Kentucky Bracketology update laughs right in the face of John Calipari, Arkansas

CBS Sports bracketology/College Football Playoff expert Jerry Palm's latest updated 2025 NCAA tournament projections aren't great for John Calipari. Not only are his Arkansas Razorbacks currently slated for the No. 10 seed in the West Region, but the Kentucky Wildcats are a No. 2 seed. The legendary head coach's two worlds are ostensibly colliding in the worst way possible.

Last offseason, after 15 years in Lexington, Calipari stepped down from his role as the leader of the Kentucky men's college hoops program. The following day, he was hired to run the show in Fayetteville. His decision to join Arkansas was deemed a blockbuster move with tremendous implications that would impact the outlook of the SEC and the sport.

Alas, the Razorbacks have stumbled out of the gates while the Wildcats have flourished under new sideline chief Mark Pope.

Kentucky Bracketology update laughs right in the face of John Calipari, Arkansas

Members of Big Blue Nation weren't thrilled when it was announced that Pope would be replacing Calipari, to say the least. Until his previous employer, BYU, joined the Big 12 before the 2023-24 campaign, the former had no Power Five conference coaching experience. Naturally, that concerned a fan base of one of the nation's blue-blood college basketball programs with perennial title aspirations.

However, fears of Pope being ill-equipped for the job and a significant downgrade to Calipari have been alleviated. The latter's successor is thriving and quickly winning over Kentucky fans everywhere, thanks to his prowess as an offensive guru.

The Wildcats have won 12 of their first 14 games this season, including a strong start to conference play. Pope guided the team to an impressive 106-100 victory over No. 6 Florida in his first SEC battle as Kentucky's sideline chief. Meanwhile, the same can't be said for Calipari and the Razorbacks, who recently got clobbered by top-ranked Tennessee.

Kentucky is 16th on ESPN's Basketball Power Index (BPI) compared to Arkansas' 43rd. To rub more salt in the wound, the Wildcats boast the fifth-best offensive rating in the country (123.1) while the Razorbacks rank 87th of 364 (113.0).

It's still early, but Pope and the Wildcats are making Calipari's decision to leave Kentucky for Arkansas look questionable.