Auburn’s Bruce Pearl to step down as head coach

“I have been at this for almost 50 years and truthfully as hard as it is for me to say this, I have come to the realization that it’s time for me to step aside. Being the head coach at Auburn has been the privilege of my life.

“There are so many people to thank, but the success that we achieved would not have been possible first and foremost, without the players who worked incredibly hard to improve every day on the court, in the classroom and developing into men. I’ve had the best staff in the country and can’t thank then enough for their commitment. We’ve had tremendous support from our university administration, athletic administration and the Board of Trustees, whom I’m incredibly grateful for. I want to thank Jay Jacobs and Jay Gogue for hiring me as well as our current administration, Dr. Chris Roberts and John Cohen, for their commitment to excellence.

“Auburn Family, I love you and I hope you understand that for me, it is time. Brandy and I are looking forward to the opportunity to continue serving the Auburn Family – just, in a new capacity. War Eagle!”

One of the most prominent men’s basketball coaches in the country, he currently ranks No. 11 among active NCAA Division I head coaches in career wins (694) and No. 41 all-time.

Pearl’s five conference titles at Auburn include three SEC regular-season championships and two tournament championships. Pearl also guided the program to its first ever No. 1 ranking in both national polls in 2022 and a school-record eight consecutive weeks at No. 1 in the Associated Press poll last season.

Pearl has won the sixth-most SEC men’s basketball championships (5) in conference history and ranks among the Top 5 all-time SEC coaches in overall victories (377) behind Adolph Rupp (876), Billy Donovan (467), Dale Brown (448) and John Calipari (432). His 178 SEC wins and six combined SEC championships (regular season and tournament) are tied for the seventh most in league history.

The 2024-25 season was arguably the best in program history as Pearl led the program to its second Final Four in six years, the SEC regular season title and a school-record 32 wins. Auburn was ranked No. 1 for eight consecutive weeks during the regular season and earned the NCAA Tournament's overall No. 1 seed, a program first. Senior Johni Broome was a consensus All-American in 2025, named the SEC Player of the Year and was National Player of the Year by several media outlets.

“Throughout his five decades on the court, Bruce has energized fan bases, won championships, helped student-athletes graduate, worked with young people to achieve their dreams, and impacted countless lives. The marks of true college basketball Hall of Famer,” Auburn Athletics Director John Cohen said.

“While Bruce has been a stalwart of college basketball for his entire career, nowhere has he made a stronger impact than his 11 years at Auburn. During his tenure on the Plains, Bruce has brought pride to the Auburn family as he pursued and won championships through relentless toughness and determination.

“I have seen BP coach over these last three seasons, not just games, but at morning workouts, and in the practice gym. It has been a pleasure watching Coach Pearl love the student-athletes so deeply and take pride in their success both on and off the court - but also instilling in them what it is to be an Auburn man.

“I know Bruce and Brandy will continue to be pillars of the Auburn community and that they will be strong advocates for the next chapter of Auburn Men’s Basketball and all of Auburn University.”

In 2023-24, Auburn compiled a 27-8 overall record which marked the fourth-most wins in school history. The Tigers claimed the SEC Tournament Championship title and league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament by defeating South Carolina, Mississippi State and Florida. They also finished the season with the highest NCAA NET/RPI ranking (No. 5) in program history.

Broome became the 14th player in school history to be honored as an All-American, after being tabbed SEC Tournament Most Valuable Player, All-SEC First Team and a Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Award semifinalist.

“On March 18, 2014, Bruce Pearl captivated the entire Auburn Family as he stepped off the plane and proudly declared that men's basketball championships would soon come to The Plains,” Auburn President Dr. Chris Roberts said. “Throughout his 11 seasons at the helm, Bruce backed up that declaration and more, bringing national acclaim to our program and pride to the Auburn Family. It has been a true pleasure watching Bruce lead Auburn’s program, elevate its stature and develop his student-athletes into Auburn Men. I am thankful for the tireless work BP has put into the Auburn men's basketball program and the way in which he has truly loved and championed Auburn University. Tracy and I wish both Bruce and Brandy the best as they enter this next chapter and we're thrilled that they will continue to be treasured members of the Auburn community.”

In 2021-22, Auburn posted a 28-6 overall record - the third-most wins in school history, turned in the program’s first-ever undefeated season at home at Neville Arena (16-0) and earned a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

The Tigers finished the historic campaign ranked No. 8 in the final Associated Press Poll and No. 14 in the final USA TODAY/Coaches Poll. They also finished No. 13 overall in the final NCAA Men’s Basketball NET Rankings.

The postseason saw two of its very own drafted in the NBA First Round with All-American Jabari Smith being selected No. 3 overall by the Houston Rockets and All-American Walker Kessler selected No. 22 overall by the Memphis Grizzlies (traded to Minnesota Timberwolves and Utah Jazz).

Smith took home National Freshman of the Year honors, while Kessler was tabbed National Defensive Player of the Year. Both joined Chuma Okeke (No. 16 overall in 2019), Isaac Okoro (No. 5 overall in 2020), JT Thor (No. 37 overall in 2021) and Sharife Cooper (No. 48 overall in 2021) as Tigers drafted into the NBA and developed by Pearl and his coaching staff.

Off-the-court, Auburn was one of six NCAA Division I men’s basketball programs to finish in the Top 25 of the Final Associated Press Top 25 Poll and achieve a 3.0 or higher team grade-point average during the 2021-22 season.

