Florida Gators head coach Jon Sumrall is already having success in one very important area.
When Jon Sumrall took the reins as Florida Gators coach in late November, he knew that rebuilding the once proud program would be a major project.
After all, Florida went just 4-8 this past season and has registered losing campaigns in four of the last five years. That is beyond unacceptable in Gainesville.
But Sumrall has already been making serious noise this winter, poaching 13 players in the transfer portal and doing something coaches are rarely able to do: keeping players who entered the portal.
First, Sumrall convinced star running back Jadan Baugh to return to Florida after hitting the portal. Then, late Wednesday, the former Tulane head coach re-recruited edge rusher Jayden Woods.
It's rare for coaches to win these types of battles. Just take a look at what Ryan Day has had to experience at Ohio State this offseason.
But what makes it even more impressive for Sumrall is that he is brand new in Florida, so the fact that he was able to convince a couple of key players to stay speaks volumes.
Yes, the Gators have lost 30 other players to the transfer portal, but that is to be expected when a coaching change takes place. However, Sumrall was able to retain two of the most important ones.
Florida Gators coach Jon Sumrall. Credit: Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images.Baugh racked up 1,170 yards and eight touchdowns on 5.3 yards per carry while also catching 33 passes for 210 yards and a couple of scores during his sophomore campaign.
He arrived at Florida in 2024 and registered 673 yards and seven touchdowns on the ground in his freshman season.
Meanwhile, Woods was a freshman this past year and finished with 28 tackles, five tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks and an interception.
Baugh was originally a three-star recruit upon joining the Gators. Woods was a four-star prospect.
Sumrall has four years of head-coaching experience, having spent two seasons at Troy before taking the Tulane job in 2024.
Overall, Sumrall has gone 43-12, most recently leading Tulane to an 11-3 mark and a College Football Playoff appearance, where the Green Wave fell to Ole Miss.
Of course, the SEC is an entirely different ball game, so we will see how Sumrall handles himself at Florida in 2026 and beyond.
He is certainly making a great impression thus far.