game has to be more of a stranglehold of situations. I think you’ve seen us play really good football at times, and you’ve also seen us have some lulls at times this year. It’s just that consistent high-level standard that you have to meet all the time. Our guys want to be great. We haven’t been all year maybe consistently as good as we need to be, but their intent is right.”

Tulane had exceptional wins this year against teams like Northwestern, Duke, East Carolina, and Memphis, but they even fell flat at times. Like their 48-26 loss against UTSA. The Roadrunners scored 31 straight points in the first half and never looked back. That’s why the HC is searching for consistency. Specifically, if the season ended today, Tulane would visit Texas Tech for a playoff game. If such a level of performance continues, there’s no way they can stand against them.

The Red Raiders had the first undefeated home season since 2008. Even for the matchup, analyst Josh Pate had Texas Tech as -21.5 favorites against Tulane. Because the biggest concern for Jon Sumrall remains the pass defense, as it ranks 127th nationally in passing yards allowed. On the other hand, Texas Tech is ranked 15th nationally in passing yards, which clearly backs Pate’s analysis. But Tulane needs to win its last two games against Temple and Charlotte.

With that, Tulane relies heavily on takeaways to win close games. Now, they did force 4 turnovers against FAU, but if they don’t force turnovers constantly, opponents can come up strong against their weak pass defense. This can be a major problem against Temple, which is tied with UConn for the fewest turnovers in the FBS, with just 2 this season.

So, here’s the deal. Temple’s defense changes from game to game, as in their last four games, they have allowed 37+ points twice and only 14 points twice. So, Tulane’s physical offense might give them a hard time. But looking at Tulane’s inconsistencies, it’s pretty clear why Sumrall calls them an “average” team and is pushing for a change.

With that, he’s also drawing interest from the SEC team.

Jon Sumrall might fill up $6.7 million HC job

After weeks of drawing speculation with Lane Kiffin, Florida’s coaching search added Jon Sumrall’s name to the list. Even On3’s Pete Nakos reported that Florida had an interview set for him on Thursday, but “the meeting on the books has been called off.” It still remains unclear whether Sumrall made this move to remove himself from the considerations or simply chose to stay focused on Tulane’s future.

Now, with the Gators off the chart and LSU’s increasing interest in Lane Kiffin, Sumrall can be the best option to fill the $6.7 million Hugh Freeze spot in Auburn. “I would not be surprised if he’s the Auburn head coach,” The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman said. “I don’t know if LSU would do it because, again, LSU does some nutty stuff, and unless they’re backed into a corner, I don’t think they are going to do the thing that may make the most sense. They’re going to do the thing that sounds the coolest at the press conference.”

Looking at Jon Sumrall’s impressive resume, he looks like a perfect fit. Sumrall led Troy from 2022 to 2023 and then took over Tulane, compiling a 40-11 record with two Sun Belt titles. Even this year, they are in playoff contention. But let’s not forget, last month, the Tulane HC made it clear he was not leaving mid-season.

“The coaching carousel to me is not even a thought because we’re in the mid-season phase. So whatever somebody else wants to do, another program wants to do, or people want to speculate, they’re free to do that,” said Sumrall. For now, he is linked heavily to both Auburn and Florida; let’s see if either of them is successful in poaching him.