Kevin Sumlin had a breakout year in 2012 after Texas A&M became home to new college football star, Johnny Manziel. After leading A&M to one of their best seasons in recent years, Sumlin's name naturally came up for multiple coaching jobs both in college and the NFL. The head coach has circled the NFL rumor mill before and was the subject of multiple team rumors during the offseason. The Philadelphia Eagles even reportedly offered him the head coaching job before hiring Chip Kelly.
The Eagles were apparently smitten over Sumlin and the way he coached A&M in 2012. The team originally interview former Oregon coach Chip Kelly, but were turned down as he was unable to commit to a jump to professional football. The Eagles shifted their attention then to Sumlin. The A&M coach admitted that he had been contacted by teams, but would not name any names.
"I don't have to say anything," Sumlin said in response to the rumors. "Everybody knows what I do. I've never coached in the NFL. I've had plenty of opportunities to do that, both as an assistant coach and even as a head coach. But there's a reason I coach college football, and we've got a lot of work to do here."
Sumlin was also offered the head coaching job at Auburn at the time the Eagles were considering him. He opted instead to remain with the Aggies and take a raise of $1.1 million. Sumlin led Texas A&M to a 11-2 record in the team's first year in the SEC. At 48-years old, he is considered a rising star in the coaching realms. He has had nothing but success in the NCAA world. He went 12-1 with Houston before moving to A&M.
"I'm amazed in one year how people want to flip the situation we have here. A year ago, we were a team moving into a league we didn't know anything about-the toughest league in the country. We had a bunch of coaches from smaller schools, and we were going to run a gimmick offense, and they were telling guys that we were going to get killed," Sumlin said.
Now, Sumlin will have to follow up with another year of success. The Eagles coaching job eventually went to Kelly after the coach committed to leaving Oregon. Sumlin's name will continue to circle the NFL wagon with each year of success he brings to Texas. He will likely have to fight off those rumors each offseason.
