It would be easy to dump on Hugh Freeze after being fired as Auburn's head football coach on Sunday. Auburn athletic director John Cohen already seemed to take a jab at him during his press conference the day after firing Freeze, who went 15-19 during his tenure on the Plains.
But it's another whole thing for another coach, especially an Auburn one who had just won his first game as the full-time head coach of the Tigers, to pile on.
That's exactly what Steven Pearl did following Auburn's 95-90 overtime victory against Bethune-Cookman, which wasn't exactly impressive.
Steven Pearl: "I know #Auburn fans are tired of being told to be patient, so we're going to get our asses to work."
— Adam Cole (@colereporter) November 4, 2025
Steven Pearl said the win tonight was "bittersweet" because of how the team played despite winning. The quote that followed drew some laughs
— Peter Rauterkus (@peter_rauterkus) November 4, 2025
"I know Auburn fans are tired of being told to be patient, so we're gonna get our asses to work"
Yikes, indeed. The Tigers led by just one point at halftime, and the Wildcats stayed in the game. It seemed as if Auburn would win in regulation, but a foul near halfcourt by Elyjah Freeman on Arterio Morris sent him to the line for three shots. He drained all three to send the game to overtime.
While Auburn pulled it out, it wasn't exactly the debut Pearl wanted as he was following in his father's footsteps. That may be why he deflected attention to other issues in his postgame press conference.