Bruce Pearl was feeling some kind of way about his guards after Auburn’s SEC Tournament win over Ole Miss, and being on ESPN wasn’t going to stop him from sharing it.
Auburn edged out Ole Miss 62-57 Friday afternoon, advancing to the SEC Tournament semifinal. And when he joined ESPN after the game, the boisterous head coach gave a shocking reason for his team’s success.
“My guards aren’t p*ssies. They’re willing to go down there and bang a little bit.” – Bruce Pearl on ESPN pic.twitter.com/PelA4M3qn1
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) March 14, 2025
“The key to our 3-point defense is I’ve got bigs that can go out there and guard guards. I’ve got bigs that can guard guards, and my guards aren’t p*ssies,” Pearl exclaimed.
We know how Pearl feels about his bigs and guards, but would anyone dare ask about their small forwards? Once the shock wore off, everyone else on set enjoyed a good laugh at Pearl’s remark. A remark that may have been a first on ESPN, as we’re not sure Pat McAfee has even broached that term on his show yet.
“They’re willing to go down there and bang a little bit,” Peal added with Johni Broome sitting on set alongside him. “You know that.”
But sir, this is ESPN.
“Hey, ESPN! Disney’s not writing my check right now!” Pearl said emphatically to excuse the language. “Auburn is, okay?! I can get away with that!”
The frat culture of college sports certainly appears to live on with Pearl at Auburn, and even ESPN can’t do anything to stop it. This is an ESPN that once attempted to get Bill Raftery to stop saying “onions” on their airwaves. Yet, here they are listening to Pearl say something we can all agree is at least a little bit more vulgar. We’ll see if this leads to FCC complaints, as it did with Nick Saban.
About Brandon Contes
Brandon Contes is a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. He previously helped carve the sports vertical for Mediaite and spent more than three years with Barrett Sports Media. Send tips/comments/complaints to bcontes@thecomeback.com