Auburn’s football coaching seat is still hot and empty after parting ways with Hugh Freeze. The 56-year-old wrapped his Tigers tenure with a tough 6-16 SEC mark and a frustrating offense that left fans shaking their heads. Auburn’s athletic director, John Cohen, now faces a tough job. Elite programs are crowding the market as they search for coaches, and Auburn doesn’t rank high on the list of playoff-attractive jobs. That’s when SEC spokesperson Paul Finebaum jumps in to pitch a candidate.

“The betting favourite at Auburn is Jon Sumrall,” Paul Finbaum said on the Matt Barrie show, while doing the Week 11 recap. “It’s not the higher that wows America. But if that ends up being the case, and Matt, we’re speculating. I think almost every Auburn fan that I’ve talked to would be thrilled.” It’s the $3M head coach of the Tulane Green Wave who is getting so much attention for his commendable coaching run. At +500, he’s a strong contender with a mix of SEC experience and proven head-coaching success at Tulane. Sumrall has built something solid down in New Orleans, where he took Tulane to new heights.

People keep linking him to multiple SEC openings, but he keeps shutting down the rumors. Plus, his resume includes plenty of SEC connections. Having coached at Kentucky and Ole Miss, and as a Kentucky alumnus, he knows the conference culture inside out. He’s led Tulane to a strong 7-2 start this season. And if that looks normal, then he has even steered the Green Wave into the College Football Playoff conversation, with a solid 10.54% chance of cracking the CFP at this moment. What sets Sumrall apart is his CEO-style management approach.

This method has impressed folks like Chris Vannini from The Athletic. “I was impressed with the CEO type of role he plays,” Vannini said. “He’s not someone calling all the plays, demanding all these things… I think [Jon] Sumrall could make a lot of sense at Auburn.” In just a few seasons as a head coach, he’s racked up an impressive 39–11 overall record, translating to a winning percentage of about 79%. At Troy, he transformed the Trojans with back-to-back 12–2 and 11–2 seasons, capturing two Sun Belt Conference titles and securing a couple of bowl victories.

Then, moving to Tulane, Jon Sumrall kept the momentum going. He led the Green Wave to a strong 9–5 campaign in his first year. A record like this will definitely steal the attention of the 70-year-old SEC advisor. “I do believe Sumrall fits most of the checkmarks. I don’t know that much about him other than what you guys know,” Finebaum said. “But I’ve talked to some people at Troy… and they think he was sensational there. To me, he looks a little bit like Pat Dye in 1981. A hard-nosed football coach.”

The other two peas in the pod

It’s not just Jon Sumrall in the pot for an SEC coaching return. The coaching carousel is spinning fast, and two names stand out as genuine possibilities to take the reins. First up, Eli Drinkwitz. They call him an Auburn insider, given his time as a quality control coach under Gus Malzahn back in 2010-11. Eli Drinkwitz has transformed Missouri from a struggling program into a consistent bowl contender.

With a 44-26 overall record and a whopping 27-7 run in his last three seasons, he’s shown he can build something sustainable. Missouri’s recent 6-2 record and national ranking of 19 highlight its ability to punch above its weight class. Drinkwitz brings the swagger and offense that Auburn desperately needs. Then there’s the recently fired coach, James Franklin. Frankly, Franklin checks the boxes for SEC experience and proven consistent winning.

He boasts a 104-45 record and eight double-digit win seasons with Penn State. His success includes a 13-3 season in 2024 and turning around Vanderbilt into a competitive SEC team with back-to-back nine-win seasons. Franklin’s experience with winning and recruiting at a high level could ignite Auburn’s talent influx. So now Auburn’s got a tough pick to make.