John Calipari set to return to Rupp Arena in 2025 as Arkansas travels to Kentucky

John Calipari’s return to Kentucky has been set.

On Monday, the SEC announced the upcoming 2024-25 men’s basketball regular season slate and Calipari’s now-led Arkansas Razorbacks are set to travel to Rupp Arena to take on Mark Pope’s Wildcats.

A date and time for the game will be announced at a later date. The SEC regular season is slated to begin on Saturday, January 4 and end on Saturday, March 8 of next year per the conference’s press release.

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With the additions of Texas and Oklahoma to the SEC next season, the traditional home-and-home makeup of the SEC regular season will not continue as only three teams will play each other twice now in a season.

And so, with Arkansas and Kentucky not scheduled to play a home-and-home this season this means Calipari and the Razorbacks won’t host the Wildcats in a return game in Fayetteville this year.

Naturally given how beloved Calipari was at Kentucky and how his tenure ended, it will be one of the highest-priced tickets this upcoming basketball season.

Since being hired at Arkansas back last month, Calipari has rebuilt a Razorbacks roster that went 16-17 overall under former head coach Eric Musselman through the transfer portal. Calipari has brought in Wildcats transfers Adou Thiero and Zvonimor Ivisic, FAU guard transfer Johnell Davis and former Tennessee big man Jonas Aidoo.

The Hall of Fame coach signed a five-year contract with a salary slightly north of $8.5 million per year with the Razorbacks, which makes him the second-highest-paid college basketball coach in the country according to the USA TODAY Sports database.

In his 15 seasons at Kentucky, Calipari compiled an overall record of 410-123 while leading the Wildcats to a national championship title in 2012 and four Final Four appearances.