Now we know the answer to what’s next for Bruce Pearl: The former Auburn Tigers coach is coming to sports television.
TNT Sports is poised to announce the four-time SEC Coach of the Year as an analyst for its new college basketball studio team Thursday morning.
Pearl will team up with fellow studio analysts Jalen Rose and Jamal Mashburn, along with host Adam Lefkoe, for TNT’s coverage of the Big East and Big 12. Once the regular season wraps up, the team will also join TNT’s coverage of the NCAA Men’s Division I Basketball Championship, which is jointly produced with CBS Sports. Pearl has TV experience—he worked at ESPN as an analyst for two years before joining Auburn in 2014.
Chris Webber, Rose’s former “Fab 5” teammate at Michigan, is also returning as a contributor to TNT’s college coverage. Webber will weigh in at key moments during the season, such as the Players Era Festival, a tournament held during Thanksgiving week.
“Our studio shows have always had a certain DNA that is unique to TNT Sports, and we take great pride in assembling the right blend of personalities capable of extending that culture,” said TNT chief content officer Craig Barry in a statement. “We believe we’ve found a distinctive balance with this college basketball team and we’re confident fans will be entertained by their perspectives, the storytelling and access they provide from their experiences in and around the game.”
When the 65-year-old Pearl revealed he was stepping down as Auburn coach in September, there was speculation he’d run for the U.S. Senate to succeed Republican Tommy Tuberville, who’s running for governor of Alabama. But Pearl decided against a political bid. Like many former coaches, he’s transitioning into sports TV.
The outspoken, charismatic Pearl seems like a natural for TV. The enthusiastic coach led the Tigers to the Final Four in 2025 and 2019. Over his career, he won 706 games at four schools. Pearl, who is Jewish, has been a staunch supporter of the state of Israel, particularly since the Oct. 7, 2023, terror attacks by Hamas.
Pearl may have been too outspoken for some of his contemporaries in sports media. After announcing he was leaving Auburn, ESPN’s Pardon the Interruption cohost Michael Wilbon said he “had become a divisive person, it seems to me, intentionally. And I hope there was pressure to just get him out,” said Wilbon.
Wilbon’s cohost, Tony Kornheiser, seemed surprised by his vehemence. “Really? I always liked him. He was such a great guest,” Kornheiser said.
Pearl responded to Wilbon on Fox News’s The Will Cain Show, saying he wasn’t forced out by Auburn.
“I was a regular on Pardon the Interruption. And I love Tony and Mike and have had great relationships with them. A dear friend of Mike’s reached out and said this is not anti-Semitic; it’s probably political,” said Pearl. “If there’s anything I’m not, that is divisive. I’ve tried to bring people together my entire life. Maybe it’s an example of why we can’t agree to disagree about saying things politically.”
This will be TNT’s inaugural season televising Big East and Big 12 games. The network will show 72 men’s and women’s games from the Big East as well as Big 12 men’s college hoops coverage via a sublicensing deal with ESPN.
Meanwhile, TNT’s Inside the NBA studio show will shift to ESPN this fall as a result of TNT losing NBA rights. The iconic studio show will still be owned and operated by TNT at its longtime studio in Atlanta.
