From 'work the cut' to 'so what, now what?': New coach Jon Sumrall reawakens sleeping giant Florida

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Florida coach Jon Sumrall gave his team a history lesson about Mike Tyson two weeks ago. It was more about Buster Douglas, really.

Douglas stunned Tyson at the Tokyo Dome in 1990 – long before any of the current Gators were born – and did so in punishing fashion. Douglas jabbed at Tyson’s left eye for 10 rounds, causing it to swell and bleed.

In preparation for Florida’s Southeastern Conference opener at Auburn, Sumrall provided commentary while showing clips of the heavyweight title fight considered the greatest upset in boxing history.

“Work the cut” became Sumrall’s theme for the week. He repeated it at practice, in the locker room, during pregame warmups, at halftime and even on the sideline between drives.

Florida responded with the program’s most significant road victory in a decade, providing a clear indication that the super intense and highly energetic Sumrall was on the verge of rousing the three-time national champion Gators from a seven-year slumber.

“If you’re not on Coach Sumrall’s level, he’s going to call you out immediately,” safety DJ Coleman said.

Sumrall is setting the tone – literally – for No. 8 Florida. He followed “work the cut” with “so what, now what?” And the Gators responded by routing then-No. 4 Ole Miss 52-28 in the Swamp, a lopsided victory that vaulted Florida to its highest ranking since December 2020.

Sumrall’s next challenge: keeping his guys humble and level-headed before playing at No. 25 Missouri on Saturday. His latest theme remains under wraps for now, although players may have offered some insight.

“How much are you willing to give?” left tackle Bryce Lovett said candidly. “It’s getting to the part of the season where people are starting to get banged up a little bit, starting to feel the wear and tear. So they’re just trying to push us and see how much we’re willing to give.”

Sumrall led Troy (2022-23) and Tulane (2024-25) to conference title games each of the last four seasons and the Green Wave to the College Football Playoff last season. He admits he recycles themes from time to time. But sometimes – like “work the cut” – they are new and unique.

“You accumulate things over the years that can stick with you,” Sumrall said. “And I try to message what I think our team needs based upon where we are within the year.”

He gathers ideas from notes he’s taken, books he’s read and people he’s listened to. The themes tend to resonate with 18- to 22-year-old players and could be more impactful at Florida, which has endured four losing seasons in the last five years.

“We all feed off it,” defensive coordinator Brad White said. “That theme for the week is all coach, and when he tells the team, we find out, too. Trust me, it doesn’t just motivate the players. It motivates the coaches. It motivates everybody in the building.

“Everybody that’s hearing that message, you’re like, ’Man, OK, that makes complete sense. We’re all in.'”

Sumrall’s tactics are reminiscent of those used by former Florida coach Urban Meyer, widely regarded as a master motivator. Meyer used every nugget he could unearth — even embellishing things here and there — to keep the Gators playing with an edge.

Meyer famously created a giant bulletin board before the 2006 national title game against Ohio State and plastered every negative thing being written or said about the Gators on it for his players to peruse in the hotel for a week. It fired Florida up before a 41-14 romp over top-ranked and seven-point favorite Ohio State.

Twenty years later, Sumrall is doing most of the talking – a purposeful and unfiltered approach.

He inspired players — and fans — before the season opener with a speech that included this line: “Lock the (expletive) gate, take their (butt) into the deep water and see if they can (expletive) swim.”

Before the Ole Miss beatdown, he said, “It’s time to put something put out there that sends a message to everybody that you’re going to have to deal with us; the bully is back.”

The Gators are having their way with opponents. Jadan Baugh leads the SEC and ranks second nationally in rushing, averaging 150 yards, and is the third player in school history (joining Emmitt Smith and Fred Taylor) with five consecutive 100-yard games. Baugh leads the Football Bowl Subdivision in scoring with 11 touchdowns.

Florida’s offensive line has been mostly stout; quarterback Aaron Philo has been effective and efficient; his receiving corps might be one of the best in the league; and the Gators are making big plays weekly on defense and special teams.

Together, they’ve done more than “work the cut.” Florida is throwing haymakers, having topped 40 points in every game and making Sumrall the first coach in SEC history to lead his team to 200 or more points in his first four games.

So what, now what?

“You have to humble yourself or you will be humbled,” Sumrall said. “If we don’t look in the mirror and hone where we’re deficient still, somebody else will show it to us. I’m very happy that we won last week. I’m happy that we won each week so far; it beats the alternative.

“But I’m not celebrating anything. Nobody in our building should be celebrating anything. If we are, then we’re totally off base at how you find success over the long term.”

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