Pearl Possibilities

It's an irritating issue for UT.

And it won't go away.

For a number of reasons, Bruce Pearl has become a prime time player in college basketball-- mostly because he took a Tennessee team bound for nowhere, and made them an NCAA Tournament participant.

On Wednesday at the Big Orange Tip-Off Club meeting in Knoxville, credible college basketball writer Mike DeCourcy of the Sporting News called Pearl a serious national coach of the year candidate. A few more wins, and he's a lock.

Now, the irritating part. Pearl keeps being mentioned as a possible candidate for current, or soon to be vacant, coaching positons. It happened again-- Wednesday night during the televised coverage of the UT-Florida game.

It's frustrating for UT Athletics Director Mike Hamilton. Mostly because those who mention Pearl as a candidate have no real proof he is.

A year ago, Hamilton was in the process of firing a coach. Now, he's got a coach everyone is talking about (and not just for the sweaty suit).

Hamilton continues to say he's working on a contract extension for Pearl-- and he maintains Pearl has expressed no desire to leave.

On Thursday, Hamilton told me he's received no contact from other schools seeking permission to interview his coach.

Pearl is working magic on, and off, the court. He's proven to be a great coach and an excellent people-person. He likes to laugh-- even at himself.

But Hamilton's not laughing. He says off-the-cuff speculation about Pearl being lured away hurts Tennessee's image.

Hamilton made a brilliant move to hire Pearl. Now-- he's working hard to make sure the coach stays (new contract), and the speculation-- goes away.