Urban Meyer reveals his direct involvement in Florida head coach Jon Sumrall's hiring, sharing how he vetted the new coach and convinced him to join the Gators.
New Florida head coach Jon Sumrall is trying to set the standard Urban Meyer did when he first took over the program.
Meyer jumped from Utah to the Gators in 2005. He didn't let his players wear Florida logos until they earned the right. In 2006, Florida won the BCS National Championship.
Sumrall isn't letting his players wear Gators logos. It's a nod to Meyer, who left his stamp on the program with two national championships.
During Wednesday's episode of the "The Triple Option" podcast, Meyer claimed to play a key role in getting Sumrall to Gainesville. He has a relationship with athletic director Scott Strickland.
"I got involved, I spoke to some other coaches, and then finally, they asked me to do some homework," Meyer said, "and when someone asked me to do my homework, I am...
"I'm not even sure Coach Sumrall knows this, but I did some homework and had a friend of mine gather about 10 interviews that he did, and I had them pick them because I didn't have time to run through all of them.”
Meyer wanted to watch the interviews to see how Sumrall handles himself in front of the camera. He was impressed by what the then-head coach of Tulane showed.
“Coach Sumrall blew me away, and I called Scott Strickland back, and there is one issue... and that's Coach Sumrall's wife's an Auburn Tiger... And I don't want to get too much in the woods there, because that's his business.
"But when I heard that, then I flipped the hat on backwards, and I put on a recruiting speech. And I went after his ass now. And I'm so proud. Hey, Jon, I'm proud you're a Gator, man.”
Meyer wanted to make sure Sumrall could handle a challenging SEC job at Florida.
"Florida's a unique place," Meyer said. "Like all big-time places, every place has got their little niche, and Florida's a tough job. It's a demanding job, and it's got to have the right individual."
The Gators hope Sumrall is the right guy. Meyer certainly pointed Ohio State in the right direction with Ryan Day.