GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Florida coach Jon Sumrall’s assistants will make a combined $11.2 million in 2026, a significant investment for a program desperate to win more often.

Offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner tops the list after signing a three-year, $6.6 million contract to leave Georgia Tech and join Sumrall in Gainesville. Faulker will get $2.1 million in 2026 – the first $2 million coordinator in school history – and has a $100,000 raise set for each of the next two years.

Only six college offensive coordinators were paid $2 million or more in 2025, according to CBS Sports. Fifteen defensive coordinators topped $2 million.

Florida defensive coordinator Brad White signed a three-year, $5.85 million deal that starts at $1.85 million and also includes a $100,000 raise in 2027 and 2028.

The Gators released the contracts Thursday in response to a public records request.

Sumrall signed a six-year, $44.7 million contract last year that averages $7.45 million annually. The Gators will dole out more than $20 million to Sumrall, his staff of 15 assistants and a front office led by new general manager Dave Caldwell.

Four of the assistants are scheduled to earn at least $1 million during their deals.

Defensive line coach Gerald Chapman and offensive line coach Phil Trautwine will join Faulker and White in the seven-figure club. Chapman, the lone holdover from former Florida coach Billy Napier’s staff, will make $950,000 this year and $1 million in 2027. Trautwine, meanwhile, starts at $750,000 and jumps to $1 million. Both signed two-year deals.

Their salaries show Sumrall’s commitment to rebuilding the team along both lines of scrimmage in the powerhouse Southeastern Conference.

Napier’s 12-man coaching staff was paid a combined $7.5 million in 2025. The Gators posted three losing seasons in Napier’s four years.

The rest of Sumrall’s staff range between making $350,000 and $600,000 annually, all of them on two-year contracts.

STUART, Fla. (CBS12) — A major crash on the Florida Turnpike in Martin County has closed all lanes.

According to Florida 511, the crash is in Stuart near Exit 133 at Martin Downs Boulevard.

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Photos and video from the scene show emergency lights from responding vehicles, including Florida Highway Patrol units. Traffic can be seen slowly moving past the crash site.

A traffic citation issued to a woman who said she was accused of holding a phone in a hand she does not have has been dismissed.

Court records show the citation was dismissed at the request of the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office deputy who issued it. A court hearing had been scheduled for Tuesday, but was canceled after the case was dropped.

The citation, issued Feb. 11 along North Dixie Highway in Lake Worth Beach, accused the driver of violating Florida’s wireless communications while driving law. The case drew widespread attention after the woman posted video of the traffic stop on TikTok, where she questioned the deputy’s claim that he saw a device in her “right hand.” She said she does not have a right hand.

EARLIER STORY IS BELOW

A Lake Worth Beach traffic stop is gaining attention online after a woman was cited for using a wireless communications device while driving, but video of the encounter is now sparking debate over how Florida’s distracted driving law is enforced.

The citation, issued by a deputy with the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office on February 11 around 8:04 a.m. along North Dixie Highway, lists the charge as “Wireless Comm. Device/Handheld While Driving – First Offense” under Florida Statute 316.305(3)(a), with a civil penalty of $116.

In a video posted to TikTok that has since gone viral, the driver records the stop and questions the deputy’s observation. The citation indicates the deputy observed a handheld device while she was traveling northbound on North Dixie Highway.

During the stop, the deputy is heard stating he saw the device in her “right hand.” The woman says she does not have a right hand and plans to challenge the citation in court. She has also requested body camera footage from PBSO. CBS12 has submitted a public records request for that footage as well.

What Florida law actually says

Florida’s Wireless Communications While Driving Law has been in effect since 2013 and was strengthened in 2019, making texting while driving a primary offense, meaning drivers can be pulled over solely for that violation.

Under the 2025 Florida Statutes, drivers may not manually type or enter letters, numbers, or symbols into a wireless communications device while operating a vehicle for non-voice communication, such as texting, emailing, or instant messaging.

However, the law includes several exceptions. Drivers are allowed to use a device for navigation or GPS purposes, receive safety-related alerts, report emergencies, and engage in voice communication that does not require manual typing.

“The statute’s actually really explicit,” Donahue said. “It says you have to be engaged in manually typing letters or numbers into the device.”

In other words, simply holding a phone is not automatically illegal under current Florida law outside of certain zones. The statute focuses on manually typing, entering multiple letters or numbers, or sending and receiving data while operating a vehicle.

Additionally, handheld use of a wireless device is specifically prohibited in designated school crossings, school zones, and active work zones. Attorney Ted Hollander with the Ticket Clinic says that distinction is key.

“Whether she’s holding it in her right hand or her left hand, it really doesn’t matter,” Hollander said. “If you are not in a school zone or a construction zone, you are allowed to hold a cell phone.”

Hollander noted that on this citation, neither a school zone nor construction zone box is checked.

“The fact that neither one is checked off tells me that this did not occur in one of those zones,” he said.

Enforcement and burden of proof

Hollander says it’s common for drivers to pay citations without questioning them — even in cases where the ticket may not hold up in court.

“So a lot of times people pay tickets that shouldn’t be paid, and this could have been one of those examples,” he said. “But luckily this lady seems to be standing up for herself.”

Donahue says enforcement can be challenging.

“It’s really difficult for the officer to prove that unless they visually see it or have it on their cameras,” he said. “That’s one of the reasons why you pretty much never see this infraction enforced.”

Donahue said that in his experience practicing traffic law in Palm Beach County, texting-while-driving citations are rare.

If a driver contests the ticket, the case would go before a traffic magistrate or judge. As a first offense, the violation is a non-moving civil traffic infraction punishable by a fine. A second offense within five years could carry points on a driver’s license.

Donahue notes that even though the statute is narrowly written, drivers should still exercise caution.

“You don’t want to be in a position where you have to prove your innocence,” he said. “Although the law is not that strict, you really need to treat it almost like it is.”

The woman says she has requested a hearing date and plans to fight the citation in court. PBSO has not yet responded to CBS12’s request for body camera footage or comment on the stop.

As the case moves forward, the viral video is reigniting discussion about distracted driving laws and how clearly they are understood by both drivers and officers.