Florida’s leadership decision this offseason carried more weight behind the scenes than many realized. While Urban Meyer’s involvement in the new head coach’s recruitment to Florida was known, the former coach recently revealed the full extent of his evaluation process. A deep dive that even Jon Sumrall himself wasn’t aware of.

“Florida is a tough job. It’s a demanding job, and it’s got to have the right individual. So I got involved,” Urban Meyer said on the February 25 episode of Triple Option. “I spoke to some of the coaches, and then finally, they asked me to do some homework. I started watching interviews because I think how a person handles himself in front of the camera, in front of the team, is very important. I’m not even sure Coach Sumrall knows this, but I did some homework.

I had a friend of mine gather about ten interviews that he did, but I didn’t have time to run through all of them. And then, I talked to people that he coached against. Then I pulled out the film, and the first thing I watched was special teams, then their defense, and then the offensive line. I have very, very strong opinions of what Florida needs and what winning programs need.”

Florida’s coaching search didn’t begin on a good note. The Gators had Lane Kiffin as their top target. However, the latter removed himself from the search after disagreements over how he wanted the program to function. The other coaches in the search included Missouri’s Eli Drinkwitz, Washington’s Jedd Fisch, SMU’s Rhett Lashlee and Georgia Tech’s Brent Key.

But to everyone’s surprise, they went with Sumrall. Meyer talked about how the phone call with Jon Sumrall stood out and made him pick the Tulane coach over the other candidates.

“I got him on the phone, and it was a done deal after I talked to him,” Meyer said. “In this day and age of everybody talking about transfers, NIL contracts, and all that, he talked about his strength coach, a Green Beret, a guy that he believed in.”

This is a key factor that sets Sumrall apart from the current conversation around coaching strategies. Ever since the NIL wreaked havoc on the old ways of recruitment and development of players, every coaching candidate is being grilled on their familiarity with this new system. Sumrall set himself apart by focusing on the game that gets played on the field more than the revenue sharing aspect. For a classic old school coach like Meyer, this was obviously a notch in his favor.

The Gators announced Jon Sumrall as their new head coach in late November for a whopping $44 million deal, replacing Billy Napier. And Sumrall, in the first three months at Gainesville, brings in a refreshing burst of energy to the program. The new head coach made some key decisions this offseason. Sumrall retained top talents such as running back Jadan Baugh during the portal season. He has also hired Buster Faulkner as their new offensive coordinator.

While Sumrall’s Gators are untested on the field, his consistency and proven records at Troy and Tulane provide hope for Florida’s production. He brings in 20 years of coaching experience across various roles.

The Tulane chapter is the most crucial period which decided the hire. Sumrall began his career at Tulane two years ago after leading Troy University to a 23-4 record and two Sun Belt championships. In his very first year, he was able to reach the conference title game, ultimately losing out to Army. But last season saw a 11-3 record along with a conference win and a playoff berth. Sumrall’s total record as a head coach is 43-12.

As expectations for Jon Sumrall’s first season are on the rise, the new coach also reflected on the conversation with Urban Meyer that has stuck with him to date.

Jon Sumrall cherished the conversation with Urban Meyer

Florida’s new HC, Jon Sumrall, in the February 24 interview with On3’s Andy Staples, recalled his interview conversation with Urban Meyer. He stated that he enjoyed speaking with the coach, whom he respects a lot, and provided further details about the conversation.

“I really enjoyed that conversation with Urban,” Sumrall said of his conversation with Meyer. “In our first conversation, we talked nothing about NIL, rev share, or the transfer portal. We talked about how you build a football team. And that’s something I’m very passionate about. I am passionate about the other components of our world now.

The portal does matter to me. Rev share and NIL, I’m for it. I love that our players get paid. But I also think of your team, how you build that team and help individuals grow and develop from wherever they come to you at, whatever process of their development they’re at.”

Sumrall made it clear that his approach with players is more professional, as they get paid to do so. He wanted the players to reflect on their NIL value on the field. With spring ball approaching in less than two months, we need to wait and watch how Sumrall’s approach reflects on the field for the Gators.