Jon Sumrall, a 23-game winner in just two seasons as a head coach at the Football Bowls Subdivision, has emerged as the top target for the Tulane University job after the Green Wave lost Willie Fritz to Houston.
The 2023 Sun Belt Conference Coach of the Year and a two-time SunBelt champion, Sumrall has instantaneously transformed Troy into a Group of 5 powerhouse in two short years.
A former University of Kentucky linebacker who served three seasons already in helping coordinate Tulane's defense from 2012-14, Sumrall had three sterling seasons at his alma mater from 2019-21 that served as springboard to the Troy head job.
Troy had only won 15 games total in the three years prior to Sumrall's arrival, and his first-year success of a 12-win season set the school record.
He added 11 more wins this season, a second league title and has positioned Troy for a spot in the Birmingham Bowl opposite Duke later this month.
Interest in the job to replace Fritz at Tulane was widespread. The Green Wave have made two-straight American Athletic Conference title-game appearances, and Fritz quickly resurrected the program after its two-win 2021 campaign with a combined 23 wins since that time.
During the relatively brief search for Fritz's replacement, Air Force's Troy Calhoun, Jacksonville State's Rich Rodriguez, Florida State offensive coordinator Alex Atkins and Missouri defensive coordinator Blake Baker all emerged as candidates of different depths for the post.
Tulane also fought vigorously in an effort to keep Fritz and had vowed even more fiscal resources for its football program.
The 130-year-old Tulane program had never had back-to-back seasons of double-digit wins until Fritz's final two years.