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This is an opinion column.
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News of Bruce Pearl’s retirement broke on Rosh Hashanah Eve. That’s certainly one way to blow the Shofar and ring in the New Year.
The Jewish New Year began at sundown on Monday. For those wondering, the year is 5,786. I had hoped that Pearl would at least coach until 5,788, but Auburn’s basketball coach had been hinting towards retirement for several months.
Is it related to a future in politics? We’ll see. He says no way, not after plenty of prayer and self reflection. There will be speculation, of course, but intrigue into Pearl’s future — and a new hope for a new year — shouldn’t take away from what Pearl accomplished on the court.
What an absolute legend.
What a joy for fans.
What a thrill to cover as a reporter and columnist.
Pearl was one of a kind, and it took his level of charisma and passion to turn around a dormant Auburn basketball program that was going nowhere. He was hired while still under a show-cause penalty by the NCAA for recruiting violations when he was the coach at Tennessee. Auburn and Pearl proved to be the perfect marriage. He walks away from the court having transformed Auburn basketball into a national brand and as the program’s all-time leader in wins (277).
And his final season as a coach might have been his best, too. He took his team to the Final Four in San Antonio and was named the AP’s National Co-Coach of the Year along with Rick Pitino of St. John’s.
Pearl never played college basketball and instead got his start as a team manager for Boston College, his alma mater. That’s old school. That’s the stuff of dreams and he finishes his career with a record of 706-268. Personally, I’ll never forget his run to the Final Four in 2019.
It’s like the NCAA wanted Auburn out of the Big Dance as soon as possible. The matched the Tigers up against Kansas, North Carolina and Kentucky — three of the bluey-ist of blue bloods.
Auburn ran right through all that blue. My God, it was beautiful.
Pearl was given nothing ever. He fought for everything he accomplished throughout his career and will be remembered as one of the greatest basketball coaches of all time. He loved his players and he coached them hard. He looked for every edge, too, and who can blame him for that?
With Pearl, it’s not so simple. He wasn’t just about basketball. Pearl was outspoken, and even though people might not have agreed with everything he had to say (including me), that’s what I loved about him most.
In times like these, that kind of respect and admiration is more important than ever.
Out of all of Pearl’s gifts as a coach and speaker, here’s what I loved about him most. Pearl knew how to bring different people together and make a great team. We need more of that. We need that at our highest levels of leadership.
Pearl was so much more than a basketball coach for Auburn and for the state of Alabama, and you could feel that energy on campus during the season and especially on game days. Students camped out in “Pearlville” for seats. Tickets to basketball games were hundreds of dollars. Pearl raised millions for the university and transformed Neville Arena into the best home-court atmosphere in the SEC.
Pearl was so successful at Auburn that Alabama had to hire Nate Oats just to keep up. Pearl became such a great coach for the Tigers that even John Calipari at Kentucky couldn’t match him in the end. They should rename Neville Arena the Pearl in Bruce’s honor and give him a statue right there next to Sir Charles Barkley.
There will be questions about Pearl’s succession plan for his son, Steven. It’s fair to wonder about the timing, but a plan has been in place for a long time. For those inside the program, Steven taking over where his father left off comes as no surprise. It was expected.
No one should follow Bruce at Auburn except for his son. The job would be too difficult for anyone else, and Steven is a brilliant young mind. I can’t wait for his battles with Oats, new Texas A&M coach Bucky McMillan and Steven’s close friend, Florida coach Todd Golden.
Steven understands the NIL world better than anyone else in the game and has strong recruiting ties throughout the country and internationally, too. Bruce will still be around to help Steven raise money. And knowing Bruce, he’ll raise more money for his son than he did for himself.
During the NCAA Tournament, I made a point to ask Bruce about the development of Steven as a coach. Steven has been coaching with Pearl at Auburn for 11 years. He knows everything inside and out. He’s sharp and he’s ready. Steven might not have any head coaching experience, but he has turned down multiple opportunities to be a head coach while waiting to take over for his father.
I spoke with Steven at length during March Madness because it was obvious that he was next in line. At the end of our conversation, I mentioned how polished he was during our interview and that he was ready to take over in a year or two.
He looked at me and smiled and his eyes got bigger than basketballs. It’s like he almost gave away his big secret.
Great young coach, Steven Pearl, but he might need to work on that poker face.
Bruce Pearl’s greatest gift to Auburn, in the end, was a solid plan for the future. The timing was right. The new year of Auburn’s rebirth is here. Blow the horn and let’s play.
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