Bruce Pearl suggests the end of his Auburn tenure is drawing near
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Bruce Pearl said Thursday afternoon on The Paul Finebaum Show that he might not live out the rest of his contract at Auburn.
When asked about his future, Pearl, 65, said he has 5 years left on his current contract at Auburn, but he “would be surprised” if he “were to last 5 years.”
Pearl is entering his 12th season with the program this winter. He took over the Tigers in 2014 and has won 246 games in his first 11 seasons. Auburn won the SEC Tournament 2 years ago, then claimed the regular-season title and advanced to the Final Four last season.
But Pearl has been signaling recently that the clock is winding down.
During an appearance on the CBS Sports Inside College Basketball Now podcast with Jon Rothstein earlier this week, Pearl said he didn’t see himself coaching “much longer” as he tries to balance life and basketball.
“Part of the thing is, I also want to do it when I’m on top of my game,” Pearl told Rothstein. “Coaches, we want to be on top of our game because we owe that to our players and our fans. As you get a little bit older, you kind of take it one day at a time.”
Pearl is the winningest coach in Auburn basketball history. The Tigers have won 9 conference championships — 6 regular-season crowns and 3 tournament titles — and Pearl has been responsible for 5 of them. He has shepherded 6 of the school’s 14 NCAA Tournament berths and led both of its Final Four runs.
The Tigers lost to Florida, 79-73, in the national semifinal last season. The Gators went on to win the national championship and Auburn ended the year fourth in the AP poll, tying the school record for the highest postseason finish.
Derek Peterson does a bit of everything, not unlike Taysom Hill. He has covered Oklahoma, Nebraska, the Pac-12, and now delivers CFB-wide content.
