After news broke a few nights ago that he would be leaving Lexington for Fayetteville, John Calipari has now been officially named the newest head basketball coach of the Arkansas Razorbacks.
Calipari, who comes from the Kentucky Wildcats, replaces former Arkansas head coach Eric Musselman, who left Fayetteville for the same position with the USC Trojans earlier this month.
The long-time Kentucky coach has spent the past 15 seasons in Lexington where he held a combined 533-410 record as the head coach of the Wildcats. During that span, Calipari was a multi-time SEC Coach of the Year and won a national championship in 2011-12 season.
However, Calipari has struggled in recent years when it comes to the NCAA Tournament, even despite having made the Big Dance each of the last three years. This has included a pair of round of 64 exits, as well as once in the round of 32.
Calipari is also coming off a 2023-24 season in which he led the Wildcats to a 23-10 record. They were bounced in the first round of the NCAA Tournament by Oakland.
Cal. Those. Hogs. đ
Hall of Famer John Calipari is officially the head of the Arkansas Razorbacks. pic.twitter.com/UPp8ljTZB7
— Arkansas Razorbacks Menâs Basketball đ (@RazorbackMBB) April 10, 2024
Looking ahead, Calipari now takes over an Arkansas program that finished this past season at 16-17 overall and 6-12 in SEC play. Arkansas has also made the NCAA Tournament three of the last four years, headlined by Elite Eight appearances in two of those seasons.
Will John Calipari now bring his past success on both the basketball court and recruiting trail to Fayetteville?