Florida's Jon Sumrall addresses calling out reporter at SEC media event

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Matthew Couden

By Matthew Couden

Contributing Writer

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Florida coach Jon Sumrall raised eyebrows at Wednesday's SEC Media Days when he called out a reporter for their phone going off, and his remarks drew laughs.

"You would be kicked out of our team meeting. You're lucky I'm not gonna throw this freaking podium right now. That drives me crazy," Sumrall said, adding, "I would say, 'Who is that?' but I'm not gonna embarrass anybody."

Former Indiana Hoosiers basketball coach Tom Crean tweeted, calling out the Florida football coach over what happened, suggesting that Sumrall "can't be serious about embarrassing that person," and "at least you got laughs at their expense."

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"You are right Tom. I wasn’t serious. I was joking," Sumrall wrote in his X message as a reply.

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Florida head coach Jon Sumrall speaks at SEC Football Kickoff Media Day

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This upcoming college football season marks Sumrall's first as the Florida Gators coach, so there will likely be more of that from him at press conferences. He's taken over a team that struggled to regain previous success in its past several seasons under former head coach Billy Napier.

Florida fired Napier last season after just seven games and a 3-4 record out of the gates. Sumrall comes in with a solid resume, having led Troy and Tulane to conference championships during his stints as the schools' head coach.

However, the SEC brings new challenges, as it's been a conference where Ole Miss, Alabama, Georgia, and Texas A&M have recently ruled, with other contenders including Texas and Vanderbilt. Florida finished at just 2-6 last season and 4-8 overall, missing out on a Bowl game.

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One of the first big steps for Sumrall and his staff will be determining who wins the starting quarterback job between Georgia Tech transfer Aaron Philo and Tramell Jones Jr., who is in his second year with Florida.

Per ESPN, Sumrall said that whoever becomes the team's starting quarterback doesn't need to play like Tim Tebow, but needs to be able to manage a game effectively, as they will have capable skill players around them in the coming season.

Florida starts its season on Saturday, Sept. 5, against the Florida Atlantic Owls at 7:45 p.m. ET.