Since he arrived at Auburn for the 2014-15 season, Pearl has produced one of the biggest turnarounds in the college basketball landscape. Prior to his arrival, Auburn has an average RPI of 191.8.

In the past six seasons, the Tigers finished their campaign 16th, 13th, 27th, 11th, 5th and 2nd respectively in the final NET Rankings/RPI.

His teams have been just as successful off the court as Auburn has had 48 graduates since 2014 – the most in the SEC.

The 2018-19 season was arguably the greatest season in Auburn basketball history at that time. The Tigers won 30 games for the first time ever en route to becoming the first team from the state of Alabama to reach the Final Four.

During Auburn’s historic March Madness run in the 2018-19 season, the Tigers became the first team ever to knock off the three winningest programs in college basketball history in succession – Kansas, North Carolina and Kentucky.

In 30 seasons as a head coach, he has guided his teams to the NCAA Tournament 22 times (would have been 23 if not for the cancelation of 2020 season) and a 694-270 (.721) winning record.

Pearl is the only head coach (football or men’s basketball) in SEC history to lead two programs to a No. 1 national ranking (Auburn in 2022 and 2025, and Tennessee in 2008).

Additionally, he is just one of three head coaches to take four programs (three at the Division I level) to the Sweet 16, joining Lon Kruger and Eddie Sutton.

Pearl became the 21st fastest coach to 500 wins in his 691st game in Auburn’s 78-74 win over LSU on Jan. 19, 2017. He reached the historic mark between a pair of Hall of Famers, just behind Lute Olson and ahead of Nolan Richardson.

Pearl’s impact is also continually felt in the community. When he isn’t out buying lunch for students on campus or dropping into Auburn sports reporting classes, he can be found spreading the word of Auburn basketball at Auburn Alumni events throughout the Southeast. And if he isn’t there, there is a good chance he is in the stands supporting one of the other Auburn programs.

Pearl and his wife, Brandy, also remain committed to giving back to those in Alabama as they have raised over $1 million in his annual Fore the Children golf tournaments for Children’s Harbor in Birmingham, benefitting children with serious illnesses and their families.

Pearl started AUTLIVE at Auburn in 2015-16 to benefit cancer patients in the fight to beat cancer. AUTLIVE raises the awareness of cancer prevention and detection white t-shirt sales in 2016, orange t-shirt sales in 2017 and blue t-shirt sales in 2018 along with donations raise money to benefit cancer patients.

An ambassador for the university, Pearl’s selfless community service work and generous stewardship made him one of the most influential public figures in the states of Alabama and Tennessee.

His 30 years of coaching experience covers four stops, including Southern Indiana (1992-2001), Milwaukee (2001-05), and Tennessee (2005-11). A native of Boston, Massachusetts, Pearl began his coaching career at his alma mater of Boston College and followed with stints at Stanford and Iowa before becoming a head coach at Southern Indiana.

BRUCE PEARL STATEMENT

“Eleven years ago, I was given the opportunity of a lifetime to become the head basketball coach at Auburn, and it has been nothing short of amazing. With the Auburn Family’s unwavering support, we have built a program from the ground up and taken it to heights it had never reached before. Not only have we won championships, but we have built the best home-court advantage in college basketball, we’ve invested in this community and changed lives, and we’ve developed and graduated Auburn men. We built a program with the core tenants of faith, family and passion, and together, we made history. I hope we have made Auburn proud.

“I have been at this for almost 50 years and truthfully as hard as it is for me to say this, I have come to the realization that it’s time for me to step aside. Being the head coach at Auburn has been the privilege of my life.

“There are so many people to thank, but the success that we achieved would not have been possible first and foremost, without the players who worked incredibly hard to improve every day on the court, in the classroom and developing into men. I’ve had the best staff in the country and can’t thank then enough for their commitment. We’ve had tremendous support from our university administration, athletic administration and the Board of Trustees, whom I’m incredibly grateful for. I want to thank Jay Jacobs and Jay Gogue for hiring me as well as our current administration, Dr. Chris Roberts and John Cohen, for their commitment to excellence.

“Auburn Family, I love you and I hope you understand that for me, it is time. Brandy and I are looking forward to the opportunity to continue serving the Auburn Family – just, in a new capacity. War Eagle!”

AUBURN ATHLETICS DIRECTOR JOHN COHEN STATEMENT

“Throughout his five decades on the court, Bruce has energized fan bases, won championships, helped student-athletes graduate, worked with young people to achieve their dreams, and impacted countless lives. The marks of a true college basketball Hall of Famer.

“While Bruce has been a stalwart of college basketball for his entire career, nowhere has he made a stronger impact than his 11 years at Auburn. During his tenure on the Plains, Bruce has brought pride to the Auburn family as he pursued and won championships through relentless toughness and determination.

“I have seen BP coach over these last three seasons, not just games, but at morning workouts, and in the practice gym. It has been a pleasure watching Coach Pearl love the student-athletes so deeply and take pride in their success both on and off the court - but also instilling in them what it is to be an Auburn man.

“I know Bruce and Brandy will continue to be pillars of the Auburn community and that they will be strong advocates for the next chapter of Auburn Men’s Basketball and all of Auburn University.”

PRESIDENT DR. CHRIS ROBERTS STATEMENT

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