The college basketball world received a big shock Sunday evening when it was reported that John Calipari would leave Kentucky for Arkansas. Now details about the coach’s new contract with the Razorbacks are starting to come out.
According to a report from Jeff Goodman, Calipari will receive around $7.5-8 million per season in Fayetteville. That is only slightly less than the $8.5 million per year he made as the Wildcats’ coach.
ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported earlier that Calipari signed a five-year contract with Arkansas. That would put the total value of the deal somewhere in the $37.5-40 million range.
Calipari is coming off a disappointing postseason in Lexington. Kentucky fell in its opening matchup against Texas A&M in the SEC Tournament. The team’s nightmare scenario only worsened when it lost to No. 14 seed Oakland in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
Rumors began to swirl after that loss that Kentucky could be ready to move on from Calipari. Although the team ultimately opted to bring him back for another season, many believed that had more to do with his $34 million buyout instead of its belief in him.
Now, per KSR’s Matt Jones, neither Kentucky nor Arkansas will have to pay the hall-of-fame head coach’s buyout fee.
In Calipari’s 15 seasons at the helm of Kentucky, he amassed a 410-122 record, three Final Four appearances in 2011, 2014 and 2015 and a national title in 2012. However, the Wildcats had won just one NCAA Tournament game in the past five seasons and the fan base was beginning to grow restless.
John Calipari is set to take over for Eric Musselman, who left Arkansas this offseason to become the coach at USC. The Razorbacks are coming off of a 16-17 season after making the NCAA Tournament the three seasons prior.
Now the interesting thing becomes the Wildcats’ head coaching search and whether any of Calipari’s incoming recruits at Kentucky follow him to Arkansas. UK currently has the No. 2 recruiting class in the 2024 cycle according to the On3 Industry Team Rankings. It is a six-player class led by five-star center Jayden Quaintance, the No. 8 player in the country.
Arkansas will be the fourth program for Calipari, who also had stints at Massachusetts and Memphis before joining Kentucky in 2009-10.
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