After missing out on Lane Kiffin to be the next head coach, the Florida Gators had to pivot and hire Jon Sumrall. Luckily for them, it appears to be the right choice.

In the seven months he’s been on the job, Sumrall has changed the culture of the program. Recruits are raving about how things are in Gainesville, and it has the fanbase hopeful. However hopeful the fanbase may be, they’ve been there before. When Billy Napier’s tenure began, the feelings were the same. This time, it feels different, mainly due to how Sumrall is going about his business.

How will the season go? There are a multitude of different possibilities, so I asked AI engine Grok to break down what that could look like.

Grok’s game-by-game results for the 2026 regular season

Last season, the Gators finished 4-8, with Napier being fired after a win to get to 3-4. It wasn’t great for a multutide of reasons, but this season feels different, and Grok saw it the same way.

Florida started 4-0 with two blowouts and a couple of close games to kick off SEC play.

• vs. Florida Atlantic: 48-14 win
• vs. Campbell: 56-6 win
• @ Auburn: 27-24 win
• vs. Ole Miss: 34-28 win

The next four games saw a different story, as they went 1-3, but all three losses came away from The Swamp, including a brutal loss on a last-second field goal against the Georgia Bulldogs, with starting quarterback Aaron Philo throwing for over 300 yards.

• @ Missouri: 31-24 loss
• vs. South Carolina: 41-17 win
• @ Texas: 38-20 loss
• @ Georgia (in Atlanta): 30-27 loss

At this point, the Gators sit at 5-3 with a 3-3 record in the SEC. It’s an improvement over where they were in the 2025 season, but it’s still not where they would like to be. Thankfully, they took a big step forward in the next three weeks, but they finished off the season with a rivalry loss to the Florida State Seminoles.

• vs. Oklahoma: 33-30 win in OT
• @ Kentucky: 28-21 win
• vs. Vanderbilt: 42-13 win
• @ Florida State 31-28 loss

On paper, an 8-4 record is good for where this program has been. Napier only had one eight win season, and that took a bowl game to get there. Sumrall wins eight games in his first season with the Gators, and Grok has them making the College Football Playoff as the No. 11 seed. They won the first game 31-24, but lost in the quarterfinals 38-24. It would mark their first playoff appearance and win.

Simulated statistical leaders

When you look at the overall performance of the team, 35 points per game, while allowing just 24 points per game is a massive step forward. They also had some incredible players on offense, and a stud on defense.

• QB Aaron Philo: second-team All-SEC with 3,312 passing yards, 27 touchdowns, and eight interceptions on 64.2% completions.
• RB Jadan Baugh: First-team All-SEC and Doak Walker semifinalist, with 1,278 yards rushing and 14 touchdowns
• EDGE Jayden Woods: First-team All-SEC selection with 11.5 sacks on the season
• WR Eric Singleton: First-team All-SEC selection with 947 receiving yards
• HC Jon Sumrall: SEC Coach of the Year

These are some really good numbers for the Gators, and it would be a major step forward for a program that desperately needs it. Now, this is just one simulation from an AI engine, which will always have some gray area within it. However, it’s certainly a plausible outcome.