Jacqui Pearl reflects on her Auburn journey

If you have ever attended or watched an Auburn basketball game, you have probably seen Jacqui Pearl. Jacqui is the oldest child of Bruce, and if the camera ever shows her, she is either cheering, getting onto the referees, or releasing tears of joy. 

While the Plains are quiet this March, Jacqui recently spoke with The Plainsman and shared her side of the story on the Pearl's journey to Auburn and the Tigers' run to the Final Four. 

“I very vividly remember when Jay Jacobs and David Benedict came to Knoxville, and dad called all of us and said ‘I got a phone call from Auburn, and they are interested in interviewing me about coaching,'" Jacqui said in an interview with The Plainsman. "It had been three years since he had been in coaching, and to all of our understanding, it was kind of done at that point. I don’t know if he had ever thought that he would get back into coaching. As a family, we all knew how much coaching meant to him, and what he really missed about that time away from coaching. It was an interesting experience because we were very much a part of the interviewing process, and that had never happened before. Dad had always taken the job prior to us getting to meet or know everybody. When we heard he was interested, I was personally excited. I missed being able to attend games, and March is my favorite month, and I didn’t know what to do with myself, without being on the road at least one weekend during a month." 

Jacqui even remembers when she and her family were headed to Auburn. 

"It was exciting because Auburn to me at the time was sort of obscure," Jacqui said. "I had never been, I had never paid a lot of attention to Auburn in the past. When dad was at Tennessee, we played Auburn once a year, and that was my only connection to it. As soon as we met Jay and David, it felt special to us, because they were genuine, kind, interested, and didn’t tell us what we wanted to hear. So, immediately after dad took the job, I went to Belk’s to find an orange and blue tie for him to wear at the press conference the next day. It was a really exciting day for our family. When you hear of the ‘Auburn Family,’ it's kind of this obscure idea or catchphrase until you experience it, and we felt that from the very beginning.”

When Bruce took the Auburn job, it wasn't where the program is today. The Tigers had just gone 14-16 and 9-23 the year before. 

Rebuilding presented a challenge that came with some growing pains for Bruce. This was also a challenge for Jacqui too. With social media, people can express their opinion, which sometimes can ruffle your feathers. As Bruce's oldest child, she had to balance the personal side versus the public side of it. 

“People are going to have opinions regardless," Jacqui said. "Opinions are much stronger than others. When dad was at Tennessee, I refused to get a Twitter account because I was very nervous about exposing myself to the greater world of opinion in that way. It is a challenge for me when I see certain things and for me not to have the immediate need to defend or respond. It is a constant mind mantra telling me ‘Don’t read the comments, don’t read the comments, don’t read the comments.' I think you take it with a grain of salt, knowing that the majority feel positively about it. I know that haters are going to hate, and there is nothing you can do about that, and the best way to stop that is to win."

Jacqui feels that her dad has done a good job being able to turn programs that are usually known for football into basketball programs as well.  

"So, Auburn being what it was prior, I think there is a stigma that reflects the SEC, until very recently, as a football conference, with the exception of Kentucky," Jacqui said. "So coming into a football school again, because we did it at Tennessee too, the only way to make noise and to make buzz is to win. Dad has been arguably the best, in my very biased opinion, at turning programs that are not basketball programs into basketball programs. I think that’s something he has been able to do wherever he goes."

Early in Bruce's tenure at Auburn, there weren't always winning seasons, but Jacqui cheered on the Tigers, her brother [Steven Pearl], and her dad with all that she had. 

“Well, I think you know going into any program, you work with the talent you have, and you find a way to maximize that talent, until you are able to get guys that you pick to fit into your scheme or your program," Jacqui said. "I think luckily, we walked into our first year with some good talent on the roster such as KT Harrell and Malcolm Canada. There were building blocks there that just weren’t able to be exposed in a way that made them successful, even though the wins and losses for the first two or three years weren’t exactly what we’re use to or my brother Steven and dad were used to in the past, I think you could see real potential in progress."

Seeing some of the success at Auburn, Jacqui saw the program bring in some transfers.

