"It was a shit show": Jon Sumrall describes weeks coaching Tulane and Florida at the same time

You ever talked to parents of multiples how they survived those first few months? They'll describe their day-to-day (and night-to-night) of keeping multiple infants fed, bathed and clothed around the clock, and by the end you'll have no idea how they managed it, and they wouldn't either. They just know they did, and they hope to never do it again.

That's the same feeling I got describing Jon Sumrall describes the weeks coaching Tulane and Florida at the same time. His week between Saturday, Nov. 29, and Friday, Dec. 5 had more stress packed into it than most people have in a decade. And that's not to say things slowed down for him after the 5th, either.

"The Sunday after the regular season (Nov. 30), I officially accept (the Florida) job. We have a conference championship game that Friday night. We also had Signing Day that Wednesday. We signed 16 guys at Florida, and we signed 14 at Tulane with no head coach in place for the '26 team. I'm like, What is going on here? While we're still trying to win a conference championship game on Friday night. I do a Monday practice -- which was a Tuesday, really, in the game week -- fly to Florida to do a press conference, fly right back for the next day's practice, then we have Signing Day for both schools, then I'm getting ready for the game, then we win the game, we make the CFP, we do the selection show on Sunday. Right after the selection show I high-five my guys, tell them I can't wait to see them in a few days for practice, then I get right back on the plane for Gainesville to see if I can try to keep a few of those players to play for the University of Florida for 2026.

"Full disclosure, it was a shit show," Sumrall said, describing it as "the dumbest thing I've ever done." 

Not mentioned in that answer, Sumrall also lost his father two days before Tulane played Ole Miss in their CFP first round game. George Sumrall, 77, attended Tulane's American Championship win over North Texas and Jon's press conference at Florida on Dec. 1, but died 17 days later. "God gave us more time with my dad than we thought we would get," Sumrall said at the time.

Tulane, of course, lost to Ole Miss on Dec. 20, lightening Sumrall's load to just attempting to revive a fallen SEC superpower. That's all.