It's really pretty simple in my opinion.
Pearl was great for Tennessee. Tennessee was great to Pearl. He took a program that hadn't seen much success in awhile and won a lot of games and won some really big games. He got a fan base excited to watch basketball again and pumped some serious energy into Knoxville. I went to a fair amount of games the last few years and TBA had a great atmosphere and going to the games was a fun experience. If enjoying that time makes you a "Pearlophile" then so be it. Nothing wrong with enjoying yourself and the product on the floor.
Pearl then royally screwed up and his era is all over. Time to move on and see if CM can do the same thing. I don't see any reason he can't.