John Calipari headed to Arkansas?

Multiple sources peg longtime Memphis, Kentucky coach nearing deal to take over Razorback basketball

By Eric Bolin

Paxton Sports Bureau

GREENSBORO, NC — Kentucky coach John Calipari, who has been with the school for 15 seasons, is nearing a massive new deal to leave the Wildcats and be the next head coach of the University of Arkansas, two sources briefed on the matter tell The Athletic.

Razorbacks officials focused their head-coaching search on Calipari in recent days and intensified their pursuit over the weekend, sources said. No deal is complete as of Sunday night, those sources said.

Calipari has referred to John Tyson, billionaire heir to the Tyson Foods empire and a major Arkansas booster, as a “longtime friend.” Arkansas has been seeking a coach to replace Eric Musselman, who left for the same role at USC on April 4.

Calipari, who led the Wildcats to seven Elite Eights, four Final Fours and the 2012 national title, is contracted with UK through the 2028-29 season — but he does not owe the school a buyout for leaving early.

The school would have owed $33 million to Calipari if he’d been fired after this season.

That became a hot topic in Lexington after a second firstround NCAA Tournament exit in three years. The Cats haven’t reached the Sweet 16 since 2019, haven’t won an SEC title since 2020 and haven’t made a Final Four since 2015.

Many in the fan base were ready to move on from Calipari after this year’s loss to 14th-seeded Oakland, but he and athletic director Mitch Barnhart came out publicly together just days later and said they were working together to get the program back on track. This sudden mutual interest between Calipari and a new suitor in the same Southeastern Conference suggests Calipari, a 65year-old Hall of Famer, ultimately believes a fresh start might be better for everyone. Calipari is the second- longest tenured coach in UK men’s basketball history behind Adolph Rupp (41 seasons).

Calipari, who also led Massachusetts and Memphis to the Final Four, has won 410 games at Kentucky and his .769 winning percentage is behind only Rupp and Rick Pitino among those who have coached UK for more than one season. Kentucky’s 2012 national title under Calipari was the eighth in school history and the program’s first since 1998. Before he arrived in Lexington in 2009, the Wildcats hadn’t reached the Elite Eight since 2005 or won 30-plus games in a season since 2002-03.

Calipari and Kentucky have the No. 2 recruiting class, which includes three McDonald’s All-Americans. Notably, when he last left for a job — from Memphis to Kentucky in 2009 — he took his loaded recruiting class, which included John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins, with him.

Arkansas reached three NCAA Tournaments — including two Elite Eights — in five seasons under Musselman. A 16-17 record in 202324 — the worst record of Musselman’s tenure — kept Arkansas out of the NCAA Tournament this year.

The Razorbacks are approaching the 30-year anniversary of their last Final Four appearance.