John Calipari

National Champion, Head Coach, University of Kentucky Wildcats 

Head Coach of the University of Kentucky Wildcats and 2012 NCAA National Champion, John Calipari has added an 8th Championship banner to the rafters by leading his team to a victory over the University of Kansas Jayhawks. Following a Final Four appearance in 2011, he has become only the second coach in NCAA history to bring three different teams to the Final Four and is the winningest coach of the last 5 years.

Taking the reins at a prestigious program such as Kentucky is a first for Calipari who is known for turning once anonymous teams into national powerhouses. Calipari took over a 20 win team competing in the NIT in 2009 and brought them to the #1 ranking within one year. With a record 5 players drafted in the first round of the 2010 NBA draft and a 30 win season, he was named the 2010 Adolph Rupp National Coach of the Year, his third such honor.

Before coaching at Kentucky, Calipari was the Head Coach at the University of Memphis for nine seasons. Joining the program in 2000, Calipari quickly made his mark with an NIT championship in 2002. In 2008, Calipari had the team on the cusp of a national title after an overtime defeat in the 2008 NCAA Championship game to the University of Kansas.

Calipari's college coaching career began at the University of Massachusetts in 1988. He took over a 10 win team and brought the team to the schools' first ever Final Four appearance in 1996 with a 31-1 record, the best in the nation.

With his history of quickly turning around programs, Calipari is a master of communication and reengineering programs. He is a master at recruiting and motivating; he has, year after year, turned great individual talents into great team players. His trademark style and charisma are carried into his presentations where he describes how he helps others succeed in life on and off the court and what it takes to build championship teams.