Tulane coach Jon Sumrall has emerged as the clear favorite to be the next head coach of the Florida Gators, sources told ESPN’s Pete Thamel.

Florida turned its attention away from Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin earlier this week after getting the sense through irregular communication that he is interested in other options, likely a move to LSU or remaining with the Rebels, sources told ESPN on Friday.

Sumrall is expected to make a decision on his future by Sunday morning as he considers staying at Tulane or a move to Gainesville. He also received significant interest from Auburn, but the Tigers have since shifted their focus to other candidates, another indicator that Florida looms as the clear leader for Sumrall’s services, sources said.

Sumrall, a former SEC player at Kentucky, where he later served as an assistant coach and co-defensive coordinator, is 18-7 in two seasons at Tulane. He also won back-to-back Sun Belt titles as head coach at Troy in 2022 and 2023.

Sumrall, 43, garnered outside interest after his first season with Tulane, earning a contract extension after just one season at the helm.

Tulane (9-2) hosts Charlotte on Saturday night in its regular-season finale. The Green Wave can clinch a spot in the American Conference championship game against North Texas with a win over the 49ers.

Rivalry Week has already seen one upset that will affect a conference championship and College Football Playoff seeding. Could we see another one?

On Friday, Texas upset the Texas A&M Aggies to give A&M its first loss of the season and knock the Aggies out of the SEC championship game. Michigan is in a strikingly similar position. Ohio State is undefeated and No. 1 in the CFP rankings. It needs a win to set up a meeting with Indiana in next week’s Big Ten title game.

OSU has been largely unchallenged since defeating Texas in Week 1, and now it faces its biggest rival, which is hasn’t beaten in four years. Can the Wolverines pull another upset? It’s “The Game,” and we’re tracking the top moments and biggest plays:

Ohio State wide receivers Jeremiah Smith and Carnell Tate are expected to play against Michigan on Saturday, sources told ESPN.

Both Buckeyes stars have been limited in practice while dealing with lower-body injuries. The wide receivers are expected to be listed as questionable on the Big Ten availability report, but the expectation is they are available to play barring anything unforeseen in warmups.

Smith missed last week’s win over Rutgers after sustaining an injury against UCLA on Nov. 15, when he was seen with a limp leaving the field.

Tate hasn’t played since Nov. 1, as he was held out of the Purdue game on Nov. 8 after something bothered him in warmups and he was “a little tight,” coach Ryan Day said at the time.

Smith, a sophomore, is regarded as perhaps the country’s best all-around player. He has 69 catches for 902 yards and 10 touchdowns. Despite missing the Rutgers game, he is still tied for the Big Ten lead in touchdown receptions.

Tate has emerged as a game breaker for the Buckeyes and a projected NFL first-round pick. His 18.2 yards per catch leads the Big Ten. He has caught 39 passes for 711 yards and seven touchdowns.

They are the top targets for quarterback Julian Sayin, who is completing 79.4% of his passes with 27 touchdowns and four interceptions.

Ohio State is on a four-game losing streak against Michigan, including not scoring in the second half last year. Tate was Ohio State’s leading receiver in last year’s 13-10 loss with six receptions for 58 yards. Smith had five catches for 35 yards and a touchdown, which was his second-lowest output in the 2024 regular season.