Wednesday's official announcement that former Kentucky coach John Calipari was the 14th head coach of the University of Arkansas men's basketball program was well-received by several in-state recruits.
While none of the in-state recruits had scholarship offers from Kentucky while Calipari was in Lexington, they get a hard look from the new Arkansas coach.
Maumelle sophomore Jacob Lanier, a 4-star recruit, received an Arkansas scholarship offer from former coach Eric Musselman in May of last year.
"I'm super excited that Coach Cal is the head coach," Lanier said. "Hearing that news for an Arkansas fan is like winning the lottery. My family has been big fans of him and Kentucky for years. His style of play and the amount of guys he's got into the league is like no other. He's one of the greats of coaching and I can't wait to hopefully build a relationship with him and his staff and see what he does with the Razorback program."
Lanier, 6-6 and 180 pounds, has scholarship offers from Texas Tech, California, Arizona State, TCU, Ole Miss and others.
A member of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette All-Arkansas Preps Underclassman Team, Lanier is rated by On3.com as the No. 10 shooting guard and No. 38 overall prospect in the nation for the 2026 class.
Consensus 4-star 2025 prospect Terrion Burgess received a scholarship offer Musselman as a freshman in November 2021 while at Marion before transferring to Benton.
"Having him [Calipari[ here in our state is definitely a big deal," Burgess said. "His resume is extremely impressive and he has done a lot for college basketball and the culture. I'm sure he's going to help continue the winning tradition that the Razorbacks have always had."
Burgess, 6-9 and 208 pounds, also has scholarship offers from Auburn, Alabama, Texas A&M, Ole Miss, Oklahoma, TCU and other programs. On3.com rates him as the No. 10 power forward and the No. 43 overall prospects in the nation for the 2025 class.
He was first-team selection on the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette All-Arkansas Preps Team.
Sophomore prospect Aidan Chronister, 6-7 and 180 pounds, of Rogers, has scholarship offers from Arkansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Indiana State and others. Musselman offered him in the fall.
"With the news of Coach Calipari being named the new Arkansas head coach, it's an exciting time for the program," Chronister said. "While I developed a strong relationship with Coach Musselman and his staff, I am excited for the continued opportunity to get to be recruited by Arkansas and building a relationship with Coach Calipari and Arkansas' new staff."
An On3.com 4-star prospect, Chronister is rated as the No. 20 small forward nationally while being the No. 56 overall recruit in the 2026 class. He was also named to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette All-Arkansas Preps Underclassman Team.
Other in-state prospects who earned offers from Musselman, include 2025 guard Isaiah Sealy of Springdale, 2025 forward Jai'Chaunn Hayes of White Hall and 2026 guard JJ Andrews of Little Rock Christian.
CORRECTION: The college basketball recruits mentioned in this column have not yet committed to play at the University of Arkansas. Their status was misidentified in the headline of a previous version of the column.