Bruce Pearl Tells Dan Dakich He Won’t Take The North Carolina Job

Since the North Carolina Tar Heels fired Hubert Davis on March 24, many names have been bandied about. One that keeps coming up: former Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl, who led the Tigers to the Final Four in 2025. But Pearl insists he has no interest in returning to coaching at North Carolina or any other school.

Pearl joined OutKick’s Dan Dakich on Don’t @ Me Wednesday, and Dakich endorsed Pearl as a strong candidate for the job opening. 

"Let’s get it on record," Dakich said. "I’m hiring you if I’m North Carolina."

However, Pearl quickly shot down the idea. 

"I’ve had my run, Dan," Pearl replied. "I really love… working with CBS and working with Turner, and I didn’t leave Auburn because I wanted a different job or a better job." 

Sometimes, people give "non-denial denials," but that hasn't been the case with Pearl. He's been very clear. Dakich isn't the first person to suggest Pearl to UNC, either. 

Charles Barkley did the same during March Madness coverage over the weekend.

"You know what? I personally got great faith in this man," Barkley said. "I’m not opposed to Bruce Pearl taking that job."

Like with Dakich, Pearl immediately denied any interest. 

Bruce Pearl Rejects North Carolina Coaching Buzz

Pearl made it clear he understands exactly how hard it is to build and sustain a winner at a place like Auburn, a job he passed on to his son, Steven, following his retirement. 

"Auburn’s a hard job," Pearl said. "It was so hard to get our program to be a Top 25 program. And the only way we’re going to stay there is to continue investing in NIL, and Auburn’s trying. They really are."

He said Auburn’s challenge is that it is "an everything school," not a place built around just one program.

"We’re trying to get it going in football. We care about softball. Baseball is amazing. We've got two of the best golf teams in the country," Pearl said. "But it’s hard to be great at everything."

Pearl pointed out that's a problem for North Carolina, as well, which hired six-time Super Bowl champion Bill Belichick as its head football coach ahead of the 2025 season. Clearly, the Tar Heels are heavily invested in trying to make their football team competitive on a national scale. 

Bruce Pearl dismisses North Carolina coaching rumors and questions UNC’s plan after firing Hubert Davis.

(Imagn Images)

Plus, North Carolina isn't the type of school to allow its basketball coaches too much slack. A few rough seasons were enough to get Hubert Davis, who led the team to a national championship appearance in 2022, relieved of his duties. 

Pearl Questions UNC’s Plan After Hubert Davis Firing

Pearl noted that last season was "really the first year Hubert Davis had the kind of NIL money where he could build a roster," before adding, "Guess what? He did build a roster. He just got a couple of devastating injuries."

Caleb Wilson, a five-star recruit and a projected Top 5 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, suffered two separate injuries that ultimately ended his season in February. Davis also had a projected Top 10 recruiting class for the 2026-27 season before losing his job. And that's where Pearl questioned North Carolina's decision-making process. 

"I don’t like to do anything unless I've got a plan. What was North Carolina’s plan for replacing Hubert Davis?" Pearl asked. "If you’re gonna make a move like that, that’s fine. I get it. I’m a big boy. But you better have a plan."

That's when Pearl suggested that UNC might have a plan that it can't yet execute. 

"There’s got to be somebody that’s still coaching in this Final Four that they’ve got their eye on. If there’s not, if they don’t think they [can get] Dusty [May] or [Tommy] Lloyd, then what were they doing?"

So, not only does Bruce Pearl have no interest in taking the North Carolina job, he doesn’t sound especially impressed with the way UNC has handled the situation.

As Pearl said, they better hit a home run in this coaching search, or it's going to be a terrible look for the school.