"I believed once you could get a couple transfers or recruits like Cinmeon Bowers is the first one that comes to mind when you think of this big name high caliber recruit that just wanted to come to Auburn," Jacqui said. "It was just an exciting thing to see the initial spark begin, just knowing that it just takes a little time to get those flames burning."

Once the foundation was laid, the team was starting to see more and more success. 

While others might just wake up and just get ready for a basketball game, it is just way more than a basketball game for Jacqui. 

“Anyone that knows me will tell you I am one of the most superstitious people on the planet, and that manifests itself in very strange ways," Jacqui said. "My family and I have this ongoing joke, but running tradition is that - say for instance that we are playing very well, and none of us have gotten out of our seats yet to go to the restroom or the concession, we stay put until it is time, even if we have to use the restroom so badly, no one is moving. Conversely, if someone goes to the restroom and while we’re away the team goes on a run, we aren’t coming back inside." 

Jacqui likes to stick to what's working, and if it's not, she'll change it.

"So, I am a very superstitious person, and it may stem from me being a little bit of a control freak, but yes, I am superstitious," Jacqui said. "If I eat a certain food at halftime of a game, I will have to do that every time until we lose, or something changes. I’ll send dad and Steven the same good luck text, and if we win that game, it will be the exact same text, at the exact same time prior to the game. I take it very much to an extreme, but it makes me feel a little more in control of a very much uncontrollable situation."

In 2019, the Tigers were the fifth seed heading into the SEC Tournament in Nashville, Tennessee. Jacqui Pearl was one of many Auburn fans in attendance at Bridgestone Arena, and she remembers the feelings that ran through her mind. 

With wins over Missouri and South Carolina, the Tigers advanced to the semifinals to play the Florida Gators. 

“Honestly, I don’t remember that game being as close as it was," Jacqui said. "Sometimes when I experience a game firsthand I remember it differently, and then I’ll go back and watch it, and sometimes I will be like, 'What? I don’t remember that game being as close as it was. I don’t remember us being down at halftime. We did not play well in that first half.' I think for us and my family, we have been through a lot of these tournament cycles before, and you just never know. There’s never a good day to have a bad day, when it comes to tournament time. I think reliving that first half was very nerve-wracking. We did not play well in the first half, but Jared Harper shot lights out. He came out and just owned it. I remember Jared shooting that three, basically from halfcourt, and how the momentum sort of shifted. You get to those final couple minutes, and you were leading quite a bit, then they start to creep back. No team will ever go away, and anyone who has ever watched a game with me will tell you that I am not comfortable until the clock hits zero, and we’re up by one or more. We can be up by 20 with two minutes to go, and I’ll be still nervous. Too many crazy things have happened during basketball games. I remember Jared hitting that shot. I remember all of us going nuts on the sideline, but then it came down to a last-second foul. We were up three deciding whether to foul them, and put them on the line for two. We fouled them a couple of times before they actually called it." 

Auburn clinched a spot in the SEC title game, and Jacqui could take a sigh of relief.

"I just took the biggest exhale after the game, and at that point, I was like, 'No matter what happened in the next round, when is the last time Auburn went to the championship game in the SEC Tournament?' It was just another benchmark moment for the program to remember more than anything," Jacqui said. "That was a moment where we looked at it and said win, lose, or draw we’re here, we’re playing on Sunday, and we will watch the selection show in Nashville."

The Tigers were headed to the SEC Championship with a matchup against the Tennessee Volunteers on deck.

The two teams had just met to conclude the regular season. On a day celebrating the seniors, Auburn pulled off the upset over No. 5 Tennessee. 

Now they were facing off again in Nashville for the SEC Tournament Championship. Over the last years, Auburn and Tennessee had grown into a little bit of a rivalry. 

For Jacqui, this matchup always means more. She roots for Auburn but is a Tennessee grad. 

“You know anytime we play Tennessee, I would be lying if I said it didn’t feel different every time," Jacqui said. "Partly because there’s history there. I’m a graduate of Tennessee, my brother Steven is a graduate and played there, so there is some ingrained history. I also still live in Knoxville and work closely with the University. There are a lot of feelings going back and forth, especially in that game. Tennessee will always hold a very special place in our hearts. That team with all that talent they had, we were an underdog from the jump. We had just played them a week prior in Auburn Arena and having that game go the way that it did, I don’t know if I expected to win that rematch. I thought that was okay." 

