Bruce Pearl will have to do more than retool his Auburn basketball roster heading into next season. He’ll have to do it with his coaching staff as well.

Wes Flanigan, who spent the last five seasons as an assistant on Pearl’s staff, is leaving Auburn for a position on Chris Beard’s inaugural staff at Ole Miss, a source confirmed to AL.com on Saturday morning. Flanigan’s departure was first reported by On3.

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Flanigan joined Auburn’s staff prior to the 2018-19 season, returning to his alma mater, where he was a four-year starting point guard for the Tigers from 1993-97. During his time on the Plains, Auburn won two SEC regular-season titles, one SEC Tournament championship, made three trips to the NCAA Tournament and made the first Final Four in program history.

Not only did Auburn enjoy on-court success during Flanigan’s time on Pearl’s staff, but the 48-year-old Arkansas native was also crucial to the Tigers’ success on the recruiting trail. He helped Auburn land the likes of Tre Donaldson, Jaylin Williams and Chris Moore, as well as his son, Allen Flanigan. Wes Flanigan was also the primary recruiter for 2024 commit Labaron Philon, who was recently named Mr. Basketball for the state of Alabama.

He also accrued a 1-0 record as acting head coach while at Auburn, leading the team to a win against Nebraska in Atlanta during the 2021-22 season while Pearl served a two-game NCAA-mandated suspension.

Prior to returning to Auburn, Flanigan was the head coach at Arkansas-Little Rock for two seasons. He was promoted to head coach at Little Rock prior to the 2016-17 season, replacing Beard, whose staff he served on as an assistant in 2015-16.

Beard was hired at Ole Miss last month after previously serving as head coach at Texas, where he was fired in January after an arrest in December on a third-degree felony of assault against a family member for strangulation. The charge was dismissed in February, and Ole Miss hired Beard in March to replace Kermit Davis.

Now Flanigan is reuniting with Beard in Oxford, Miss., opening a spot on Auburn’s staff for the 2023-24 season.

Tom Green is an Auburn beat reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Tomas_Verde.