"At Kentucky, you have to win championships": Rece Davis sounds the alarm for Wildcats HC John Calipari amid coaching change rumors

John Calipari has found himself on the hot seat as the Kentucky Wildcats have not had the same success in recent years.

The Wildcats have not won a national championship since the 2011-12 season and have not reached the Final Four since 2014-15. Their last Sweet Sixteen appearance was in 2018-19, and they last won the conference tournament in 2017-18. Additionally, they haven't finished the regular season atop the SEC since 2019-20.

Rece Davis recently appeared on The Pat McAfee Show, where he was asked about Calipari's future, responding:

"There are some who want [him to be fired]. I don't think that's particularly wise... There are only two people on the planet who have proven to be able to handle that job because it is a giant one. One of them has the job now in Calipari, the other one is Rick Pitino. That's it. Now, are there others? Yes. There's a lot that comes with that job. Cal understands how it works, but he needs to change."

Davis continued:

"He needs to change because at Kentucky, you have to win championships. You have to go to Final Fours. He needs to fix it, whatever it is, so I think that setting out a plan for what he wants to do to be able to improve their postseason performance - that's a fair assessment of where Kentucky is because they're Kentucky. Beyond that, I don't think it's wise to push out Calipari."

Check out Rece Davis' comments on John Calipari's future below:

If Kentucky were to fire Calipari, they would owe him 75% of the remaining amount of his contract, roughly $35 million

John Calipari weighs in on NCAA Tournament exit

John Calipari had his final radio show of the 2023-24 season on Monday. He weighed in on the program's first-round exit from the NCAA Tournament, stating:

"We have a standard here. My standard is we’re playing to play deep into the NCAA Tournament and compete for national titles. And win national titles. I wanted this job knowing that was the case. I love this job knowing that was the case. I never left this job. But that’s what the standard is for me." [h/t Lexington Herald Leader]

Calipari has led the Wildcats to a 410-123 record in 15 seasons leading the program. In 32 seasons coaching at the collegiate level, he has compiled an 855-263 record.