On the morning of Wednesday, April 10, Arkansas men’s basketball announced the official hire of hall of famer John Calipari as the 14th head coach of the Razorbacks.
Calipari signed a five-year contract with the SEC school beginning at $7 million per season.
Running through April 30, 2029, the contract features a $1 million signing bonus and retention bonuses of $500,000 each year, as well as one time bonuses for postseason performances relating to making the NCAA Tournament, reaching the Round of 32, Sweet Sixteen, Elite Eight, Final Four and winning the national title.
The announcement comes just several hours after Calipari posted a video on X, formerly known as Twitter, saying his official goodbye to Big Blue Nation and officially stepping down as the head coach of the Wildcats after 15 seasons.
“The last few weeks, we have come to realize this program probably needs to hear another voice,” Calipari said in the video. “That the university as a whole has to have another voice giving guidance about this program. The fans need to hear another voice. We think it’s time for us to step away and step away completely from the program. There have been opportunities presented to us and we are discussing them as a family.”
Arkansas announced that Calipari will be officially introduced to the Razorbacks and fans in Fayetteville, Arkansas, on April 10, in Bud Walton Arena at 7 p.m. EST.
“By all accounts, John Calipari is one of the premier coaches in college basketball,” Arkansas’ Athletic Director Hunter Yurachek said. “A national championship coach, a four-time national coach of the year and one of the nation’s top recruiters, Coach Cal has consistently demonstrated his ability to attract outstanding talent and build championship teams within the Southeastern Conference and position his programs among the best in the nation.”
