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It was this time last year that Florida fans tried their best to rally around Billy Napier tweeting out “Spot the ball” in response to the difficult slate of games that faced the Gators. Two games into the year, the only thing Gator fans cared about was spotting the buyout.
Fast forward a year and the sentiment Jon Sumrall is projecting in regards to Florida’s schedule isn’t much different. But given the context of everything he has stated this offseason, it also feels 100% more authentic than anything Napier tried to convey.
Jon Sumrall will not complain about Florida’s SEC schedule
One of the talking points at SEC Media Days this year has been the SEC's move to a nine-game conference schedule instead of eight. The result will be several teams losing out on a cupcake game at home, looking a bit worried that the conference might cannibalize itself.
Sumrall spoke with media members before stepping on the podium in Tampa and was asked about the nine-game slate. His response?
"I'm not going to whine & complain about being an SEC head football coach.”
During his appearance on the podium, he was asked a follow-up question about the last time he whined about something. Sumrall made it clear he isn’t playing a character when he makes statements like that:
“The team rule at our team is no whining, no complaining, no excuses. I have the same rule at my house. I cannot get it done at home. My two 13-year-olds, a 10-year-old, a 7-year-old, golly. I whine and complain about that. About the middle of the summer vacation, I usually look at my wife, and I'm like, why are they whining so much? But, no, I don't whine and complain a whole lot, man. Life's pretty good.”
Jon Sumrall is trying to change the culture at Florida
When Napier tweeted “Spot the ball” or said “Scared money don’t make money,” they sounded great but never felt genuine. Every other chance Napier got to speak, he often gave siloquies that offered himself an exit ramp when things went south.
Sumrall doesn’t seem interested in doing that, and what we saw on the podium in Tampa was simply a continuation of everything he has said throughout the offseason. For a man who has given as many interviews as he has, Sumrall hasn’t said a single thing that has made Gator fans go “Huh?”
Winning media day doesn’t automatically translate into winning football games, and Sumrall would be the first to tell you that. But as long as he keeps pumping out Kool-Aid that feels real and not some Great Value Drink Mix, we are going to keep drinking it until we have a reason not to.
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This article was originally published on hailfloridahail.com as Jon Sumrall has the perfect response to complaints about Florida’s brutal schedule.
