The Florida Gators appear ready to push all their chips to the center of the table in an effort to lure Lane Kiffin away from Ole Miss — fully committed, with no hesitation.
According to reporting from Swamp247’s Zach Goodall, Florida currently has no backup plan if its pursuit of Kiffin falls short. The program does not rate Eli Drinkwitz the way Missouri insiders do, nor does it view James Franklin the way Virginia Tech reportedly does.
Goodall noted, “Since day one, Kiffin has been Florida’s top choice, a sentiment shared by athletic director Scott Stricklin, the university’s most influential boosters and fans. That interest has, unsurprisingly, already led to conversations between the Gators and Kiffin’s camp in recent weeks without Kiffin directly involved yet, according to multiple sources.”
He added, “No clear Plan B has emerged in Florida’s coaching search, according to the individuals Swamp247 spoke with. Potential candidates such as former Penn State head coach James Franklin and Missouri’s Eli Drinkwitz have been floated as exactly that, potential candidates, but nothing more.
“Neither Franklin nor Drinkwitz has drawn consensus backing as a fall-back option, either.”
Florida’s struggles in recent years mirror Auburn’s, and the Gators haven’t claimed a national title in even longer. Governor Ron DeSantis was even on hand for UF’s 34–24 defeat to Ole Miss at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium last Saturday.
Whether Auburn is willing to match the massive financial push Florida appears ready to mount for Kiffin remains to be seen — and avoiding that bidding war might not be the worst outcome for the Tigers.
Florida may have helped lower Jon Sumrall’s value for Auburn
Jon Sumrall also isn’t viewed as a candidate for Florida. Right now, there’s been “little smoke” suggesting he’ll end up anywhere besides Auburn. In fact, Florida may have unintentionally helped Auburn reduce Sumrall’s public value once it became clear that Kiffin had “a much better package” waiting for him in Gainesville than anything Sumrall was being offered.
Still, if the Tulane Green Wave were to crash the College Football Playoff by winning the American Conference and securing the Group of Five automatic bid, that could complicate the situation.
Anything short of Tulane reaching the CFP, however, likely points to Sumrall heading back to Alabama — the state where he grew up in Huntsville and captured two Sun Belt titles during his time at Troy.
And who knows? Maybe Sumrall ends up being a steal as someone’s plan B, while Kiffin turns into “a disastrous first choice” for whichever program brings him aboard next season.