NCAA Basketball

Will Bruce Pearl Get Fired? Charles Barkley And Kenny Smith Think So

If Bruce Pearl‘s job actually did depend on Tennessee’s performance against Michigan on Friday, as Tennessee athletic director Mike Hamilton alluded yesterday, things aren’t looking great for the UT coach.

Tennesee received a 75-45 beating at the hands of the Wolverines, and were outscored 42-16 in the second half. Pearl was well aware that his job hung in the balance, but in a post-game interview he said he thinks his body of work should speak for itself, and his “goal and desire is to be the basketball coach at Tennessee next year and for a long time.”

Unfortunately, it looks like it’s a definite possibility Hamilton could be terminating the coach’s tenure with the Vols.

Yesterday, analyst Charles Barkley made no secret of his opinion that Hamilton should be fired for his “disgraceful” comments (and for hiring Lane Kiffin). But today, Barkley said Hamilton needs to get rid of Pearl:

“I’m a big Bruce Pearl Fan, I think he’s done a fantastic job. Clearly he made some mistakes, but he’s got to fire him.”

Smith agreed, saying that despite Pearl learning from his mistakes, he doesn’t think the coach can keep his job at Tennessee. We should find out soon, but if Pearl leaves UT, a 30-point trashing is not exactly a graceful exit. Watch the segment below, courtesy of CBS.