Bruce Pearl

Bruce Pearl, head coach of the top-ranked University of Tennessee men's basketball team, is one of the most successful college basketball coaches in the modern era. Renowned for his ability to quickly turn teams into championship contenders, Pearl delivers motivational keynote speeches that will empower any organization to achieve their goals.proudly coached the USA Maccabi team to a silver medal in the 2009 World Maccabiah Games.

A Boston, Massachusetts native, Pearl graduated from Boston College in 1982, where he served as manager of the men's basketball team. His first national coaching experience came as an assistant coach at Stanford and Iowa under Tom Davis. Pearl received his first head coaching opportunity from Division II Southern Indiana, where he led the team to a 22-7 record in his first year. The Southern Indiana Screaming Eagles won a Division II national championship under Pearl in 1995 and in total reached the postseason nine times during his tenure. Pearl moved on to the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 2001, leading the team to unprecedented success. During Pearl's four years with the team, the UWM Panthers made the NCAA Tournament two times, and in 2005 reached the 'Sweet Sixteen" round, scoring upsets over Boston College and Alabama. The team also finished the season ranked in the top 25 for the first time ever.

Pearl is entering his fifth season as coach of the Tennessee Volunteers, where both he and the team have reached major milestones. The Volunteers achieved a national #1 ranking for the first time ever and broke a school record with 31 wins in the 2007 – 2008 season, and have enjoyed four straight trips to the NCAA tournament. Pearl officially became the second-fastest college basketball coach to reach 400 career wins in the 2008 – 2009 season, and has won both the Southeastern Conference Coach of the Year award and national coach of the year honors twice.

Coach Pearl passes on his knowledge of basketball to the local youth community every year by hosting clinics and summer camps, along with legendary Tennessee women's team coach Pat Summitt. His philosophy on coaching is it is a way to help young adults grow and mature not only on the basketball court but also, and more importantly, in life.