Auburn football fans react to being called “basketball school” by recruit

Though Auburn football suffered their first SEC loss over the weekend to the now top-ranked Georgia Bulldogs, they benefited from having so many recruits present on campus for the game. Prospective Tigers got to see one of the craziest atmospheres in college football in addition to shirtless Bruce Pearl and Cam Newton.

Visiting recruits have raved about their experiences at the game after Jordan-Hare Stadium lived up to their biggest SEC expectations. But it wasn’t only the football recruits that were impressed with the Tigers’ gameday.

Also present on campus for the SEC matchup were several basketball recruits, including one of Bruce Pearl and Auburn basketball’s top 2023 targets, Stephon Castle. After his official visit over the weekend, the shooting guard hit Auburn football fans with a statement that was surprising but also sort of expected, per Christian Clemente:

"“The atmosphere was way different than I expected. Knowing how big of a basketball school they are, I didn’t expect the football games to be like that too.”"

So… did a basketball recruit just refer to Auburn as a basketball school? For most fans, it’s a bittersweet phenomenon. While we’ve all waited forever to be publicly recognized as a basketball school, it doesn’t mean that we don’t want to also be known as a football school.

On the other hand, it’s a huge testament to the work that Bruce Pearl has put in on the Plains, and just how impactful the last few teams have been for the basketball program. Overall, no one is hating on a little recognition for Bruce Pearl, but it would feel a little better if the football program was coming off of a win rather than a loss:

Just like Bruce Pearl built up the Auburn basketball program, Bryan Harsin is well on his way to building up the Auburn football program.