LEXINGTON, Ky. — The worst-kept secret in college basketball is out: John Calipari is leaving Kentucky after 15 seasons leading the Wildcats.
He made the announcement himself Tuesday afternoon in a four-minute video posted on X, formerly known as Twitter.
He said his tenure at Kentucky has been a "dream job," but said the program needs to hear a different voice. He did not confirm where he is headed next, although numerous reports indicate he's finalizing a deal with Arkansas.
"[My wife and I] loved it here, but we think it's time for us to step away," Calipari said. "There have been opportunities presented to us and we're discussing them as a family."
Kentucky athletic director Mitch Barnhart thanked him in a statement on his X account.
"We're appreciative of John Calipari leading our program for the last 15 years, adding to the legacy of championship success at Kentucky," Barnhart said. "We're grateful to John for his many contributions to the University, and our state, both on and off the court.
"We are working diligently to hire a proven, highly dedicated coach who embraces the importance of this program to our fans and the state of Kentucky."
Numerous reports of Calipari's impending departure began to surface over the weekend. According to ESPN, Calipari is signing a five-year contract with Arkansas with a similar annual base salary to the $8.5 million he made at UK, but incentives will likely take him above that figure.
Calipari's 410 wins are the second-most in Kentucky history behind Adolph Rupp. He led the Wildcats to a national championship in just his third season in 2012, and returned to the Final Four in 2014 and 2015.
Kentucky was 38-0 in the 2014-15 season before losing to Wisconsin in the Final Four.
However Calipari never returned to the Final Four with Kentucky and made the Sweet 16 just three times from 2016-2024, and not since 2019. Questions about his future in Lexington reached an all-time high last month when 14th-seeded Oakland upset his squad in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
Five days later, Barnhart said Calipari would return after much speculation he could be fired.
Calipari leaves UK with six SEC regular season championships and six conference tournament championships. He coached 35 first round NBA draft picks, including No. 1 overall picks John Wall, Anthony Davis and Karl-Anthony Towns.
Calipari would replace Eric Musselman at Arkansas, who left for USC last week.
The Razorbacks have seen recent success, reaching the Elite 8 in 2021 and 2022, and the Sweet 16 in 2023.
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