Jon Sumrall one of the most intriguing coaches in college football

Sports Illustrated's Pat Forde broke down the 2025 most intriguing football coaches for 2026. Unsurprisingly, Florida first-year head coach Jon Sumrall made the cut, and it's for more than just his viral comments on getting pedicures — yes, this is still a topic of conversation and may never go away, for better or worse. Footcare aside, it's easy to see why Sumrall is considered the No. 17 most "intriguing" coach by Forde. Taking over an SEC team puts the spotlight on coaches, perhaps even more so at Florida after the recent shortcomings in Gainesville. Florida is still looking for the spiritual successor to Steve Spurrier and Urban Meyer. Will Muschamp and Jim McElwain struggled to build an explosive offense; Dan Mullen had the coaching chops but lacked an enthusiasm for recruiting; Billy Napier never met the standard despite recruiting well and changing the culture in Gainesville. Sumrall aims to avoid all of the issues, and he has so far. Florida's recruiting is going well. Phil Trautwein, a former Gator and Penn State offensive line coach, has the Gators recruiting some of the top linemen in the 2027 and 2028 cycles. New offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner is well known for his explosive playcalling and has weapons such as Jadan Baugh and Dallas Wilson to build around. The one thing that remains to be seen is how this all comes together on the field. Sumrall must win. A slow rebuild didn't work under Napier, and Sumrall has publicly said that his goal is to turn things around fast. Those kinds of expectations breed intrigue. "The former SEC linebacker likes pedicures, which is a fairly intriguing place to start. If Sumrall becomes the guy who ends a string of failed post–Urban Meyer hires, his nail tech could become the most important person in Gainesville," Forde wrote. "A guy who led Kentucky in tackles in 2004 might well have the right combination of proven coaching ability (43–12 at Troy and Tulane) and a personality that is big enough for a big job. "Sumrall’s worst year as a head coach thus far is nine wins, which is more than once-mighty Florida has won in a season since 2019. With four 2025 CFP teams on the schedule, Sumrall will have to keep the Gators on their, um, toes." Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, as well as Bluesky, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions. This article originally appeared on Gators Wire: Jon Sumrall one of the most intriguing coaches in college football