April 19, 2018
By Greg Ostendorf
AuburnTigers.com
AUBURN, Ala. -- Wes Flanigan is an Auburn man.
The new assistant coach under Bruce Pearl played for the Tigers from 1993-97. In four seasons, he averaged 10.1 points, 4.8 assists and 2.4 rebounds per game and helped lead the program to back-to-back NIT appearances in '95 and '96. But the imprint Auburn left on Flanigan extends well beyond the basketball court.
"I became a young man here," Flanigan said. "I went through my share of adversity here, and that kind of molded who I am -- who you see right now. I think that some of the things I learned here at Auburn, some of the people that I was around, definitely kind of shaped who I am."
It was at Auburn where Flanigan saw his head coach, Tommy Joe Eagles, let go after his freshman season. Eagles passed away shortly after. It was at Auburn where Flanigan, after his junior season, was diagnosed with bone cancer in his left arm. Yet, he returned the next season, finished out his career and earned the USBWA Most Courageous Award in 1997.
So when Flanigan was recently let go as the head coach at Little Rock, he remained positive. This was not the first time he had faced adversity in his life.
"Obviously during life, you face different things in life where you either get fired or you're not having as much success as you'd like," Flanigan said. "And I always revert back to the time being here with bone cancer and going through that whole deal.
"From that, I learned how to persevere, how to fight through things that I don't necessarily have control over. Really, sitting in this situation now, I didn't have control over what happened at Little Rock in two years. But you've got to pick the pieces up. You've got to get up the next morning and continue to fight. That's who I am."
It's fitting that Flanigan found his way back home to Auburn.
The former player and graduate assistant had gotten to know Pearl over the years and even interviewed for an assistant job a few years back. It didn't work out that time, but when he was offered the job this go-around, it was an easy decision.
"For me, it was a no-brainer," Flanigan said. "There wasn't much thought process to it at all. Seeing Coach Pearl, knowing what Auburn is about, being here and being able to come back, it's definitely a blessing. And I've been blessed my whole life. I understand that every opportunity that we have is a privilege. It's something that you can't take for granted.
"I want to come here, help as much as possible, and I definitely don't want to take this for granted because it is a heck of an opportunity to help and serve Auburn again."
Prior to taking over at Little Rock, Flanigan made stops as an assistant coach at UAB, Nebraska and Mississippi State. At every stop, he never forgot where he came from. There were times, even while at rival Mississippi State, that he would run into an Auburn fan on the road and exchange a "War Eagle" with them.
As an Auburn graduate, Flanigan has also kept up with the program over the years. So he saw what the Tigers did last season, winning the SEC regular-season championship.
"I've always had Auburn basketball in my heart," he said. "And to see Coach Pearl bring the excitement that he's brought to our basketball program right now, it's something that's refreshing and something that I want to help the man continue."
But it's one thing to have success. It's another to sustain it.
Flanigan knows that as well as anybody. He was an assistant at Little Rock when the Trojans won 30 games during the 2015-16 season and beat Purdue in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. It was only the second time the program had won a game in the tournament. However, sustaining that success the next season proved to be more difficult.
"It's all about understanding the mindset to develop that consistency," Flanigan said. "Yeah, you're hungry this year. But now what? That was the easy thing, getting it going. The hard thing is maintaining that. I'm a guy that came from a similar-type situation at Little Rock where before we were maybe a .500 program. You win 30 games, and the next year -- that's the tough part.
"Me being a part of that already, through my experiences, I hope I can help those (Auburn) players and that staff understand what it's going to take in order for us to continue to strive to have as good a season as we had last year, if not better."
The important thing for now is that Flanigan is back coaching the game he loves, impacting the lives of student-athletes, and he's returned home to Auburn to do it.
"That's all I can ask for," he said.
Greg Ostendorf is a Senior Writer for AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: Follow @greg_ostendorf