AUBURN, Ala. (AP) — Auburn coach Bruce Pearl announced his retirement Monday months after taking the Tigers to another NCAA Final Four.
Pearl’s 38-year-old son Steven Pearl is taking over as head coach of the Tigers.
“I just feel when I can’t give 100% it’s time to pass the torch,” Bruce Pearl said in a 14-minute video posted on social media.
Pearl had flirted with running to replace current U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville, who is giving up his Senate seat to run for governor. But Pearl said in the video he will not be a candidate for office but rather an ambassador for Auburn.
“Many of you know that I thought and prayed about maybe running for United States Senate, maybe to be the next great senator from the state of Alabama,” Pearl said in a video announcing his retirement. “That would have required leaving Auburn, and instead the university has given me an opportunity to stay here and be Auburn’s senator.”
Dear Auburn Family, I truly love you.@CoachBrucePearl x #WarEagle pic.twitter.com/xFJAEetMLv
— Auburn Basketball (@AuburnMBB) September 22, 2025
Pearl’s announcement Monday ends months of speculation that Pearl would join the crowded GOP field running for Alabama’s open Senate seat. An ardent supporter of Israel, Pearl has been vocal about his beliefs since Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
Pearl, who is 65, is leaving Auburn as the school’s winningest coach after taking the Tigers to the NCAA Final Four for the second time. They had never been that far until going in 2019 under Pearl, and last season were the No. 1 overall seed and had a school-record 32 wins before losing to Southeastern Conference rival Florida in the national semifinal.
Led by All-American Johni Broome, Auburn spent eight straight weeks at No. 1 last season, earned the SEC regular-season title and won a school-record 32 games.
Steven Pearl played 101 games for his father at Tennessee from 2007-11. He then was a medical sales representative for three years before joining the Auburn staff in 2014, and was promoted to associate head coach before the 2023-24 season.
When Bruce Pearl was suspended for the two games early in the 2021-22 season, Steven Pearl was the acting head coach in a pair of lopsided wins.
Alabama Daily News’ Alex Angle contributed to this report.