While Auburn fans wait to hear who the next head football coach will be for the Tigers, it seems that the decision and agreement have already been made.
On a recent episode of the "Phantom Episode" podcast, Steven Godfrey of The Washington Post detailed how Auburn already has its man in Tulane head coach Jon Sumrall.
“Jon Sumrall's going to Auburn,” Godfrey said. "As of right now, Jon Sumrall is going to Auburn. I've heard conflicting schedules on how Auburn would handle a Tulane playoff run. But yeah, if you're Auburn right now, you need to be cheering against Tulane."
Sumrall's name has been at the top of Auburn's list since Hugh Freeze's firing on November 2. In his second season with the Green Wave, the 43-year-old coach has them 9-2 and, as Godfrey stated, flirting with a spot in the College Football Playoff. This follows his first season in New Orleans, where he led Tulane to a 9-5 record, including 7-1 in the American Athletic Conference.
While Godfrey thinks the deal is as good as done, he has one nightmare scenario that could mess it up.
“Sumrall's going, and the other thing that you [don’t] want as an Auburn fan—I'm not saying it's going to come down to this, because I do think conversations have progressed to a point where plans are being made—but you don't want Ole Miss to come crashing in at the last second and saying like, ‘All right, we just lost Lane (Kiffin) to Florida," he said. "Let's try and get an offer out to Jon ASAP."
While it seems that Auburn would be the better job historically, Kiffin has shown that with the right coach in Oxford, the Rebels can compete with the best in the country.
Tulane routed Temple on Saturday, 37-13, to move to 9-2.