Auburn is an amazing place to be 'if you love your God,' Bruce Pearl says

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Auburn's Bruce Pearl responds amid criticism of personal views

Auburn men's basketball coach Bruce Pearl responds to criticism of his views on OutKick's 'Don't @ Me with Dan Dakich.'

Auburn Tigers men’s basketball coach Bruce Pearl is the last person to shy away from standing up for what he believes in on or off the court.

Because of that, he’s received criticism from USA Today columnist Dan Wolken and former CNN contributor Roland Martin – among others – about his beliefs and how it could affect his recruiting classes. Wolken wondered about recruiting aloud on X while Martin wrote on X that Black parents should consider Pearl’s personal views before choosing whether their child should play for his basketball team.

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Auburn Tigers head coach Bruce Pearl reacts after a called foul during the Mississippi State Bulldogs game at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville on March 16, 2024. (Steve Roberts-USA Today Sports)

Pearl on Thursday appeared on OutKick’s "Don’t @ Me with Dan Dakich" and explained why anyone should consider Auburn University as their school to get a higher education.

"They should come to Auburn because it’s an amazing school," Peal said. "It lives by the Auburn creed. We can have these discussions on our campus. If you want to pray before your meal, you’re gonna be comfortable to pray before your meal at Auburn. It is safe. 

"It is a little bit leaning conservative, but if you love your God, if you love your country, if you want to love your neighbor, if you want to be great, Auburn is an amazing place to come."

Pearl explained why African American families should consider playing for Auburn.

Auburn Tigers coach Bruce Pearl at a press conference at Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena in Spokane, Washington, on March 21, 2024. (Kirby Lee-USA Today Sports)

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"You know, I was looking at it the other day," he said. "They were talking about why would somebody come play for us, particularly an African American family, I’m like, you know what, we got six guys from Atlanta in the NBA. Nobody in the last five or six years has gotten more men… I’m proud of that and those guys are unbelievable kids, and they’re doing really, really well. 

"So, I think kids are going to decide to come and play for coaches that are gonna hold them accountable, they’re gonna coach ‘em hard, they’re gonna love ‘em hard. And this other stuff, that’s just secondary.… Don’t worry about what people say. I really worry more about what I gotta do, the job I gotta do."

Dakich dismissed the assumption that African American families would automatically support Vice President Kamala Harris in the presidential election.

Pearl explained that he’s proud of the graduation numbers his teams have had. He said he didn’t know the exact number of African American players but about 80-90% of his players were African American.

Auburn Tigers coach Bruce Pearl talks to the press on March 21, 2024, in Spokane. (Kirby Lee-USA Today Sports)

"We’re just gonna do the work. I can’t worry about what people are gonna say and think," Pearl added. "I kinda worry about my God and how he thinks. Every now and then I kinda worry about how my wife thinks.

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"Probably my university president and my athletic director probably, you know, they’re taking some heat because I expressed some opinions as it relates to specifically Israel and you know what, it’s a great country so we can have this discussion, we can have this dialogue."

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