Florida HC Jon Sumrall sends blunt message to his defense after 66-21 win
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Florida scored 66 points in Jon Sumrall’s first game as head coach on Saturday night and gave up 396 yards and 25 first downs in the same game. Florida Atlantic ran 90 plays inside Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, converted half of its third downs and four of seven on fourth down, and still lost by 45.
“Our defense was atrocious at times, quite honestly,” Sumrall said afterward. “So we had a hard time keeping pace with them. It was that way, in my opinion. Like, I watch that play, I’m a little bit frustrated about how we played defensively at times. I don’t think we’re as good as we think we are. I think we got some guys who feel like, you know, we’ve arrived in some spots and that will be addressed. We have got a lot of room to grow on defense. If it doesn’t happen real fast we’re going to get embarrassed and exposed handily in some spots, because that wasn’t a great performance by us.”
Florida won Jon Sumrall’s debut by 45 points, but he wasn’t pleased with the defense:
“Our defense was atrocious at times… I don’t think we’re as good as we think we are. I think we’ve got some guys who feel like we’ve arrived in some spots. That’ll be addressed.” pic.twitter.com/5ON2O3i7C0
— The Next Round (@NextRoundLive) September 6, 2026
Aaron Philo completed 16 of 21 passes for 275 yards and three touchdowns with an interception in his first start since transferring from Georgia Tech, and added a rushing score. Jadan Baugh carried 14 times for 160 yards and three touchdowns and was out of the game early in the third quarter with Florida up 45-14. The Gators scored on their first six possessions, went six of six in the red zone and piled up 624 yards. The 66 points were their most in a season opener since 1994.
The team that heard the “arrived” line went 4-8 last season, watched Billy Napier get fired in Oct and has three preseason All-SEC selections on the roster. Sumrall came from Tulane on a defensive resume, having played linebacker at Kentucky and coached the position there and at Ole Miss, so the side of the ball he singled out is the side he is measured on.
How much of this can be fixed by Sept. 19?
FAU led the nation in passing offense this last season and brought Caden Veltkamp back to run it. He threw 52 times for 276 yards and a touchdown, and Florida’s answer to the tempo arrived mostly in flashes. DJ Coleman and Dijon Johnson each picked him off, and the Gators forced a fumble on fourth-and-goal late.
Campbell visits Gainesville next Saturday, an FCS opponent unlikely to test much of what Sumrall flagged, before Auburn arrives for the SEC opener on Sept. 19.
“I think we need to get lined up with more urgency,” linebacker Myles Graham said. “I think we need to get our eyes to the sideline, get the call, and get lined up with more urgency. That eliminates half the mistakes, and we didn’t do that at points in the game.”
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