Jacqui knew that while Auburn had won the first matchup 84-80, beating the same team twice is always difficult.

"It’s hard to beat a great team twice," Jacqui said. "I don’t know what [the team] ate for breakfast that morning, but they just came out with ice in their veins. They were not going to be beat by anyone that day. Again watching that game back, I watched it back a couple times, I remember that game being closer than it was. I don’t ever remember taking a deep breath, until it hit zero. All of my siblings and I just cried like we were little kids, just because it was a great moment for dad and for Steven, the University, and the program. There was a little bit of a nudge to do it in the state of Tennessee, in a building full of Tennessee orange and people I call friends. My closest friend and co-workers were there wearing Tennessee orange and it was pretty special."

As confetti fell from the rafters of Bridgestone Arena, Bruce was celebrating the milestone achievement with his team. 

For Jacqui, that was another proud daughter moment. 

“It’s always special for any child to see your parent or sibling succeed," Jacqui said. "We have a unique experience to have two of our family members, and people we consider family; when they succeed, they’re succeeding on the biggest stage in the world. It is a unique experience to watch people you love succeed in such a public way. Regardless of who the game was against, regardless of when it happened, to win championships is something you never take for granted. You can never expect it to happen because there is a lot of work to put into it. For us, it was just a really awesome moment, and a culmination of the years building up to that moment, both from an Auburn program perspective and from dad not coaching for three years, then two years in a row you’re winning championships. It makes me proud as a daughter, and a sister to see them persevere like that in a time where it could have been very easy to not come back and work for it."

Later that night, Auburn was announced as the fifth seed in the Midwest Region. In the Round of 64, the Tigers squared off against No. 12 New Mexico State. 

Jacqui might have been the higher seed but she knew that it was not going to be an easy matchup.

“I went into that game knowing that tournaments like that are all about matchups, names don’t matter as much as the matchup," Jacqui said. "X's and O's wise, New Mexico State wasn’t a good matchup for us. Going into it, we collectively as a team, as a fanbase, and as a family, that was the one I was most nervous about to be honest. Those selection Sundays are always fun to see where you’re going, but then you immediately go into travel agent mode. It’s like how do I get there, where are we staying, and how’s it going. It’s an exciting, but stressful time. To get through [New Mexico State], it was a huge exhale for the team, for the staff, and certainly for me. I couldn’t watch those last few seconds. We got lost in our matchups, [Trevelin Queen] had a wide-open three, and God is an Auburn fan, because that thing just didn’t want to go in, and on we went.

After escaping with a win over the Aggies, next for the Tigers, in the Round of 32, was the Kansas Jayhawks. 

“I looked at the Kansas team as talented," Jacqui said. "Kansas is always talented. It was a better matchup for us than New Mexico State. Sometimes it is nice to have a battle in the first game. Sometimes it is nice to have to grind out that first win. The first one is the hardest one because you’re cold, you don’t know what to expect, it’s a new arena, it’s more than one fanbase, and the atmosphere it’s so charged. So to go into that second game, I think the way they had to grind out the first win, and getting to exhale a little bit, it's naive to think that you don’t get a little more excited to play Kansas. What a blessing for Bryce, Jared, Horace, and all the seniors to go out their college careers saying ‘I beat Kansas.' While you’re never comfortable, luckily we played our tails off, and that one we had from the jump. There was a little bit more of a relaxed atmosphere during the Kansas game.

Auburn defeated Kansas 89-75 and advanced to the Sweet 16 to play No. 1 seed North Carolina. 

The blue-blood matchup's continued as one of the most successful coaches in college basketball, Roy Williams, stood in the way of the Tigers. 

While this was a big occasion for Auburn, it ultimately became a sad one. During the game, Auburn's Chuma Okeke suffered a season-ending injury. 

Despite the highs of the game and taking down a 1-seed, it wasn't how Auburn fans or Jacqui wanted to see it happen.

