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John Calipari arrives in Arkansas for introductory press conference

FaceProfileby:Thomas Goldkamp•04/10/24
John Calipari
Stephen Lew | USA TODAY Sports

A new era of Arkansas basketball has begun, with former Kentucky coach John Calipari arriving in Fayetteville on Wednesday afternoon to take charge.

Calipari arrived at the airport wearing a dark button-up jacket over a red button-down shirt, getting a head start on his new wardrobe with the Razorbacks. He’ll get plenty more team-issued gear in the coming days.

The long-time college basketball coach is set to host an introductory press conference at 7 p.m. ET on Wednesday inside Bud Walton Arena.

John Calipari is reportedly signing a five-year contract with Arkansas, according to ESPN’s Pete Thamel. The 65-year-old head coach spent 15 seasons at Kentucky, where he tallied a 410-122 record, three Final Four appearances in 2011, 2014 and 2015 and a national title in 2012.

He’ll take over as a much-ballyhooed arrival in Fayetteville, but the expectations will be high.

Despite a down year for Arkansas this winter under Eric Musselman, the Razorbacks have still reached the Sweet 16 in three of the last four years, with two trips to the Elite Eight in that four-year span.

So while John Calipari won’t be stepping into the Kentucky meat grinder, exactly, he’ll still face some lofty expectations in Arkansas.

Calipari bade farewell to the Kentucky fans in a video on Tuesday.

“Since our season ended, Ellen and I have spent a lot of time thinking about our time here at Kentucky,” John Calipari said. “What it means to us, the friends we’ve made on that court, regional championships, conference championships, Final Fours, the national title in 2012 — it’s been a beautiful time for us.

“This is a dream job. It was my dream job. Anybody in our profession looks at the University of Kentucky and basketball and says, ‘That is the bluest of blue.’ The last few weeks we’ve come to realize that this program probably needs to hear another voice, that the university as a whole has to have another voice giving guidance about this program.

“The fans need to hear another voice. We’ve loved it here, but we think it’s time for us to step away and step away completely from the program.”