The 2025 Auburn football campaign unraveled quickly. Although the Tigers had a roster full of capable players, they repeatedly failed to close out games, and their offense struggled from start to finish. Those issues ultimately led to the dismissal of Hugh Freeze. Once the job opened, Auburn entered a crowded national coaching market. Among the most sought after candidates was Tulane’s Jon Sumrall, who reportedly had genuine interest in taking over at Auburn. However, the school mishandled the situation.
College football insider Josh Pate explained on the newest episode of “Bussin’ With The Boys” that Sumrall was initially drawn to Auburn, but became uncomfortable when it appeared that Athletic Director John Cohen was attempting to pressure him into keeping D. J. Durkin. According to Pate, Cohen’s insistence raised red flags about autonomy and authority, two things head coaches value deeply.
“They had Jon, Jon wanted the Auburn job,” Pate said. “I don’t want to gloss over that. In coaching searches these days sometimes it’s just let’s go get the guy we think is best for the job and he’s going to take our job because it’s the next step. Jon Sumrall wanted the Auburn job because he wanted to be the Auburn Tigers head coach.”
Pate added that Auburn had essentially secured Sumrall, but complications arose due to Cohen’s strong attachment to Durkin, who had served as the interim head coach. Pate explained, “There was also the DJ Durkin side, who was the interim head coach there. And I think John Cohen, the AD, had really become attached to the idea of DJ. He’s a phenomenal defensive mind. They wanted to keep him there.”
According to Pate, Sumrall favored the Auburn position even more than the opening at Florida, at least at first. But his enthusiasm faded once it became clear that Cohen was not simply suggesting Durkin, but trying to make him a mandatory part of the future staff.
“You maybe gauge Jon Sumrall during your negotiations and say, ‘What do you think about Durkin?’ and maybe Sumrall is receptive to it,” Pate said. “Maybe he says, ‘I like DJ a lot, you know maybe I’ll have a place for him on my staff.’ That’s okay. What’s not okay is then taking that at Auburn to mean alright let’s go ahead and extend DJ and let’s sign him to a new deal and let’s call Jon Sumrall and say, ‘alright he’s going to be on your staff.’ That can’t happen.”
In the end, Sumrall accepted the Florida job instead, and Auburn turned to South Florida’s Alex Golesh. Both programs landed strong hires, but Auburn’s outcome could have looked very different without the administrative interference.