Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN) said he would support Auburn University men’s basketball coach Bruce Pearl to run for U.S. Senate in Alabama.

Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) announced this week that he will run for Alabama governor, leaving an open seat in the U.S. Senate.

Per Just the News:

“Oh, sure,” Burchett answered on the “Just the News, No Noise” TV show earlier this week when asked if he would support Pearl running for Senate. “He coached at UT. I was at him and Brandy’s wedding. I know his son. I know both his sons. I know his daughter.”

Pearl has been married to his wife Brandy since 2009. He has four children from a previous marriage.

There have been reports of Pearl potentially running for Congress as current Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., has launched a bid for governor of Alabama in 2026.

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Alabama now has an open seat in the midterms. So far, no Republican has announced intentions to fill the seat.

“President Trump won big because more Americans believed he will fix Inflation, secure our border, support legal immigration, bring peace to the world through strength and put America first,” Pearl said last November.

“I pray and I believe he will work for all Americans, uniting us as one nation under God!” he added.

From AL.com:

It‘s not the first time Pearl has spoken publicly on social media about politics either. If you scroll through his feed on X, you‘ll find a number of political posts and reposts mixed in with posts about Auburn men’s basketball.

Many of his posts have been in support Israel, referencing the ongoing conflict in Gaza. He hasn’t shied away from aligning himself with high profile Republican politicians either, including support for Trump.

Pearl was asked on Thursday whether there was any concern of the potential impact his public support of Trump could have on recruiting and other aspects of the Auburn men’s basketball program.

“I’m glad it’s basketball season, right? And I’m sure people that follow me on Twitter, are glad it’s basketball season,” Pearl said with a smile.

“I spend more time on issues and policy than I do politics, really. Sometimes, you know, they do get political, but it’s more about policy and issue. And obviously, with Israel being at war and the tremendous increase and rise in anti-semitism, public display of anti-semitism in this country and the things that sort of led up to a couple of holocausts that have taken place, one back in Germany and the other one on October 7 a year and a half ago.”

“And so Dr. King said, silence is complicity. I’m not going to be silent. And as a an American, Jewish person that is in the public eye, I feel like it’s my responsibility to try to speak the truth, know my Bible, know my history, and because we do have a problem with education in this country, and so as a teacher and a coach, I do spend most of my time just trying to provide accurate information so people can have an extra better understanding of the situation.”

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On Aug. 26, Pearl made a post criticizing Harris that elicited a statement from the NAACP. It was responding to a post by Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas, who claimed that Harris wanted to end private health insurance plans and put everyone, including illegal aliens, on government plans.

 

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