Kentucky vs. Kansas: John Calipari's Ultimate Redemption

John Calipari had it.

In 2008, he had what every top college basketball coach spends their life working so hard for. He had a National Championship in his grasp. He was just two pain-staking seconds away from the fulfillment of his dream.

One surreal three-pointer hoisted from Kansas’ Mario Chalmers later and the dream had turned into a nightmare.

Coach Calipari would be forced to sit and watch as his National Championship hopes slowly faded away during a lackluster overtime. It had fallen through his fingertips.

The dream would come true for Bill Self of Kansas instead.

It has been a game that has haunted Calipari nearly every day since. It is an ending that has hung over his head and kept him second guessing and wondering just what he could have done differently down the stretch.

He was so close to putting a cap on a tremendous career, and cementing himself as one of the premier coaches of his generation. Somehow it all slipped away.

Two years later, the scenery has changed, while the parallels remain.

What’s changed? Calipari has moved on from Memphis to coach the Kentucky Wildcats, one of college basketball’s most prestigious and recognizable programs.

What’s the same? He sits with a talent-laden team, ready for a Championship run, led by a tremendous freshman point guard, John Wall.

Again, it looks like he and his young men could be on another collision course with Bill Self’s Kansas Jayhawks, with the National Championship hanging in the balance.

It would be a game that any true college basketball fan, regardless of rooting interests, would love to see. It would be the Super Bowl of this year’s March Madness. The two top teams in the nation battling for the ultimate prize in the sport.

The 64 games in this year’s March Madness will undoubtedly provide excitement, shining moments, unbelievable upsets, and great story lines. They do every year.

However, no game would live up to the level of talent on the floor if the Jayhawks actually did end up playing the Wildcats for the National Championship. It would be comparable to Texas vs. USC in the National Championship a few years ago, which turned out to be one of the greatest college football games ever played.

It would provide a showcase for fans that would include five potential NBA lottery picks (Kentucky’s Patrick Patterson, John Wall, and DeMarcus Cousins, as well as Cole Aldrich and Xavier Henry of Kansas).

It would be a game that pits two of the sports most historic programs against each other on the biggest stage possible.

There might not be any better way for John Calipari to finally capture his coveted National Championship.

To win against Kansas, the team he started his coaching career with in the early '80s, and a team that stood between him and his dream just two years ago, would be fitting.

Calipari will tell you that it doesn’t matter who he plays against as long as he wins. His focus is solely on bringing a championship back to Lexington and the Wildcat faithful.

It would be hard to believe though that a part of him wouldn’t like another shot at Self and the Jayhawks. A chance to right the wrong of the 2008 National Championship would certainly be something special.

It would provide John Calipari the opportunity to turn the nightmare back into the dream.