It will always be a fun fact for Gator fans that Florida was ultimately the team that sent Auburn coach Bruce Pearl into retirement. Alijah Martin’s slam dunks in the Final Four last year were apparently too much for Pearl to handle, and the longtime coach stepped away right before the start of the season, forcing the Tigers to give the job to his son, Steven Pearl.
Auburn may have won the battle this year against Florida, but they are well on their way to losing the war, and Bruce Pearl’s comments over the past week haven’t helped a perception that the Tigers are about to sink back into being one of the doormats of SEC basketball for the foreseeable future.