Former Auburn standout Wes Flanigan enters his fifth season as an assistant coach on Bruce Pearl’s staff after returning to his alma mater prior to the 2018-19 season.

Flanigan helped develop Sharife Cooper and JT Thor who were the second and third "one-and-done" players in program history. Thor was selected by the Charlotte Hornets with the 37th overall selection, while Cooper was drafted by the Atlanta Hawks with the No. 48 pick.

He also was key in guiding his son, Allen, to become the most improved scorer in the SEC a season ago after raising his output by 11.1 from 3.2 points per game as a freshman to 14.3 points per tilt as a sophomore. Allen was one of three players in the conference to average 14.0 points, 5.0 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game, joining Tre Mann (Florida) and Trendon Watford (LSU).

The 2019-20 season was another one for the record books as the Tigers, despite having the postseason canceled, went 25-6 and finished second in the SEC.

Auburn became one of four major programs to record three consecutive 25-win seasons, joining Duke, Kansas and Kentucky.

After losing five of their top eight scorers from the Final Four team, the Tigers were led by Samir Doughty, who became the first First Team All-SEC selection since 1999, and Isaac Okoro, who became just the sixth player in SEC history to be named to an all-conference team, all-defensive team and all-freshman team in the same season.

Flanigan and the staff signed a consensus top-10 recruiting class, highlighted by the highest-rated recruit in program history in five-star Sharife Cooper, the third McDonald’s All-American to enroll at Auburn.

In Flanigan’s first year with the Tigers, Auburn went to new heights as a program after reaching the program’s first Final Four. The Tigers defeated Kansas, Kentucky and North Carolina on the historic run, becoming the first team ever to defeat the three winningest programs in NCAA history in consecutive games in NCAA Tournament history.

Auburn also won its second Southeastern Conference Tournament title in program history after winning four games in four days to join the 1985 squad as teams to hoist the prestigious trophy.

The Tigers set program records in wins (30), 3-pointers (454), steals (369) and blocks (190) in their historic campaign.

Auburn also notched a top-10 recruiting class in November, highlighted by five four-star players.

Flanigan was most recently the head coach at the University of Arkansas Little Rock for the past two seasons.

Flanigan played with the Tigers from 1993-97 and was a four-year starter at point guard. He is the 22nd-leading scorer in program history with 1,228 points.

Flanigan finished his career second in the Auburn record books with 573 assists. He is also fourth in career free throws with 338 makes from the charity stripe.

The Little Rock, Ark. native was the Southeastern Conference individual assist champion in 1996 when he dished out 214 dimes for an average of 6.7 per game.

Flanigan was named All-SEC as a junior in 1996 and was a member of the All-SEC Freshman Team in 1994.

Flanigan returns to The Plains after two stints with Little Rock, most recently as the head coach for the past two seasons.

While with the Trojans for seven seasons from 2004-08 and 2015-18, Flanigan helped Little Rock achieve new single-season program records for wins, Sun Belt Conference victories and road wins.

Flanigan and the Trojans won their first-ever outright Sun Belt title during the 2015-16 campaign and knocked off No. 5 seed Purdue in the NCAA Tournament.

The Trojans won 18 or more games twice during Flanigan’s first run in Little Rock. In the 2007-08 season, the Trojans won 20 games while he served as the associate head coach and recruiting coordinator.

After his first stint at Little Rock, Flanigan was an assistant at UAB from 2008-10 where the Blazers won 47 games and matched a program record for wins a season with 25 set in the 2009-10 campaign.

Flanigan then went on to serve in the same capacity at Nebraska for two seasons (2010-12) before joining Mississippi State from 2012-15.

Flanigan got his first start in coaching at Northwest Mississippi Community College where he was an assistant coach from 1999-2004.

The 1992-93 Gatorade High School Player of the Year, Flanigan enrolled at Auburn and was a four-year letterwinner for the Tigers. He graduated with a degree in health promotion and was the recipient of the Cliff Hare Award, presented annually to the university’s top student-athlete.

He and his wife, Katrina, have three sons: Michael Lewis, Allen, who is a senior for the Tigers, and Collin.