TAMPA, FL- While Lane Kiffin was contemplating his move to LSU from Ole Miss, Jon Sumrall was making a different decision on his coaching future beyond Tulane.
Sure, while they both were deciding whether to take a different job, the circumstances surrounding the moves were not on the same wavelength in terms of coaching in the SEC.
The conversation surrounding the coaching carousel will be discussed for decades, most likely being taught in business ethics classes on college campuses in the future.
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For Kiffin, he had to decide on whether taking the LSU job was worthy enough for him not coaching Ole Miss through the college football playoff.
As for Jon Sumrall, he was making a decision on which opportunity in the SEC would be the better fit.
Was it going to be Auburn, or Florida? Obviously, we know how that part turned out, with Sumrall now entering his first season as the Gators’ head coach. Taking to the podium on Wednesday morning in Tampa, the conversation about whether both Kiffin and Summrall were dealing with the same type of dilemma was spurned by a question about his decision to leave Tulane.
While Kiffin and Sumrall have discussed the situation numerous times since last December, there was one part of the process that the two coaches did not agree on.
They were not the same situations, at all.
“I’d say no two decisions are alike, right,” Sumrall noted. “Lane and I are friends, and talked several times during the process in October and November about what it was looking like about how things were going to unfold.
“Lane said ‘you and I are going through the same thing’ and I’m like, ‘No Lane, we’re not. If you leave, you’re leaving an SEC school to go to an SEC school’. I was leaving Tulane. But, it was challenging to do it, but I wouldn’t have done it any other way. I wanted to make sure I left Tulane the right way. If any university told me I couldn’t coach in the playoff game I don’t think I would’ve taken the job just because I couldn’t leave the team I had coached all year.”
No, he’s not wrong, though I’m sure Kiffin will have a rebuttal on Thursday when he takes the podium as the LSU head coach.
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If the incident that transpired during the Florida head coach’s news conference had taken place during a team meeting, the reporter whose phone started playing an interesting choice of music would have been kicked out of the room in Gainesville.
Luckily, this hilarious moment took place during the third day of SEC news conferences, far away from the meeting rooms just up the road from Florida’s campus.
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While speaking on his decision to leave Tulane, it just so happened that a reporter was away from his computer, and could not make it in time during Sumrall’s press conference to turn it off. This led to a funny exchange with the Gators head coach, while he was also poking fun at Lane Kiffin.
“You would be kicked out of our team meeting, I swear,” Sumrall said to the room. “Like you’re lucky I’m not going throw this podium right now. That drives me crazy. I would say who is that, but I’m not going to embarrass anybody.”
There was no bleep button for Sumrall
There might not be a more authentic coach in the SEC, besides Pete Golding, then Jon Sumrall, as both of them make their conference debuts this season.
Also, if you thought either coach was going to get through a press conference without cussing at least once, you most certainly lost that bet on Wednesday in Tampa.
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While speaking about Golding, the Gators head coach had nothing but praise for the Ole Miss ball coach, while also making light of Tulane being destroyed by the Rebels twice last season with two-different head coaches.
“Pete is going to be himself. He’s not going to change,” Sumrall mentioned about Pete Golding. “I have an appreciation for that. You have to be authentic. I think he’s going to do a phenomenal job. Really do. Happy for his opportunity there.
“Watching him, those teams to me…you know, we played them the first time at Tulane and they beat the sh*t out of us. We played them the second time, different head coach, still beat the sh*t out of us.”
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I for one welcome the coaches who don’t put a filter on their words. Give me an authentic coach, no matter the situation, and I’ll show you a guy that will at least become a popular leader among fans.
We’ll see what Golding has in store, but the SEC clearly forgot the dump button during their Media Days this week, thank goodness.
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