Update April 10, 10:30 a.m. Arkansas makes it official that Calipari is the new head coach. He’ll be paid $7 million a year for five years, with a $1 million signing bonus.
Arkansas is in discussion with Kentucky head men’s basketball coach John Calipari about filling its coaching vacancy, per Matt Norlander of CBS Sports. ESPN’s Pete Thamel has also reported that the two sides are finalizing a five-year deal that is expected to be completed on Monday.The news comes just days after former Razorback head coach Eric Musselman departed for USC. This move could potentially send shockwaves throughout not only the SEC, but the entire nation.
Calipari just wrapped up his 15th season at Kentucky and it once again ended in disappointment. The Wildcats were eliminated by 14-seed Oakland in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, marking the second time in three seasons that they were eliminated early by a double-digit seed. UK has not made it past the first weekend of the Big Dance since 2019 and its latest setback led to speculation if the longtime head coach would be fired or step down following the season. The brass in Lexington ultimately decided to back him up, but there’s now a possibility of him jumping to an SEC rival with Arkansas actively courting him.
This would be a huge splash for the Razorbacks if they can pull this off as they achieved plenty of success in recent years. Musselman led Arkansas to two Elite Eight’s and a Sweet 16 appearance in the last four seasons, so the addition of Cal could potentially make them a Final Four contender.