“It was a bittersweet day," Jacqui said. "As much as you want to celebrate beating a 1-seed and advancing to the Elite Eight, and making more history as a program, Chuma was and still is a player that is irreplaceable. How do you replace his versatility? He was one of the toughest matchups for any opposing team. Like, how do you guard him? He can post you up inside, and shoot threes from half-court. That one was tough. As much as you wanted to celebrate the fact that you won, it was hard to feel good about it. Knowing that Chuma had a season-ending injury, that was going to keep him from riding the rest of the road with us. I know his family was there, and it’s a gut-wrenching feeling. Chuma is a special kid... That was an emotional trip for sure." 

Auburn advanced to the Elite Eight where they faced the 2-seed Kentucky Wildcats. The two teams had met twice in the regular season, with Kentucky winning both matchups. 

Auburn had already lost twice to the Wildcats and was without Okeke.

“Honestly, it was almost like I was floating above my body, watching myself watch the game," Jacqui said. "Just an out-of-body experience. That Kentucky team was a beast. They had beaten us twice. It felt like an insurmountable task. It’s just hard to beat a good team twice, let alone three times, and we’re a good team, on many days a great team. It was going to be hard for them to beat us for the third time, but there was this Chuma factor, like how were we supposed to get this done without our most impactful player. He made such a huge difference on the court for us. I remember that first half, and we didn’t play great. There was a time where we were down 11, and we all just sat down and was like ‘Okay, you know what we did good. We did great, we made it here.’" 

In the second half, Okeke made his way to the Arena in a wheelchair to support his teammates. 

"We came out in the second half, and Chuma shows up to the arena in his wheelchair," Jacqui said. "Bless his heart, you could tell he had a long night, and you could tell that he was in some pain. We were all nervous about him sitting behind the bench, because what if someone comes flying over the bench and hurts himself more. Having Chuma in the building made a huge emotional shift for the guys. Sitting behind the bench, you could tell what the body language was like, and how their attitudes sort of lifted a little bit. They came together, they fought for each other, they fought for Chuma, and they battled back to send it into overtime. They won in overtime, and I mean I don’t know if there are words to describe that feeling for the first time. It was pretty epic."

Coach Bruce Pearl had led Auburn to its first Final Four appearance. Cheers filled T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Missouri, as the confetti fell from the rafters, and fans back in Auburn were rolling Toomer’s Corner. 

For Jacqui, preparing to attend the Final Four was even a new experience for her. 

“It is always a frenzy to experience," Jacqui said. "Usually, that time immediately following the game, you’re on Delta.com or calling a travel agent or something to figure out how you’re going to get there. For me, I live in Knoxville, which is not a major hub. Interestingly enough, Minneapolis was the only direct flight I had during the entire tournament because Knoxville goes direct to Minneapolis. I have a day and a half turnaround to get home from Kansas City to do my laundry, shift and repack a suitcase, and get back on a plane two or three days later. The Final Four is never something I have been to as a fan, or with a team playing in it. All the years we have been around basketball, it was a first for all of us. It felt like a completely different tournament experience." 

With Virginia, Auburn, Texas Tech and Michigan State in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Jacqui got to experience her first Final Four.

"What’s different for the Final Four is that every team has their own hotel," Jacqui said. "Each hotel is decked out in each team's colors and banners. Once you walk up to the big dome, where 87,000 people are going to watch a basketball game, it’s just surreal. For us, no matter what, it was an incredible experience. To go out the way we did was tough. As tough as that was, last year's team not being able to go to the tournament was tougher. They had worked so hard after that, for what could’ve been this altering experience.  Missing the Tournament due to COVID-19 was tougher than a foul on a three and a missed double-dribble."

Auburn lost 63-62 to Virginia in the Final Four. 

After Auburn's run to the Final Four, the 2019-20 season was cut short due to COVID-19. Despite, the abrupt ending to the season, it featured memorable moments like College Gameday airing from Auburn Arena for the first time. 

