Bruce Pearl has a long history of causing controversy, but it seems that every time the former Auburn head coach has opened his mouth during the last month, it has caused a major debate in the sports community.
On Thursday night, during CBS’s coverage of the NCAA Tournament, Pearl went on a short rant about North Carolina firing Hubert Davis after five years, questioning the Tar Heels’ loyalty to a former player and alumnus.
"I just hate hearing the words 'Hubert Davis was fired at UNC,'" Pearl said. "That sentence right there bothers me to my core... That's why I'm sitting here, guys. That's part of the reason why I'm sitting here. Because there is no loyalty anymore."
Following the comments, some saw the comments as Pearl taking a shot at his former employer, Auburn.
Bruce Pearl still has problems with Tennessee's lack of loyalty to him
It didn’t take long for Pearl to call those accusations false.
“There were some in the media that took my comments to say that I was complaining about Auburn's loyalty to me, and nothing could be farther from the truth,” he said on The Next Round. “That struck a nerve with me because you could criticize me in a lot of different ways. And I'm a big target, and I get it. But Auburn was loyal to me at a time that others wasn't. I was loyal to Auburn throughout my career.”
Pearl makes a good point, as then-Auburn athletic director Jay Jacobs was the one who took a chance on him after he was fired from Tennessee due to NCAA violations. It seems Pearl still has some bad feelings toward those in Knoxville.
“I had a situation at Tennessee where Tennessee definitely was not loyal to me,” he said. “And I was loyal to Tennessee. I had opportunities to leave Tennessee on many occasions for bigger money and what were perceived better jobs. I didn't. I made a mistake. I took ownership of that mistake, but Tennessee did not have to fire me, and they did.”
But Pearl has used his platform during March Madness to remind us why he is so controversial, starting by saying that Miami (OH) didn’t deserve an NCAA Tournament bid if the RedHawks didn’t win their conference tournament, despite going undefeated during the regular season. It was seen as both a shot at mid-majors and a ploy to get Auburn, which is now coached by Pearl’s son, Steven, a spot in the tournament.
We still have two weeks left of the NCAA Tournament, so people will be paying attention to every word Pearl has to say.