KSR Today: The John Calipari Era at Kentucky is over

Sometimes, you’re sitting on your porch enjoying a beautiful spring day, relaxing, and getting ahead on work. Then, here comes life, smacking her hand across the table, spilling a drink across your laptop, and creating absolute chaos.

That was Sunday for me and a lot of Big Blue Nation. Just as I was tucking into another awful episode of “Vanderpump Rules,” my phone lit up with texts about reports that John Calipari was considering the Arkansas job left vacant by Eric Musselman, who fled Fayetteville for USC last week. Less than a few hours later, it was happening. Unless every national media member with a source is wrong, John Calipari will coach the Arkansas Razorbacks, not the Kentucky Wildcats, next season. The deal is expected to be finalized today. After 15 years, the Calipari era at Kentucky is over.

We’ll be digesting last night for years to come. The nuts and bolts from college basketball’s most trusted news breakers is that Calipari wasn’t happy in Lexington and wanted to get out. According to Matt Norlander, Cal’s exit plans date back to February, when he was initially interested in the Ohio State job, but the timing wasn’t right. Then, along came Arkansas, a tradition-rich program with a booster, John Tyson of the Tyson Farms empire, who is VERY close to Calipari. According to ESPN, the Razorbacks will pay Calipari less than the $8.5 million per year base salary he’s making at Kentucky, but the deal will be “incentive-laden” to top that number. It’s also said to include a very hefty NIL budget.

Speaking of money, Calipari owes Kentucky none. His contract is such that if he leaves Kentucky of his own volition, he doesn’t have to pay the school a dime, nor vice versa. If Mitch Barnhart had decided to part ways with Cal, Kentucky would have owed him $33 million, funds its boosters were reportedly ready to pay. Now, that money can go toward Cal’s successor.

That’s, obviously, the next big question. Who’s next? Scott Drew has long been considered the name atop Barnhart’s list. He recently turned down Louisville and reaffirmed his commitment to Baylor. Does it still hold if Kentucky comes calling? Dan Hurley, who will be coaching UConn in the national championship game tonight, is the hottest coach in college basketball. He should get a call, along with Nate Oats, Jay Wright, and Billy Donovan. Maybe the third time is the charm for Donovan, who has been in the NBA for almost a decade now? Get ready to track private planes and horse farm listings again.

The only thing certain is that the next 24-48 hours will be insane as the program searches for its 23rd head coach, the seventh since Adolph Rupp retired in 1972. Not only will we be tracking coaching moves, but there are player decisions to consider as well. The players that don’t leave for the NBA will almost certainly follow Calipari to Arkansas, along with the incoming recruiting class. Just go ahead and prepare yourself for that.

We’ll bring you whatever news breaks when it happens. Get the news delivered directly to your phone via notifications on the On/KSR app and/or your inbox with the KSR Newsletter. KSBoard will be hopping too with the latest rumors and intel, and how we all feel about it. There’s never been a better time to join the club.

Matt Jones, Ryan Lemond, and Billy Rutledge will tip off a special three-hour edition of the radio show starting at 9 a.m. ET. Until then, you can hear me, Jack Pilgrim, and Shawn Smith unpack the news in the wee hours on Sources Say.

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I guess we’ll run through the other stuff happening today. As I said, I wrote most of this on the porch yesterday afternoon so, despite the seismic events of last night, some of it is still relevant. Leave it to John Calipari to overshadow the national championship game and a total solar eclipse.

The National Championship game is tonight

Could we see Kentucky’s future coach in action tonight? No. 1 seed Purdue faces No. 1 seed UConn in the national championship at 9:20 p.m. ET on TBS. Viewers in the Bluegrass State will be paying close attention to Hurley and UConn’s sideline. Will the talk of the Kentucky job distract the Huskies or will they take home their second straight national championship?

Does anyone really care about the actual game at this point? Kentucky is the biggest story in college basketball on college basketball’s biggest night.

You can watch the tournament live on Prime Video. Add on your favorite channels and watch at home or at work!

It’s Eclipse Day

Today’s going to get even weirder thanks to the cosmos. Around 3 p.m. ET, the moon will line up perfectly with the sun in parts of Mexico, the United States, and Canada for a total solar eclipse. Parts of Kentucky are in the “path of totality,” including Paducah, where the partial eclipse starts at 1:42 p.m. and ends at 4:18 p.m., with the total eclipse between 3 p.m. and 3:02 p.m. Even if you’re not in that swath, you’ll get a partial eclipse, so if you’re able, go outside and look up — but only with real eclipse glasses, not fake ones like the University of Kentucky library accidentally distributed last week.

The forecast looks good for those in the path of totality in Kentucky. Elsewhere, clouds may ruin the party.

Here’s a zoomed-in version of Kentucky courtesy of Eclipse2024.org:

It’s Spring Game Week

Still with me? How about a little football talk?

Kentucky’s Spring Game takes place this Saturday, April 13, but injuries on the defensive end will make it more of a glorified practice. Eight defensive linemen are currently injured, so instead of a full-contact scrimmage, the defense will instead “thud” offensive players in the spring game. Regardless, fans will be able to get their first look at Brock Vandagriff, the Cats’ new quarterback, in his first “event” since transferring in from Georgia.

It’s hard to tell a ton from a practice — especially one open to the media, but Vandagriff looked the part on Saturday, as did fellow transfers Chip Trayanum (RB) and Jalen Farmer (OL). Nick Roush and Adam Luckett were at the practice facility and broke it all down for you in written and visual form. Check out the highlights and Rapid Reaction below.

Must-Listen Radio

Matt Jones, Ryan Lemond, and Billy Rutledge are strapped in and ready to roll for a super-sized edition of Kentucky Sports Radio the radio show starting at 9 a.m. ET on 630 WLAP/iHeart Radio. Turn on your radio or streaming device for an absolutely massive show. After a wild night, it’s going to be an even crazier day.