It turns out Arkansas basketball coach John Calipari received an invitation from President Donald Trump before the start of the 2026 NCAA Tournament.
Earlier this month, Trump held a "Saving College Sports" roundtable at the White House. Former college football coaches Urban Meyer and Nick Saban were among those in attendance. Trump vowed that he'd write up an executive order that'll help enforce tight guidelines regarding name, image and likeness.
“I will have an executive order within one week, and it will be very all-encompassing. And we’re going to put it forward, and we’re going to get sued, and we’re going to see how it plays, OK, but I’ll have an executive order which will solve every problem in this room, every conceivable problem, within one week, and we’ll put it forward,” Trump said, via ESPN. “We will get sued. That’s the only thing I know for sure.”
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During an appearance on "The Pat McAfee Show" this Tuesday afternoon, Coach Cal revealed that he was invited to the "Saving College Sports" roundtable.
Calipari couldn't attend this important meeting because Arkansas was getting ready for a showdown with Missouri. His team ultimately won 88-84 in an overtime thriller.
"I was invited. I had a game," Calipari said. "They said, ‘Well, why don’t you miss the game?’ I said, ‘Are you nuts?'"
Coach Cal doesn't hold back on college basketball.
Later on in Calipari's interview with ESPN's Pat McAfee, he suggested the NCAA needs an age limit for college basketball.
“Here’s the issue: we’re letting 27 and 28-year-olds play in college basketball. If you want to be a pro, go pro. There should be an age limit – 25. We’re letting kids transfer every year – well, they can transfer four-to-five times,” Calipari said. “I couldn’t have done what I did at UMass, and probably not at Memphis, in this environment. When you’re hard on kids and you challenge them and you’re truthful, they want to leave.”
Calipari will be back in the spotlight on Thursday night when No. 4 seed Arkansas takes on No. 1 Arizona for a spot in the Elite Eight.
