Bruce Pearl to retire as Auburn basketball coach after 11 seasons

AUBURN, Ala. (WRBL) — After 11 seasons as head coach, Auburn’s Bruce Pearl is expected to retire, according to multiple sources.

Sources say that Bruce Pearl’s son, Steven Pearl, will reportedly step into the role as head coach for the upcoming 2025-26 college basketball season.

Bruce Pearl is coming off a year where the Auburn basketball team made its second Final Four appearance. The Tigers were the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA tournament after winning the SEC regular-season championship.

Auburn fell short of the NCAA Championship round after losing to the University of Florida Gators.

“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,” Pearl said in a statement on Monday.

He added, “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.”

Bruce Pearl has hinted at politics after his coaching career and touched on it this month as a potential candidate for Tommy Tuberville’s open U.S. Senate seat.

“It’s certainly something that I had considered. It’s something I thought a great deal about, but obviously I’m here today and I’m in practice and I’ve got practice tomorrow,” Pearl expressed.

Pearl’s full statement reads following the announcement:

“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!”

He has led Auburn to six NCAA tourney appearances and won at least a share of three SEC regular season titles, along with two SEC tournament championships.

Bruce Pearl, who is 65 years old, has gone 246-125, while at Auburn and previously coached at Tennessee, Milwaukee and Southern Indiana.

He currently ranks No. 11 among active NCAA Division I head coaches in career wins (694) and No. 41 all-time.