Kentucky athletic director Mitch Barnhart will retire at the end of June, according to UK Athletics’ X account Tuesday afternoon. Barnhart served Kentucky sports for 24 years and made the successful hires of Mark Stoops and John Calipari.
Calipari, who is now the head coach at Arkansas, reacted to the news on Tuesday.
“I just heard that Mitch Barnhart is retiring,” Calipari’s post read. “I wanted to say even though Mitch and I didn’t always see eye to eye he did a good job and I wish he and Connie well in retirement.”
I just heard that Mitch Barnhart is retiring. I wanted to say even though Mitch and I didn’t always see eye to eye he did a good job and I wish he and Connie well in retirement.
— John Calipari (@CoachCalArk) March 3, 2026Barnhart hired Calipari ahead of the 2009-2010 season, one that paid almost immediate dividends for both parties. The Wildcats reached the Elite 8 in Year 1 under Calipari, then made the Final 4 the year following. Following the pattern, Calipari won his first and only title in 2012, Year 3 in Lexington.
The Wildcats went to the Elite 8 3 more times under Calipari, who also reached the Final 4 once more in 2015. However, Kentucky began to struggle in the tournament following the pandemic and has yet to make the Sweet 16 since.
Perhaps alluding to the “we didn’t always see eye to eye,” Calipari left for Arkansas ahead of the 2024-25 season. The Razorbacks are currently ranked 3rd in the SEC standings with 2 games to go in the regular season.
Kentucky basketball has a 43% chance to reach the Sweet 16 per Kalshi. Here’s a look at the latest odds:
Prediction Markets March Madness Sweet 16 Qualifiers Learn more about Prediction Markets Kalshi Duke 94% Arizona 90% Michigan 88% Illinois 86% Florida 79% Houston 78% Iowa St. 70% UConn 66% Gonzaga 59% Kentucky 43% PredictJohn Calipari reacts to news of Mitch Barnhart’s retirement Saturday Down South.
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