Kentucky May Not Be Most Frustrated SEC Team to See Calipari at Arkansas

Oats last person who wants to see Razorbacks' coach still on his schedule

Kentucky Wildcats coach John Calipari reacts during the first half against the Alabama Crimson Tide at Coleman Coliseum. Alabama won 68-66. / Kelly Lambert-USA TODAY Sports

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – There was a lot to like about Eric Musselman's time at Arkansas. Two Elite 8 appearances, three consecutive trips to the Sweet 16 and numerous wins over No. 1 ranked teams.

However, there was one area that left Razorbacks fans frustrated. Yes, it was unfair that Musselman had to take his Hogs to Tuscaloosa every year as the Tide found itself favored by the league office when it came to a gifted home advantage.

Despite this, it was his job to soak up as many wins as possible against Nate Oats. Sure, Arkansas fans will always take the NCAA success over conference titles and especially wins over Alabama, but that doesn't mean they don't want more wins because Tide fans can be a bit much when it comes to basketball.

Musselman went 2-5 against Alabama while also being the most successful postseason team in the SEC four of his first five years. Razorbacks fans were content except for having to listen to Tide fans, who have no concept of how success is measured in basketball, bragging about the most useless thing that can be won in the sport – a conference championship.

Conference champions are regularly left out of the NCAA Tournament. At one point in time they automatically qualified for the NIT, but even its administration determined in 2023 that honoring a conference championship is often a losing proposition.

It's not Alabama that's the problem. It's the ignorance of what they are saying.

The hope among Arkansas fans is John Calipari will be the solution until Tide fans become more educated on what's valued in college basketball. So, the first thing to investigate is whether he was at least more successful than Musselman when it comes to taking down Oats.

The good news for the Hogs is he went 4-3, including a 22-point bombing of Alabama's Final Four team last year. It's notable that he is 3-1 over the past three seasons despite it being the Tide's most prolific stretch of success over its history.

2024
Kentucky 117, Alabama 95
2023
Alabama 78, Kentucky 52
2022
Kentucky 66, Alabama 55
Kentucky 90, Alabama 81
2021
Alabama 85, Kentucky 65
Alabama 70, Kentucky 59
2020
Kentucky 76, Alabama 67

As the various projections come out once basketball schedules are officially finalized, Arkansas will likely be picked to lose to Alabama. However, the numbers say Calipari has figured out Oats.

The Razorbacks likely won't win every game against the Tide, and using history similarly indicates postseason success may be a thing of the past for the Hogs, but trips to Tuscaloosa won't be pretty much a guaranteed loss anymore. At least that's what the numbers say.

HOGS FEED:

• Arkansas produced one of highest graded players of College Football Playoff era

• Pittman remains cool despite presumed hot seat

• Yurachek's gonna need a bigger building

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