Bruce Pearl admits that ‘nepotism’ affected Auburn’s decision to hire his son
By JAMES MADDEN
Former Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl went public and admitted that nepotism played a role in the school hiring his son, Steven, following his retirement in September.
Pearl has been outspoken about his opinion on Auburn’s bubble chances for this month’s NCAA Tournament and spoke about it, among other topics with OutKick’s Dan Dakich on Wednesday.
“That’s objectively how I feel. Am I rooting for my son to make the NCAA Tournament? Of course I am. Did I help my son get the (Auburn) job, nepotism? Of course, I did,” Pearl said Wednesday, “People want to accuse me of something, saying, Yeah, I love the United States of America. I love my ancestral Jewish homeland. No, I’m not going to deny who I am, and who I’ve always been.”
He has seen his name at the center of various different headlines over the past few weeks, related to politics, teams on the bubble and an internet exchange with Miami (OH) Athletic Director David Sayler, following his comments about the 30-0 Redhawks.
Pearl announced his retirement in September, just a couple months before the start of the season, with his son, Steven, being named his successor just hours later.
In Pearl’s first season at Auburn since replacing his father, the Tigers are 16-14 (7-10 SEC) and currently 11th in the conference. ESPN’s Joe Lunardi has Auburn has the first team out of this month’s NCAA Tournament, with one regular season game remaining.
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