“The season was special," Jacqui said. "Issac [Okoro] was one of the most highly-touted recruits Auburn has had in forever, but a top 50 kid coming in. To see him progress the way he did in one year was incredible, and to have that senior leadership from Samir [Doughty], Danjel [Purifoy], Austin [Wiley], J'Von [McCormick], Anfernee [McLemore], and those guys, it was a special team to get to watch. The season was exciting. It was not without its disappointments, but we won big games, College Gameday on the Plains for the first time ever. It was like the coolest experience. Then coming to Tennessee, and beating them the way they did, it was a big momentum shift to go into the SEC Tournament. I was very excited about what was going to be happening the following week in Nashville."

Seeing Auburn play in Knoxville was the last time that the team was going to play together. As Auburn traveled to Nashville for the SEC Tournament, little did they know that the world around us was about to change very quickly.

Jacqui Pearl was en route when she received the news. 

“I was driving on my way to Nashville when all the things got announced," Jacqui said. "I called dad and said ‘Should I keep driving, are y'all going to stay there, am I going to get to see you?’ I had my aunt and cousins, and people that flew in for it," Jacqui said. "The team went straight back, I can’t imagine what that bus ride back was like. I was 30 minutes outside Nashville, so I drove to the hotel and met my family, and then I came home the next day. COVID was doing what it was doing, and it was like the world is going to shut down, and I was like I have no groceries in my house, so I have to go to the grocery store, and stock up for the apocalypse. It hit me very hard. I think it hit me harder than I would have ever expected to. March for my family and me is like a big family reunion. We have family from all over that comes to support. It was like the thing my family and I look forward to almost all year wasn’t happening anymore."

The 2019-20 season may have had an abrupt ending and while there were plenty of questions in the offseason if a 2020-21 season was even possible, it still happened.     

While some programs had numerous COVID issues, Auburn basketball made it through the whole season without a positive case.

"We never had a game canceled because of a COVID situation. It speaks massive volume to the commitment that these guys and the staff had to each other, to the season, to seeing it through," Jacqui said. "I’m not sure if many other young men on a team throughout the country would be able to do it. Regardless of how the season went, I am incredibly proud, and I hope the Auburn Family is proud of the commitment they showed by keeping social distance and being conscious of their surroundings, and their health, and well-being and doing it for their teammates and for the fans in making sure that they have basketball to watch this year."

Before the season began, Auburn announced that Auburn Arena was going to be at 25% capacity for the season. For Jacqui, this meant she was only able to attend two home games.

“I came down to two games, and I went when we played Memphis in Atlanta," Jacqui said. "In a very unprecedented year for me, I’ve never been to fewer games in my life. Literally ever. It was hard on me. I think more hard on my dog, my hardwood floors that took the brunt of my frustration more than anything, but it was a challenge to be distanced this season."

Not being able to attend games was not only challenging because Jacqui was unable to cheer on the Tigers, but it was also difficult not getting to see her family as much.

“It’s always hard. Basketball for me, especially getting to be able to come to Auburn is my time with my family, because my mom stays in Knoxville. The boys, dad, and Brandy are all in Auburn, and my sister is in Atlanta, so getting to come down to Auburn, it’s family time for me. More so than missing basketball, I’ve missed my excuse to come hangout with them for extended weekends, multiple times of the year," Jacqui said. "Watching on TV is certainly not the same. The refs can’t hear me in a way that  I’m certain they do, when I am in Auburn Arena screaming my face off." 

While the Plains might be quiet this March after Auburn self-imposed a postseason ban on themselves before the season started, Jacqui is looking forward to the future. 

“Buckle up," Jacqui said. "This Auburn basketball has taught us over the years that anything is and nothing should be taken for granted. If we look at where the program was seven years ago, I would rather have people be upset because we aren’t winning than anything. It just means that there are expectations of greatness. Sometimes as a fan, I know it’s difficult to see the big picture and the light at the end of the tunnel. This season was hard. It was hard for fans, and it was not harder for anyone more than those players and staff. Just know that those guys are going to work every day to get better. This season was transformative for guys like Allen Flanigan, Devan Cambridge, and Dylan Cardwell. What a light and joy we have seen in that young man. The future is bright. Trust in the process, trust in the team, and take a couple deep breaths this offseason, because we have a lot to look forward to."