Auburn AD Allen Greene And Bruce Pearl Announce They've Agreed To Contract Extension

After a few days of rumors flying about Bruce Pearl and the Louisville opening, Auburn Athletic Director Allen Greene put all the noise to bed on Friday night. The Tigers AD announced on social media that Pearl and Auburn have agreed to a contract extension.

"Tonight's a great night, I got a big surprise for you, we locked him up," Greene announced in the video, followed by Pearl making an appearance.

According to Auburn, Pearl agreed to an eight-year contract that runs through 2030. The contract will pay Pearl $5.4 million annually with a $250,000 annual escalator. 

Details of the contract have not been announced, but Allen Greene made it clear that Auburn has taken the step needed to keep Pearl on the plains for a very long time. Bruce Pearl had this to say in his appearance alongside Greene.

“It wasn’t that hard. I am grateful to Allen, grateful to the administration, Dr. Gogue and General Burgess and the folks that worked on this. My family and I are going to be able to stay and be your basketball coach for a long, long time. I am grateful, I am humbled. I am blessed to be your coach and War Eagle.”

The Tigers are currently ranked No. 1 in the country and host Oklahoma on Saturday, with a 19-1 record so far this season.

https://twitter.com/AGreeneIV/status/1487224332703174656?s=20&t=fPpefk5PKFrFsabY2sh10Q

A facilities upgrade is also coming for the Auburn basketball team, with the Board of Trustees set to meet on February 4th, with a new practice gym for both men's and women's basketball teams on the agenda. Also, there will be upgrades to the team facilities inside Auburn Arena, according to the official agenda.

"Due to the heavy use of the Auburn Arena main court as the competition venue for men’s basketball, women’s basketball, women’s volleyball, women’s gymnastics, and visiting team pre-game practice sessions, the main court is often not available for team practice sessions," per the agenda. "The proposed project will construct a second practice gym and renovate the existing team support spaces which will allow both the men’s and women’s basketball programs to conduct practices at times that are advantageous to student-athletes and bring their facilities to Southeastern Conference competitive standards."

This announcement is a huge step in the right direction for the Auburn basketball program, with Bruce Pearl staying around for as long as they'll have him.

Not a bad few weeks for the school and athletic department.

Follow along on Twitter: @TreyWallace_