Ryan Pitino knew his stunt had gone viral Saturday when Rick Pitino started receiving texts from ESPN writers asking, “Why the hell is your son wearing a chicken suit?”
Well, the younger Pitino didn’t lose a bet, as The Big Ten Network’s announcing crew first guessed. He told ESPN 680’s “The Deener Show” on Monday that it was simply about fitting in at Minnesota’s Williams Arena.
“If you’re going to ‘The Barn,’ why not wear a chicken suit?” Ryan Pitino told Deener.
Just about every major news outlet picked up video of the Pitinos — Rick and Chick — watching Richard Pitino’s Minnesota team rally to beat Indiana, 66-60.
Ryan, a St. Xavier High School graduate, had previously contacted a buddy of his, former University of Louisville video manager Walker Price, who’s now at Minnesota and working as Richard Pitino’s recruiting and operations coordinator. Price arranged for the suit and had it waiting before the game, except that the Pitinos nearly missed tipoff.
Rick insisted Ryan change at the last minute. Ryan warned his brother in the Gophers’ locker room.
“I go, ‘I’ve got a chicken suit I’m going to wear. Just don’t worry about it,’ ” Ryan told ESPN 680. “He goes, ‘No you’re not. You can’t do that.’ So I did it, and it turned out to be a pretty funny thing.”
Ryan added: “He noticed right when he walked out for the National Anthem. He gave me a little head nod like, ‘What the hell are you doing?’ He enjoyed it after the win, of course.”
Ryan is a Georgetown University graduate who now works in finance. He called the chicken suit “a Wall Street kind of thing” and said he’d bring it out again if Minnesota makes the Final Four in its first year with older brother Richard as head coach.
Ryan wasn’t alone in dressing up to The Barn, an arena that opened in 1928 and regularly plays to sold-out crowds. Animal costumes are encouraged for students.
“I mean, I brag a lot to those guys about this place,” Richard told the Minneapolis Star Tribune. “So to do it in front of people that you talk about it all the time to is really fun.”
