For a basketball media event, Auburn hoops coach Bruce Pearl sure is talking a lot of SEC football.

You might recall that he declared the SEC West is stronger than the AFC South. When it came to discussing his AU colleague Gus Malzahn, he refuted the much-discussed storyline of the football coach’s status on the hot seat.

“We always talk about the hot seat. Gus Malzahn is not on the hot seat. He’s never been on the hot seat,” Pearl said during a television interview at the conference’s basketball media days. “He may be on the media’s hot seat, but he’s not on (athletic director) Jay Jacobs’ hot seat, and he’s not on the Auburn family’s hot seat. He’s one of the most brilliant coaches in the SEC.

“I told our Auburn fan base. I said, ‘What are you going to do? Are you going to stand by your coach? Are you on the Gus Bus or not?’ Well, let me tell you something. He’s got a great defense, an unbelievable kicking game. His quarterback is better than what people give him credit for. Huge game against Arkansas, and then we got to go to Ole Miss. But I’ll tell you right now, Gus Malzahn, he didn’t just forget how to coach the other day, and I don’t mind having the opportunity to say that right here and right now.”

[H/T: oanow.com]