Wait, People Are ACTUALLY Mad At Bruce Pearl For His Passionate Outburst?

While all the pre-tournament talk around the Auburn Tigers has centered on whether they deserve to get into the Big Dance over a team like Miami (OH), a new talking point has sprung up that has people clutching their pearls once again (pun partially intended).

As a former Auburn coach and father to current coach, Steven Pearl, Bruce Pearl was seen in the stands at Bridgestone Arena for the Tigers' matchup against the Tennessee Volunteers in the SEC Tournament on Thursday.

Things got a little heated as the Tigers blew a 10-point second-half lead, and the elder Pearl was caught on video laying into the refs with a profanity-laced tirade.

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It's clear that Pearl still has some of that fire in him that he possessed when he was a head coach, and this isn't the first time since he's hung his whistle and clipboard up that he's been caught giving it to the officials from the not-so-cheap seats.

Pearl is an emotional guy who wears his heart on his sleeve, and he always has been that way, so I was shocked to see the amount of fans who were ready to hang the guy up by his toenails for daring to show a little passion in the stands.

These people need to get over themselves.

The man is watching his son and former program fight for their tournament hopes and dreams, so forgive him if he gets a little lost in the moment.

And all the losers attacking him for being a CBS analyst while "behaving this way" at a game need to get a clue.

If he did this in the middle of a broadcast or even while at a game his employer was broadcasting, you might have a point.

But the way I see it, this is just a father rooting for his son and the program he was a part of for over a decade.

And you can spare me the "nepo baby" comments, too. They have nothing to do with his outburst, and you're just using them as an excuse to get upset with anything the man does.

It's fake outrage and it's, frankly, a little pathetic.

Let the man be a father and a fan and find something else to be upset about.