Steven Pearl was officially introduced as the 22nd head coach of Auburn men’s basketball on Wednesday, and he has quickly set the standard for how the program will operate under his watch.
As expected, Pearl addressed how different the program will operate compared to how his father, former Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl, ran the ship. Steven Pearl assures Auburn fans that he would “be a fool” to change how the program operates just to prove that he is not his father. He believes that his father’s formula has led to the rise of the program over the last 11 seasons.
“The truth is, so many of the principles and the practices that we’ve built this program on over the last 11 years are things that all of us have had our hands on every single day on this staff to have the success we’ve had over the last 11 years,” Pearl said Wednesday. “When it comes to academic expectations, character assessments, team-building, servant leadership, recruiting philosophy, player development, offensive and defensive game-planning, you’re going to see a lot of the same things you’ve seen over the last 11 years that has guided us because they’ve delivered results.”
One plan to keep momentum is by retaining the entire coaching staff. Nearly all assistant coaches received a promotion as a result of Steven Pearl’s move to head coach. Assistant coach Ira Bowman, who Steven Pearl calls “one of the best assistant coaches in all of college basketball,” has been promoted to associate head coach, while Matt Gatens, who joined Auburn’s staff as the general manager during the offseason, moves to assistant coach. Mike Burgomaster, Corey Williams, and Ian Borders will also remain on staff.
“The Auburn Family today should be celebrating the retention of this staff right here. This staff has been with BP for a very long time. And this staff is a big reason why this program has reached unprecedented heights,” Pearl said. “I recognize following the greatest coach in Auburn basketball history, a coach who’s dominated this league for the last eight years, is a daunting task. But what gives me tremendous confidence is those men right over there. This staff is one that BP has empowered. It’s one that he’s entrusted, and it’s one that has their fingerprints all over the success of this program. BP has said for a long time that we have the best staff in college basketball, and he’s 100 percent right.”
Now that Steven Pearl has officially been introduced, the headlines now center around the transfer portal as each Auburn player has 30 days to enter if they choose following a change at head coach. There is no doubt that Steven Pearl and his staff will work to keep Auburn’s roster, which includes several key transfers and returning point guard Tahaad Pettiford, intact.
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Pearl’s debut as Auburn’s head coach is set for Oct. 15 when the Tigers face Oklahoma State at Boutwell Auditorium in Birmingham for an exhibition matchup.
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This article originally appeared on Auburn Wire: Auburn basketball: Steven Pearl speaks to media for first time
