Cliff Ellis to Bruce: I'll Kiss His Ring

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Auburn's 1999 squad passes torch to 2025 SEC champions

Auburn's second No. 1 seed in program history is coming, and members of that 1998-99 team see similarities to their magical season

Nathan King7 hrs

A large portion of the program records Auburn has been breaking this season have been that of its 1998-99 team. And in 10 days, that squad will no longer be the only No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament that Auburn has ever had.

This time, the Tigers want to take things deeper in their March Madness run and become immortalized.

Getting to this level of success at Auburn has been a steady build for Bruce Pearl, now in his 11th season on the Plains, to get to his best team yet. The Tigers have already clinched the SEC regular-season championship outright — in a year where the league is considered to be one of, if not the best conference in the history of the sport.

In terms of regular-season accomplishments, its only rival in program history is that SEC championship team 26 years ago. And former Auburn head coach Cliff Ellis is happy to pass that torch to Pearl.

"When I left Auburn, I really didn't know if anybody could win the SEC championship again," Ellis said. "So I told Bruce I'll kiss his ring."

If Auburn can close out with a win over Alabama, it will set new program records for regular-season victories (28) and SEC wins (16), both of which are currently tied with the 2021-22 team. But not since Ellis' dominant squad have the Tigers been a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. That's been an inevitability for this Auburn team for what feels like a couple months.

Auburn will also have its first SEC Player of the Year since Chris Porter in 1999, as Johni Broome has seemingly had that award wrapped up for quite some time, too. Pearl also has a great chance to win his second SEC Coach of the Year accolades at Auburn, just like Ellis did in 1999.

Pearl is all about making history, but he's also about embracing Auburn's past and building upon it. That was clear from the moment he got the job.

"When Bruce got the job, he immediately reached out to Cliff and Sonny (Smith)," said Shannon Weaver, Ellis' top assistant coach at Auburn. "And he just opened those doors up. As you can see now, he's got two of our guys, Marquis (Daniels) and Bryant (Smith), on his staff. Wes Flanigan has also been there."

For Smith, a four-year contributor for Ellis in the '90s and now a grad assistant with the program, it's been a special experience.

"It's incredible," Smith said. "Just being able to pour into the program that poured so much into you."

This Auburn team reminds him of the one he started every game for his senior season in 1998-99 for two reasons: "The brotherhood they have and the closeness with one another. And then it's just finding a will to win every night, regardless of not shooting well, or just being off. They just find a way to win, and usually that's on the defensive end."

Weaver, who came to Auburn ahead of the 1997-98 season and remained with Ellis until Auburn moved on, said these types of immensely successful campaigns don't come around unless the locker room can match the level of talent and capability on the court.

"The similarities that jump off the page to me is the type of people they are," Weaver said. "I just remembered with the reunion we just had — you never had to ask for extra effort or energy from those guys. The similarity to me that's the most common is just those intangibles."

Ellis echoed that point: "You're only going to get a season like this if you've got a team that's committed. You've got to have a lot of character."

The SEC is obviously a different beast than any other time in its history this season. It will likely put at least 12 teams in the NCAA Tournament, which will be a record for any conference ever in college basketball. That Auburn has already won 15 games and claimed the conference crown outright speaks to preparedness, sure, but also the team's chemistry and makeup.

Weaver recalled players like Porter, Doc Robinson and Mamadou N'Diaye being unapologetically fierce. Ellis embraced their personalities. He sees Pearl doing the same.

"If you're going to beat those kinds of teams, you can't have choir boys," Weaver said. "You can be nice people, but you've got to have a little grit to you."

Smith held an all-around role on that team as a captain and versatile scorer, rebounder and passer. He sees a lot of himself from 26 years ago every time Chad Baker-Mazara steps on the court.

"Chad Baker just does so many different things for us," Smith said. "When I played, I was a two-way player. Doc Robinson ran the team, but sometimes we'd have to do what we called a hockey pass: make the pass to set up the pass. Chad reminds me a lot of myself in terms of tenacity on the defensive end. We were built the same: real wiry and long."

It was easy to find areas to praise in 1999, as Auburn lost only two games in the regular season. The same could be said for just three losses this season. But Ellis and Pearl both faced — or are still facing — the task of maximizing the team's potential and improving day by day in the grind of a college basketball season.

But the Tigers smile and have fun, clearly. Ellis' team knew how to enjoy the ride. And that's purely a reflection of the coach.

"They're both positive people," Weaver said, comparing Ellis and Pearl. "Both people were in charge of their program; challenge that, and you'll find out. But they're both very positive. They're not abusive to their players, they don't belittle their players. They get the best out of their players by encouraging them."

Added Smith of his former and current head coach: "They both had a great knack to push other people to their personal limits."

Of course, Auburn is about to put its historic season to the test in March Madness. The Tigers have looked like a national title contender for months. But Tuesday's 83-72 loss at Texas A&M was a perfect example of needing to continually improve all the way through the tournament.

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