It's been one year since one of the wildest weeks in Kentucky Basketball history
There’s a lot happening today. We’ve got a national championship game to watch, news on the House Settlement to wait for, and plenty of transfer portal developments to track (Welcome to the family, Mo Dioubate); however, I couldn’t let today end without acknowledging an important anniversary. One year ago today, John Calipari entered negotiations to take the Arkansas job, setting the course for one of the wildest weeks in Kentucky Basketball history.
It was a normal Sunday night in our house when the texts started rolling in about the reports that Calipari was considering leaving Lexington for Fayetteville. At first, I dismissed them as misguided rumblings from Arkansas media, but as the night went on, more emerged, including one from the late, great Bob Holt, the dean of the Arkansas beat. By the end of the night, ESPN reported that Calipari was finalizing a five-year deal with the Razorbacks, the seeds of which we later learned were first planted during a meeting between Calipari, Arkansas mega-booster John H. Tyson, and athletic director Hunter Yurachek in Calipari’s hotel room at the Final Four two nights prior.
From there, absolute chaos broke out. The next week was a complete blur of blog posts, late night Rapid Reactions, big boards, Twitter refreshing, plane tracking, and stress. Everyone knows what happened, so I won’t bother going too in-depth, but let’s take a trip down memory lane just to remember how absurd it all was.
Sunday Night (4/7): Calipari to Arkansas news breaks
Shockwaves roll across the Bluegrass as fans learn the news.
Monday (4/8): Calipari declines to comment on Arkansas job while walking dog
News rolled out fast and furious that Monday, which included a three-hour radio show as Matt Jones, Ryan Lemond, and Billy Rutledge processed that the John Calipari era was over (Drew Franklin was at the Masters in Augusta with his phone off). That afternoon, we got a Calipari sighting as WKYT cameras captured him walking his dog along Richmond Road.
“No, I don’t, I’m walking my dog right now,” Calipari said when asked if he had a message for Kentucky fans. “Nah, I’m good. My dog is walking with me.”
On Monday, Calipari reportedly met with the players, who started entering the transfer portal; Karter Knox decommitted; and Jay Wright and Nate Oats took themselves out of the running for the Kentucky job. UConn also won the national championship, their second straight.
Did you remember that there was also a total solar eclipse that day, with parts of Western Kentucky in the “path of totality”? Me neither.
Tuesday (4/9): Calipari says goodbye
Around 2 p.m. on Tuesday, John Calipari finally broke his silence, confirming that he was leaving Kentucky and that it was time for a “new voice” for the program. We also got statements from Mitch Barnhart and Ellen Calipari, the latter of which tugged on BBN’s heartstrings.
On Tuesday, Dick Gabriel also reported that Calipari gave Kentucky a chance to counter Arkansas’ offer but Kentucky turned him down, which Gabriel later walked back. Billy Donovan and Scott Drew became the hot names in the coaching search, with Drew emerging as the frontrunner.
Wednesday (4/10): Scott Drew has tacos in Waco
Wednesday was Scott Drew day, as fans tracked the Baylor coach’s whereabouts. We were all thrown a curveball when a plane from Waco arrived in Lexington, but Drew tweeted a picture of himself having lunch with a Baylor booser at Mi Casita in Waco at the same time. Turns out it was Drew’s family, coming to check out the city before he made his decision.
Once the picture made the rounds, Kentucky fans called the restaurant and left reviews online. We even researched the Family Feud episode in the background to verify when the picture was actually taken.
The Scott Drew/Kentucky buzz was so loud on Tuesday that Baylor superfan Chip Gaines entered the chat, going back and forth with Kentucky fans online, including yours truly. I’m still waiting on my Magnolia gift package.
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Thursday (4/11): Dan Hurley says no, Mark Pope gets the job
Scott Drew turned Kentucky down on Thursday morning, shifting the focus of the search to Dan Hurley. Kentucky reportedly offered Hurley $11-$12 million per year to come to Lexington, but he still said no. In hindsight, this proved to be a huge blessing, as Hurley went off the rails a bit during the 2024-25 season. There’s no denying his coaching talent, but as time goes on, it becomes clearer how bad of a fit Hurley and Kentucky would have been.
On Thursday afternoon, word first broke that Mark Pope was a candidate for the job, although most of us were too busy trying to figure out Billy Donovan’s postseason timeline with the Chicago Bulls to take it seriously. A few hours later, we did when word broke that Kentucky was finalizing a five-year deal with Pope to be the head coach. “Stunned” doesn’t begin to describe our Rapid Reaction to the news.
Friday (4/12): Mitch Barnhart, Rick Pitino make the case for Pope
It didn’t take us long to warm up to the hire. On Friday morning, Mitch Barnhart made the case for Pope during an appearance on the radio show, praising his passion for the program and exciting offense. Rick Pitino also went to bat for his former team captain, predicting greatness and even offering to donate NIL money. Speaking of NIL, two boosters donated $4 million to help build Pope’s program that morning, the first big wave of support.
By Friday night, the video comparing Pope’s offense to a video game started making the rounds as Kentucky fans got on board with his system. Plans were made for Pope’s introductory press conference on Sunday at Rupp Arena.
Saturday (4/13): The Popes arrive in Lexington
On Saturday, it started to become real as Mark Pope, his wife, and daughters arrived in Lexington. By the end of the day, he had already sent a pre-recorded phone call to UK students, introducing himself.
Sunday (4/14): Mark Pope is introduced to BBN
A wild week wrapped up with Pope’s introductory press conference at Rupp Arena, which served as a revival for the fanbase. Fans lined up outside Rupp for hours, and Pope even hopped out of his car to come greet them on his way inside. UK officials only expected 7,000 fans to attend the event but ended up having to turn 5,000 away because the building was filled to capacity.
It was an incredible afternoon, with Pope walking off the bus holding the 1996 championship trophy just as he had 28 years prior and vowing that he “understands the assignment,” a phrase we’ve heard a million times since. It may only be topped by the moment he brings another trophy back to Rupp, hopefully in the not-too-distant future.
All of that happened in the span of just one week. As happy as I am about the end result, let’s not pack that much into seven days again, please — unless it’s for a celebration.
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