A Harvey jeweler has crafted a custom purple and gold diamond necklace for LSU's head coach as the Tigers prepare for a charged rematch with his former team. Mike Jamali, known around Baton Rouge and the West Bank as Mike the Jeweler, built the piece with a diamond Louisiana boot, the phrase “just different” worked into the design, and “Coach Kiffin” engraved on the back.
Jamali runs Mike & Co. out of a storefront at 1118 Manhattan Blvd. in Harvey, Louisiana, according to WGNO, which reported on the finished necklace. The station's report notes Jamali has already crafted jewelry for LSU football players Richard Anderson and Braelin Moore, along with LSU baseball champion Seth Dardar, well before he turned his attention to the head coach himself.
A Custom Piece for Kiffin
Jamali created the finished LSU necklace as a custom piece for Kiffin specifically.
Jamali's relationship with LSU athletics did not start with Kiffin, either. Per the LSU Reveille, his connection to the program began when a retail customer mentioned that his son played for the Tigers, which led Jamali to design a custom No. 1 statement pendant and chain for LSU cornerback Ashton Stamps. Since then, the Reveille reports his custom clientele has grown to include LSU football players Carius Curne and Bernard Gooden, as well as LSU baseball national champion Luis Hernandez.
Twenty People, Weeks of Work, One Diamond Tiger
Jamali has been designing jewelry since 2010, and the Reveille reports that his Mike & Co. operation now employs a 20-person team that manages a multi-week custom production process, including CAD digital design and stone setting, for pieces like the one now hanging around Kiffin's neck. That scale of craftsmanship helps explain why a single custom piece can take weeks to complete before it ever reaches an athlete or coach.
The timing lands during an especially charged stretch of LSU's season. No. 7 LSU is preparing to face No. 8 Ole Miss on Saturday, Kiffin's former program, in a matchup that Sports Illustrated has previewed. The necklace's creation comes as Kiffin leads the Tigers in his first season.
A Lighthearted Moment Amid Legal Turbulence
Kiffin left Ole Miss after an 11-1 regular season to take LSU's head coaching job on November 30, 2025, signing a seven-year, $91 million contract that includes an automatic escalator clause that would make him the highest-paid coach in college football if he wins a national championship with the Tigers, according to CBS Sports. That kind of financial stakes and celebrity has made Kiffin a magnet for exactly the sort of promotional attention Jamali has been chasing.
The necklace is a lighthearted culture item, but it lands during a tense week for the program off the field. LSU pass rusher Umanmielen was served in an Ole Miss lawsuit just days before the rematch, and the SEC has sued LSU and Kiffin over an ex-NFL players rule tied to his roster additions this season. Those legal battles, detailed in Hoodline's earlier report on the Ole Miss lawsuit against LSU, have followed Kiffin's transfer portal strategy since he arrived in Baton Rouge.
NIL Rules and a Chance to Win a Mini Version
Any commercial activity tied to LSU athletes now falls under tighter state oversight. The Office of the Louisiana Attorney General has launched an athlete-agent registration portal and identifies Senate Bill 389 as the underlying law, according to the Office of the Louisiana Attorney General. The necklace report does not identify an official LSU collective or describe NIL deal coordination.
For fans who cannot afford a custom commission, Jamali is now making mini versions of the Tigers necklaces, which are already for sale, and he is running a giveaway for the necklace on his Instagram page. Mike & Co. is open Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. at its Harvey storefront for anyone hoping to see the collection in person before kickoff.
