Calipari Nominated For An Emmy

Kentucky basketball coach John Calipari could do something that the world of college hoops has never seen.

The coach, who was a critical part of the creation, planning and execution of the Hoops for Haiti telethon in early 2010, has been nominated for a regional Emmy award, according to the Lexington Herald-Leader.

The telethon was nominated in the category for special acheivement for community service in hte Ohio Valley Regional competition, which includes programs Kentucky, Indiana, Ohio and West Virginia. Winners will be announced on July 30.

Calipari is part of a group 12 peole that were nominated for their work on the telethon, which raised over $1.3 million for the relief efforts in Haiti following the devastating earthquake that hit the area.

More from the Herald-Leader:

Hoops for Haiti came together within just a couple of days, WKYT news director Robert Thomas said. Station manager Wayne Martin and Calipari discussed the idea and sprang into action.

"It took a lot of involvement, not just from the news team but everybody at WKYT," Thomas said. "It raised an unbelievable amount of money."

Thomas said Calipari was involved from start to finish.

"It was his brainchild for something for the basketball team and the community to come together to do," he said.

Cherie Housley, an administrator for the Emmy awards, said she cannot recall a basketball coach being nominated ever before in her 25 years working in the organization.

So in two seasons in Lexington, Calipari has two SEC titles, an Elite Eight appearance, a Final Four appearance and maybe, just maybe, an Emmy award.

Not too shabby.