John Calipari threw out a custom Armani suit because they spelled his name wrong

Coach Cal doesn’t remember when he wore it, but he can say with confidence the custom Armani suit at Jimmy Mahan’s Kentucky Roadshow Shop in Lexington is definitely his.

Well, was his before he tossed it out when he realized his name is spelled wrong on the tag inside — Calapari rather than Calipari. Now, Jimmy’s got his hands on it where it’s one of hundreds if not thousands of artifacts in his museum on 369 Romany Road — a must-see for Big Blue Nation. It’s why Pawn Stars Do America wanted to come check out the shop, that episode airing with Mahan, John Calipari and Chumlee last November on History Channel.

“Yep, name is spelled wrong. That’s me,” Calipari said on the show. “I did wear it in a game. Didn’t wear it in the national championship in 2012 because that one is in the Hall of Fame, but this was in a bunch of big games. I may have worn it in the semifinal, the Final Four.”

Cal said on Pawn Stars he may have worn the suit in a Final Four game pic.twitter.com/wqtdQDyBa9
— Jack Pilgrim (@JackPilgrimKSR) August 21, 2024

Fast forward to August and KSR’s Sources Say Podcast hosted a show live from the Kentucky Roadshow Shop so Jimmy could share stories and go through his collection of memorabilia with us. There, we stumbled upon Coach Cal’s custom Armani suit with his name misspelled on the inside pocket.

What do you do in that situation, a Hall of Famer’s suit once worn in a Final Four game, history physically in your hands? You put it on, of course.

“This was the suit Cal told his guys to get rid of,” Mahan said on Sources Say. “The reason he wanted to get rid of it is because if you look inside, his name is misspelled — Cal-a-pari.”

“Can I try this on?” I quickly asked. And then being the immature child I am, I also added that I would be using my coaching powers in that custom suit to start both Reed Sheppard and Rob Dillingham.

Yes, it’s ridiculous. No, I don’t regret doing it.

Coach Cal once got rid of a custom suit because his name was misspelled on the tag inside

He talked about it on an episode of Pawn Stars with @KentuckyCards last November. I tried it on yesterday. https://t.co/0GIYBVbPZp pic.twitter.com/JywHwIFdbr
— Jack Pilgrim (@JackPilgrimKSR) August 21, 2024