John Calipari explains why he has interacted with Arkansas fans, students so much entering year

Legendary head coach John Calipari is entering into his second season as the head coach at the Arkansas. This season in Fayetteville will mark the 34th of his Hall of Fame career.

The first season at Arkansas for Calipari was a definitive rollercoaster, as the Razorbacks rolled through non-conference play with an 11-2 record but lost their first five SEC games by an average of 12.2 points per game. The Hogs however bounced back and went 8-5 in their final 13 conference games, heading into the SEC Tournament as the No. 9 seed.

After downing No. 16 seed South Carolina in the First Round, Arkansas was eliminated by No. 8 seed Ole Miss following a game-winning three by Sean Pedulla. This loss lit a fire under Calipari’s team, as it downed No. 7 seed Kansas and No. 2 seed St. John’s in the NCAA Tournament before falling to No. 3 seed Texas Tech in the Sweet Sixteen.

Heading into his second year at Arkansas, Calipari explained why he has been interacting with so many fans and students prior to the year. Just this week, the head coach toured the fraternities at Arkansas and spoke with many fans and students.

“It’s a combination of I want to get out and try to drum this excitement up, but it’s also gives me a chance to get with students,” Calipari said. “I basically work for them. This is their team and I’m the coach of their team. I get a chance to go in and answer questions and talk to them about creating joy in their own life. I get a chance to do some things to interact with those guys.”

“We’re gonna do sororities Friday, so we’re probably gonna get five or six sororities then. I enjoy it. If I were teaching a class, I’d have no problem with that. I couldn’t do twice a week or anything but to have the opportunity to get involved with the students, I’ve always enjoyed that.”

Arkansas should be in upper echelon of SEC in 2025-26

Heading into the second season of the John Calipari era at Arkansas, the Razorbacks seem to be rolling with a vintage Cal roster.

This includes five freshmen, led by five-star guards Darius Acuff and Meleek Thomas, some veterans such as D.J. Wagner and Trevon Brazile and talented transfers in Nick Pringle (formerly at South Carolina) and Malique Ewin (formerly at Florida State).

“Right now, you can tell, I’m more comfortable,” Calipari said in July. “Like, (last year) I had walk in here and I didn’t know anybody. I didn’t know the campus. You guys have to understand, I was never on this campus. … So I’m just more comfortable.”

“And let me tell you, I’m so happy and comfortable and at peace with what we’re doing and how we’re doing it. Because we’re about the kids. It ain’t this and that, it’s about those kids. Now, if we do our job, they’ll lead us to where we’re trying to go.”

Arkansas opens its 2025-26 campaign at home against Southern on Nov. 3.