After completing the longest coaching stint of his career, John Calipari landed on Arkansas last year. But was it indeed the best decision to make for the team? Can coach Cal really be the mentor and leader to take Arkansas anywhere close to the trophy? Now that the team is sitting on a pile of 4 consecutive losses, fans and analysts have started to weigh in on his potential as a basketball coach.

Fox analyst John Fanta opened up about the Razorbacks in a recent episode of Field of 68 After Dark podcast. “Mitch Barnhart sleeps so much easier at night knowing he doesn’t have to put up with with Cal “, said Fanta. Barnhart has been the Athletic director at Kentucky for 22 years. Calipari left Kentucky as the Wildcats were not able to score a title since 2019.

“You can’t teach an old dog new tricks”, added Fanta. When Calipari was with Kentucky, people were concerned if the coach has accommodated adequately with the ever-changing landscape of college basketball, hence the transfer to Arkansas. “I don’t think it could be off to a worse start they’re 0 and four in the league”, added Fanta. Until 2025 began, fans almost had a ray of hope from the team but now, the team is once again in deep waters.

“They’re in danger of missing the tournament”, pointed out Fanta. In fact, some would argue that the team has been worse since the arrival of Calipari. Razorbacks at least used to manage to end up in the sweet sixteens or even the elite eight before this season. Arkansas now finds itself in the bottom of the SEC pool along with South Carolina. “You lose to LSU who’s not particularly good and they blew a double digit lead to LSU”, Fanta added. After the recent game, LSU is actually doing slightly better than the Razorbacks in the SEC.

Even after having one of the most expensive rosters, the Razorbacks seem to be lagging way behind their SEC rivals. But is Calipari showing remorse or taking accountability of this major conference setback? Let’s dive into what he thinks of his current place in college basketball.

John Calipari’s Basketball Reign in Jeopardy

“Like I said, I got to do a better job and I told them after the game“, admitted the head coach. Notably, this is the first time in coach Cal’s entire career when he has lost the first four games of the conference play. “Let’s get ready for the next one, we got a day off tomorrow.. And Missouri on the road, another road game.” said the Arkansas coach.

However, the general sentiment among fans is that the upcoming roster could be too much for the already struggling team. February looks tough for the Razorbacks, with matchups against top teams like Auburn, Calipari’s former team Kentucky, and a rematch with LSU. Some have even suggested that this might be Coach Cal’s first and last season with the Razorbacks if things don’t improve soon.

For now, their next game is against the Missouri Tigers, who won 10 straight games back in November. It will be interesting to see if Coach Cal can break his losing streak this weekend.