FAYETTEVILLE — John Calipari wants to take his Arkansas men’s basketball team to the people.
Calipari, hired April 10, explained his thinking on having team events in Hot Springs and Pine Bluff during the weekend of the Arkansas football team’s first open date.
Arkansas is holding what Calipari is calling “Tipoff Tour” events in Hot Springs on Oct. 12 and Pine Bluff on Oct. 13, next Saturday and Sunday.
The events, which have three pricing levels for admission, will include opportunities to meet the players and coaches and watch the Razorbacks go through individual and team drills for fans at 4 p.m. at Hot Springs’ Bank OZK Arena and at 5 p.m. at the Pine Bluff Convention Center.
“My guess is they’ll both be sold out,” Calipari said during a Tuesday news conference. “And you might ask, ‘Why are you doing this? What is it that leads you to do things that take the team to the state?’
“Well, first of all, this program is the state’s program. By going to them, it’s kind of like we’re going to where you are. You don’t always have to come to us.
“And my guess is, there are going to be people at both venues. It’s their first opportunity to see a player, the team, the coach, in person. Now that couldn’t mean they’re 8, 9, 12 years old. It could mean they’re 70. And this is their chance to see these players or this team in person. That’s one of the reasons I want to do it.”
Prices will be:
• $30 per seat for general admission on a first-come, first-served basis.
• $75 per seat for up to 200 fans who will be allowed access to and interactions with the players and coaches before the event and a Calipari autograph. Fans at this level will be allowed in the facilities early and have reserved seating for them close to the team benches.
• $1,000 per seat for up to 8 people who will be able to sit on the bench with players and coaches during the event, have a picture taken with team members and get player autographs and meet Calipari to get a photo and autograph before the event.
In accordance with NCAA rules, students in grades 7-12 will not be able to participate in the $1,000 per seat option.
Junior forward Trevon Brazile is the Razorbacks’ only returning player and Calipari said the newcomers need to grasp what playing for Arkansas means.
“I also want to get the kids out in the community to understand the importance to this state that this program has,” he said.
Calipari said in addition to interaction with fans who might not have an opportunity to see the Razorbacks play at Walton Arena in Fayetteville, a significant part of the “Tipoff Tour” events will be donating 3,000 pairs of shoes through Samaritan’s Feet, a nonprofit organization based in Charlotte, N.C.
According to the group’s website, it “shares a message of hope and love through washing the feet of impoverished children around the world and adorning them with new shoes.”
More than 9.4 million pairs of shoes have been donated in over 560 cities in the United States and in 109 countries, according to the website, since the organization started in 2003.
“It’s about having young people, where you wash their feet, you talk to them, you create hope, you give them a hug, you let them know someone cares,” Calipari said. “And the impact it has on the young people, yeah. But the impact it has on my players, enormous. And if you’ve ever been in one of those events, you would know.
“So we’re going to do those before we do anything on the basketball court in both Hot Springs and Pine Bluff.”
Calipari said that along with fans getting autographs and photos with the Razorbacks, there will be “a mini practice” held.
“But it’s more about us getting into the communities,” he said.
The Razorbacks are getting set for preseason practice after having summer workouts that focused on individual work.
“The summer was total development of players and we really didn’t do much of that team stuff,” Calipari said. “Then team play is, how do we make each other better?
“Some of that is how do we play for this team to be at its best? We’re going to play fast, we’re going to be unselfish, but how do you get into playing fast? Who takes it out of bounds with this group?
“I’ve done different things. I’ve had the 5 take it out, I’ve had the 4 take it out, I’ve had the 3 take it out different places because of those teams.
“We’re still working that through. And the answer will probably be given to us by the players. They’ll do things that we’ll say, ‘This is the best way for this team to play.’”
Arkansas plays exhibition games against Kansas on Oct. 25 at home and at TCU on Nov. 1.
“You say, ‘You don’t have the team stuff locked down yet and you’re going to play Kansas?’” Calipari said. “Yeah, you’re going to get hit in the mouth, but you’re hoping they swing.
“You’re hoping they will learn from that experience. Shoot, I want to win every game I coach, but when you’re building and you’re doing this, you’ve got to throw them into the fire and see where they are right now. And then we’ll all know — ‘Here’s where we are as we start this process.’”
Calipari will host a women’s clinic Sunday at the Razorbacks’ basketball practice facility in Fayetteville. The clinic starts at 1:30 p.m. and costs $158 per person, including an autographed basketball.
“We’ve done it before, and it’s always been a home run because it’s another group that you connect with and become embedded in the program,” Calipari said. “And let me say this, these mothers and grandmothers end up adopting these players. And I don’t mean having them over to the house. I’m saying that’s who they root for.
“We already have what we thought we’d have [for registration totals], and we only put it out for a couple days, and it’s at a number already, that I was like, ‘Wow.’
“So I kind of feel it’ll take off and it’s going to be one of these things people look forward to.
“I even said for the women who are coming for the Tennessee football game, make your husband stay. He can’t come to the event, but make him stay and then you can tell him what happened at practice after we’re done and after the clinic’s over.”
