‘He did me a ton of solids’ —Steven Pearl gives a classy nod to the late Wes Rucker for helping him out at Tennessee
The former Tennessee Vol and current Auburn head coach talked about Wes Rucker’s generosity following his tragic passing.
The tragic death of Wes Rucker last week in a car accident has left the Knoxville and the Tennessee sports community reeling.
However, it’s brought out generosity in spades from fans and media across the country, with donations to his family now surpassing $675,000 on Go Fund Me as of Sunday afternoon. Notable media members across the country have talked about the impact he’s made, as have Tennessee basketball head coach Rick Barnes, baseball head coach Josh Elander, and former coach Tony Vitello.
You can add current Auburn head basketball coach Steven Pearl to the list of those who have talked about the impact that Rucker has had on their lives. Rucker covered Pearl, who played basketball for Tennessee from 2007-11 under his father, Bruce.
After Auburn’s 75-74 win over Kentucky on Saturday night, Pearl started off his press conference talking about Rucker’s death and thanking him for helping him out in the media world after his playing days were done.
Steven Pearl said Wes Rucker did him ‘a ton of solids’ on radio after his playing days at Tennessee were done
“First, before I get started, I want to offer my sincerest condolences to the family of Wes Rucker. It’s obviously a tragedy. Wes covered me when I was at Tennessee, and he was a basketball guy before it became fashionable, because the SEC wasn’t very good in basketball. A true professional, a guy that just knew his stuff. Was very fair and honest in his assessments. When you think about journalism and beat writing at Tennessee, that’s the name that you always will remember.
“He did me a ton of solids when I was having a really bad radio show out of college, just trying to find my way. He would come on Sunday mornings and be my guest. He didn’t have to do that. He was always incredibly generous to me. So, I’m just praying for his wife, Lauren, right now. It’s a terrible tragedy, and hopefully everybody keeps them in their prayers right now.”
Pearl hasn’t been any Tennessee fan’s favorite former player for how things have gone since the school fired his father in 2011, and he hasn’t pulled his punches about his feelings about the program either.
But it’s nice to see him lead his comments off with a nod to Rucker and talk about the positive impact he made on Pearl out of school and the fairness with which he covered him on the court. That seems to be a common denominator when it comes to the feelings of people in the coaching community about Wes.
