Stunningly, Arkansas has tabbed Kentucky’s John Calipari as its next head basketball coach. Calipari will replace Eric Musselman, who bolted for USC last week.

The deal worth nearly $8 million annually was completed in the weekend’s final hours. Now that Arkansas has its man, what is next for Kentucky? The Athletic has pieced together several potential candidates for the attractive vacancy, with a familiar name making the cut.

Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl is among the nine names that The Athletic believes should get a call from Kentucky athletic director Mitch Barnhart regarding the job. Pearl’s success at Auburn is nothing short of remarkable, making it easy to see why he is considered a target. However, his past could cause Kentucky to look elsewhere says The Athletic’s college basketball staff.

We have long heard that Barnhart would not be interested in hiring someone who has served a three-year NCAA show-cause penalty, but he’s among the multiple SEC coaches who did more than Calipari with less. He won the SEC regular season in 2018 and 2022 and the league tournament in 2019 and 2024. He’s been to a Final Four (Auburn’s only one ever) more recently than Kentucky. So if a bunch of these other candidates say no, Pearl’s previous missteps might suddenly be less offensive to Barnhart. In terms of personality, the carnival-barking Pearl is a perfect fit.

The Athletic is not the only outlet linking Pearl to Kentucky. Before Calipari’s move to Fayetteville, UK Wildcats Wire put Pearl on a shortlist of potential candidates to become Kentucky’s next head coach citing his success in recruiting and SEC competition.

Other names that The Athletic mentions include Baylor’s Scott Drew, Alabama‘s Nate Oats, and former Florida head coach Billy Donovan, who is now leading the Chicago Bulls.

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