Auburn HC Bruce Pearl announces birth of granddaughter named after Israeli activist by his daughter Jacqui

Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl revealed that his granddaughter was named after Noa Tohar Tishby, an actress and an Israeli activist. Pearl, who has proudly talked about his Jewish identity in the past, shared that his daughter Jacqui had decided to name her newborn 'Noa.'

Tishby has advocated for the Zionist cause for a long time. Pearl, who was the first president of the Jewish Coaches Association, shared the news of the newborn in his family on X in reply to a message from Noa, who shared an update on Iran's alleged movement in the Middle East to wage war.

"Thank you Noa! My daughter Jacqui recently gave birth to her first child, a beautiful little girl she named Noa, after you! My granddaughter will read, listen, study and be inspired by your work. We Pray for Israel and pray for all the innocents killed because of Iran's leaders!" he wrote on X.

Noa talked about Iran allegedly encircling Israel through its proxies. Tishby has worked as an actress, model, and writer. She owns a production company called Noa's Arc.

Born in Israel, Tishby served in the Israel Defense Forces for two and a half years. In 2011, she founded the zionist advocacy group 'Act for Israel.'

Bruce Pearl joined Auburn in 2014. He helped the Tigers reach five NCAA tournaments and make one Final Four appearance.

Bruce Pearl is 'loud and proud' of his Jewish roots

In 2019, Bruce Pearl became the fifth Jewish coach to lead his team to the Final Four of the NCAA Tournament. Earlier, Nat Homan of City College of New York, Larry Brown of Kansas, Harry Litwack of Temple, and Guy Lewis of Houston were the Jewish coaches to reach the Final Four for their teams.

In the past, Pearl has turned poetic to talk about his religious and ethnic identity.

“I’m kind of loud and I’m kind of proud," he said at the time via USA Today.

Pearl was head coach for the Maccabi USA men's basketball team, which won gold at the 2009 Maccabiah Games.