Auburn men’s basketball coach Bruce Pearl’s announcement that he is retiring ahead of the 2025-26 season has re-ignited speculation that he is setting his sights on the U.S. Senate.
Pearl, 65, announced Monday, Sept. 22, that he is stepping down from the role he has held for the past 11 seasons. Pearl’s son, Steven, an associate head coach for Auburn, signed a five-year contract to become head coach.
But enough about basketball.
U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Alabama, announced in May his plans to run for governor of his home state. The former Auburn football coach capitalized on his profile to claim one of Alabama’s two Senate seats in 2021.
With Tuberville headed toward a 2026 gubernatorial run, the race to replace him in deeply conservative Alabama is heating up. A handful of Republicans have already announced their intention to run for Tuberville’s seat.
But what about Pearl?
Asked earlier in September whether he was considering a Senate run, Pearl said he ‘had considered’ and ‘thought a great deal about’ the possibility but was noncommittal.
A vocal supporter of President Donald Trump and an engaging and polished speaker, Pearl certainly fits the bill of a high-profile conservative who could follow Tuberville’s path from sports to politics.
On Monday, however, Pearl signaled his intention to remain with the university.
‘Many of you know that I thought and prayed about maybe running for United Staes Senate,’ Pearl said in a video announcing his retirement. ‘Maybe to be the next great Senator of Alabama. That would have required leaving Auburn. Instead, the university has given me the opportunity to stay here and be Auburn’s senator.’
What that exactly means will be revealed in the future, but it will keep Pearl off the ballots in Alabama, at least for now.