Was Kentucky's road win over Arkansas the biggest of Mark Pope's career?

Mark Pope has only been in Lexington for a season and a half as the head coach of the Kentucky basketball program, but in that short time, he has already picked up some massive wins. Some of the most exciting wins of Pope’s tenure in Lexington so far would be taking down Illinois to advance to the Sweet 16, all of his three wins over Tennessee, and the big win over Duke early last season.

All of those wins were incredible, but there is an argument to be made that the biggest win of Pope’s time in Lexington so far was the one he picked up on Saturday. Pope and the Wildcats marched into Bud Walton Arena to take on John Calipari and the Arkansas Razorbacks in a game no one thought they would win and found a way to pull it off.

Calipari and Pop — Jan 31, 2026; Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA; Kentucky Wildcats head coach Mark Pope shakes hands with Arkansas Razorbacks head coach John Calipari prior to the game at Bud Walton Arena. Kentucky won 85-77. Mandatory Credit: Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images | Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images

Incredible games from Otega Oweh and Collin Chandler led the Wildcats to victory in a game Vegas believed would be lopsided in the other direction.

Arkansas fans might try to use this article to make themselves feel better about this loss but the argument I’m about to make has nothing to do with The University of Arkansas and everything to do with Coach Calipari. While last season was an exceptional year one for Coach Pope, he did lose to Coach Cal in Rupp Arena.

This win for Arkansas was what sparked their turn around, which eventually led to a Sweet 16 birth. Whether it’s fair or not, Pope’s record year in and year out at Kentucky will be compared to Calipari’s at Arkansas until the Hall of Famer decides to hang up the whistle.

Jan 31, 2026; Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA; Kentucky Wildcats head coach Mark Pope during the game against the Arkansas Razorbacks at Bud Walton Arena. Kentucky won 85-77. Mandatory Credit: Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images | Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images

Pope needed a win over Calipari real bad, and he found a way to pick it up on the road with a banged-up roster. At different points of this season, fans and the media have questioned whether or not Pope is the right guy for the job. The version of Mark Pope that Big Blue Nation saw in Fayetteville on Saturday is the guy fans want to see from now on.

There have been a lot of big wins in Pope’s time in Lexington, but to me, this was the biggest of them all. Not only for what it means this season, but what it means big picture, taking down the elite coach, whom Pope took over for in Lexington. Hopefully, this big-time win will spark the Cats as they get ready for the back half of SEC play. It’s safe to say that Coach Pope definitely felt some relief after taking down his predecessor on Saturday.