Auburn's Bruce Pearl accuses Barack Obama of 'dividing' America after Gaza stance

AUBURN, ALABAMA: Auburn men’s basketball coach Bruce Pearl tore into Barack Obama, accusing the former president of doing more to divide the nation than to unite it.

The 2025 AP Co-Coach of the Year made headlines earlier this week after going nuclear on Obama over a Gaza post, claiming he "gave billions to Iran and Hamas" and was responsible for "creating this mess."

Bruce Pearl slams Barack Obama

Bruce Pearl doubled down during an emotional appearance on OutKick’s 'Don’t @ Me with Dan Dakich', where he said point blank that Obama stoked racial division in America.

“I get so frustrated when I hear what a terrible country we are or how racist we are, how this is not the land of opportunity for everybody,” he began.

“Look, we’ve got a lot to work on, and there is racism that absolutely does exist, and it’s wrong,” he continued. “But it’s a lot better for my players than it was for their fathers, and their fathers’ fathers. I want my guys to recognize that there are going to be obstacles, but not roadblocks. That’s what Barack Obama did," the coach added.

For Pearl, the beef runs deeper than foreign policy—into what he sees as the cultural narrative Obama distorted.

“As our president, I disagreed with so many of his policies,” he said. “I thought that rather than uniting us as a country... he divided us. Everything was Black and White. Everything was [about] the obstacles that were against my players from being successful.”

Pearl, who is Jewish, added that he’s trying to flip the script for his team. “I’m trying to teach my guys, ‘I don’t want you to work at Subway—I want you to own five of them.’ I think in many ways, Barack Obama told a different story," he said.

Bruce Pearl hailed on social media

Bruce Pearl drew applause on social media for his comments.

"Call him out, Pearl. You are so correct!!" one posted on X.

"Everything Coach is saying is right. If this were 2 to 4 years ago I’d say he better prepare for the onslaught, but I think the country has woken up to the truth now," another wrote.

"Hussein obama was the worst president this country will ever see," someone else offered.

"Good to hear some prominent people FINALLY speaking out about the grave damage Obama caused to race relations in the US (and worldwide)!" read a comment.

"Coach Pearl seems like a very good man. I admire his honesty and courage to speak up," another wrote.

This isn't the first time Bruce Pearl slammed Barack Obama

This latest salvo from Bruce Pearl comes just days after he first blew up at Barack Obama over a post about starvation in Gaza.

The former president had shared a New York Times article with the caption, “While a lasting resolution to the crisis in Gaza must involve a return of all hostages and a cessation of Israel’s military operations, these articles underscore the immediate need for action to be taken to prevent the travesty of innocent people dying of preventable starvation.”

Pearl wasn’t having it. “You gave billions to Iran and Hamas creating this mess and not one word from you calling for THEM to release the hostages, surrender and end the War.” he fired back on X. “Tell Hamas to 1) Quit stealing and reselling aid 2) Stop attacking GHF workers who are feeding Gazans. 3) Leave and end suffering.”

Back in March, just after Auburn knocked off Creighton in the NCAA second round, Pearl used the spotlight to remind the world that Israeli-American hostage Edan Alexander was still missing.

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