Pete Thamel: John Calipari, Arkansas expected to finalize contract Tuesday

It was reported late Sunday evening that John Calipari is expected to become the next Arkansas coach, but no official announcement has been made as of Monday. According to ESPN insider Pete Thamel, however, that will soon change.

Thamel made an appearance on College GameDay ahead of the national championship between Purdue and UConn, where he discussed the timeline for the contract to be finalized.

“It will officially come together tomorrow,” Thamel said. “Sources just told me details are being finalized today and to expect an announcement on Tuesday.”

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Things quickly developed late Sunday evening before Thamel reported that Calipari was set to sign a five-year deal with the Razorbacks. He will make between $7.5-8 million per season, which is a slight decrease from the $8.5 million he earned in Lexington.

Thamel explained that Arkansas booster John Tyson, who is the CEO of Tyson Foods, played a major role in getting Calipari to Fayetteville. He apparently had a relationship with Calipari and sensed with the way things were trending with him at Kentucky that he might be open to a change of scenery.

“As for how it came together, the key link here was a billionaire named John Tyson,” Thamel said. “You may know him from your freezer aisle from Tyson’s chicken. Tyson has a longstanding relationship with John Calipari and he proved the bridge for Calipari and the Arkansas athletic department.”

Although Calipari will seemingly take a pay cut with his contract, Thamel explained that there is a “strong incentive structure” that could enable him to earn more. NIL funds remained another emphasis in the deal, and Arkansas is apparently willing to give Calipari a lot to work with.

“One of the key factors here for John Calipari was obviously funds,” Thamel said. “His own salary will be less than the $8.5 million he made at Kentucky, but there’s a strong incentive structure that can get it over that. Perhaps more importantly, he’ll have the money and the infrastructure to run the same caliber of program he did at Kentucky. The NIL is expected to be among the most robust in the SEC and the staff salary pool will be there as well. So Cal will be fully loaded financially in this NIL era to make another run at Arkansas.”

Although it’s been a disappointing past few seasons for Calipari at Kentucky, it seems he’s being given everything he needs for a fresh start in Fayetteville. He has a national title and six Final Four appearances to his name already and will look to build on that as he begins his next journey.