Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl recently opened up about his honest feelings of facing a former college as he and the Tigers make their way to the Final Four stage of the NCAA tournament.
As they advance to the Final Four, Bruce Pearl and the Auburn Tigers men’s basketball will face the No.1 seed Florida Gators. More than the chance for the championship being at stake in the game, the matchup also marks the reunion of Pearl and his former assistant coach, Todd Golden.
In his recent appearance at The Paul Finebaum Show, Pearl was asked if meeting Golden as the coach of the opposing team and playing against him feels weird.
“It is, because the relationship is that close,” Pearl said in response. “But if we have to play each other, let’s do it for a championship, you know? I’m so proud of Todd and so happy for him.”
Pearl and Golden shared a coaching journey at Auburn University during the 2014–2016 seasons. Pearl, who had just taken over as Auburn’s head coach in 2014, hired Golden as his Director of Basketball Operations. Golden’s role expanded in the following season when he became an assistant coach, contributing to the team’s development and strategy.
Their time together laid the foundation for Golden’s coaching career, as he later pursued head coaching opportunities, eventually leading the University of San Francisco and later the Florida Gators.
I’ve been saying for the last two months that I’ve thought that Florida was the best team in the country,” Pearl added. “I thought that they were playing better than anybody. They’ve got an incredibly deep front line. They’ve got the best point guard on the floor almost every single night in Walter Clayton. Their wings, (Alijah) Martin and (Will) Richard, can really score. They’re big. And Todd does a great job coaching.
“This is going to be a great, great challenge for us.”
Bruce Pearl Leads Auburn to All-No. 1 Seed Final Four
The Auburn Tigers defeated the Michigan State Spartans 70-64 in the Elite Eight, securing their spot in the Final Four for only the second time in program history. Auburn’s Johni Broome delivered a standout performance with 25 points and 14 rebounds despite dealing with injuries during the game.
This victory marked a significant achievement for Auburn, as they joined Florida, Duke, and Houston in an all-No. 1 seed Final Four.
In his 11 years of being the head coach of Auburn, Bruce pearl has led them to two Final Four appearances (2019 and 2025) and multiple conference championships.
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Dan has been active in sports since 2016 and has worked behind the scenes as a scriptwriter for basketball, volleyball, and other sports. At a time, Dan has also been working as a sports commentator for CBA Pilipinas. During the pandemic, he has also been actively writing betting articles for CashBet and BetNow.
