Calipari has two commitments, but not looking to back off throttle yet

Another priority target, Arafan Diane, is also planning to announce his college choice next month.

Diane (7-1 center, Iowa United Prep, national Top 10, 5-star prospect) will declare his decision on his birthday, Nov. 19.

Diane is down to a final five of Arkansas, Houston, Kentucky, Indiana, and Virginia.

He's visited all but two of those teams with stops at Indiana (Oct. 17-19) and Houston (Oct. 24-26) upcoming.

Although it's not a given, 2026 priority Hog target Baba Oladotun might also make his college choice in time to sign early.

Oladotun (6-10 combo forward, Blake High School in Silver Springs, Md., national Top 10, 5-star prospect) is the last of seven known Arkansas visitors this fall.

He's slated to take an official visit to Arkansas the weekend of Oct. 24-26, which coincides with the Razorbacks' charity exhibition home game against Cincinatti (Friday, Oct. 24) as well as the football Hogs' home game against Auburn (Saturday, Oct. 25).

Oladotun is also planning to visit Kentucky (Oct. 17-19) prior to his OV to Arkansas.

He has already visited Virginia Tech (where his father, Ibrahim Oladotun played in the 1990s), his home-state school Maryland, and Georgetown.

Oladotun was previously the No. 1-ranked player in the class of 2027 before re-classifying to 2026 in the summer.

Calipari might have to wait until April for the decisions of a trio of 2026 top 5-ranked, 5-star guards.

Calipari is pursuing the talented guards with an intention to sign all three if possible.

That very notion was backed up recently when in an article published by On3 Sports, one of those coveted backcourt prospects, Caleb Holt (6-5, Prolific Prep in /ft. Lauderdale, Fla.), opened up about the Head Hog's recruiting pitch to him.

"Coach Cal flew down last week, came down to see me (on Sept. 27)," Holt was quoted in the article as saying. "Right after they came to see me, they flew down to my dad to meet with him. Coach Cal's been on it.

"You know, he wants me, Smitty (Jordan Smith, Jr., 6-2, Fairfax, Va.), and Brandon McCoy (6-5, Sierra Canyon in Los Angeles) to come there (Arkansas) and be the dynamic three."

All three of those players (Holt, Smith, and McCoy) have recently taken official visits to Arkansas.

At least one more 2026 5-star frontline recruit that Calipari and Arkansas remain in hot pursuit of to hopefully win over in the end is Miikka Muurinen (6-11 combo forward, Finland native, visited Arkansas in September 2024).

There is a pathway, whether cobbling together three more backcourt or frontline players or some combination of both, for Calipari to get to a five-player high school class in this recruiting cycle.

He could also decide to limit the class to the "three or four" recruits that he's so frequently discussed since coming to Arkansas.

Arkansas' on-campus prospect visit dates

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