Big Man on Campus

For many students, Monday nights are grudgingly filled with reading assignments, laundry and perhaps the latest episode of Gossip Girl.

But for the women of Zeta Tau Alpha and 23 fraternity members, Oct. 5  was no trip down mundane lane. The Zeta house erupted with dance, music and laughs as the boisterous group practiced for last Friday’s Big Man on Campus.

“We have so much fun doing it,” said Phi Kappa Psi member and senior John Smolen, a BMOC contestant and Mr. Congeniality from the competition. “I can’t imagine it not being fun to watch.”

Big Man on Campus is Zeta’s annual philanthropy event and variety show.
Twenty-three brothers from fraternities around campus sing, dance and entertain in hopes of being crowned the “Big Man on Campus.” The event raises money for breast cancer research.

This year BMOC celebrated its 10th anniversary, and in commemoration, Zeta tried to lock in BMOC as a truly campus-wide event.

The entire greek community participated in BMOC in some way this year, said junior Sarah McNerney, co-chair of philanthropy for Zeta.

According to the Zeta Web site, BMOC has become the largest greek philanthropy in the nation. 

This year’s theme is “Teaming up to Tackle Breast Cancer,” which coincides with BMOC being the official kickoff to Homecoming this year.

“The theme will be incorporated in the show itself, with each of the 23 guys playing something related to football,” McNerney said before Friday’s event. “Something quirky or fun, from a football player to a hotdog.”

Though it may appear to be all “fun and games” when catching a glimpse of a rehearsal, preparing for BMOC is a demanding year-round process for many members of Zeta, specifically the philanthropy chairs McNerney and junior Emily Stern.

Designing the T-shirt, setting the date, coordinating with the contestants and other logistics begin during the summer and get more time-consuming as the event approaches. 

“We spend so much time on BMOC,” McNerney said. “As a philanthropy chair, it starts the minute we get elected.”

The event contestants also put in a great deal of time and energy  selling T-shirts, raising money and perfecting their individual talents, as well as attending the tri-weekly dance rehearsals at the Zeta house. Smolen described Zeta as his second home these days.

All the hard work eventually pays off – literally. 

Last year, Zeta members raised more than $175,000 for the cause, dispersing funds between the IU Medical Center, the Vera Bradley Foundation, Susan G. Komen for the Cure and the American Cancer Society, according to the BMOC Web site. This year Zeta hoped to reach similar heights, but had concerns about reaching a new record. Still, the women blew past their previous record and raised $190,000.

A majority of fundraising is done through the ticket and T-shirt sales as well as pledge donations from the BMOC contestants. 

Smolen said he got his entire house involved in the fundraising aspect of the competition. He sent out e-mails to all the parents of his fraternity brothers informing them of the online donation opportunities. 

Making this year unique, a large portion of the funds raised through the event will be donated to Robert Goulet, medical director of the Breast Care & Research Center at the IU Simon Cancer Center, and his team at the Indianapolis center to fund the newly established Zeta Conference.

The Zeta Conference will be an informational forum for big-name breast cancer researchers and benefactors to discuss progress in the field. Zeta will donate more than $100,000 in the next four years to this conference. 

“The IU Medical Center is really at the forefront of breast cancer research, and they are making so much progress,”  senior member of Zeta Jen Sondhi said. “This way we can really see the direct impact of our fundraising.”

“This is just such a great cause. One in eight women are affected by breast cancer, and I think that is why it’s so close to our hearts,” McNerney said. “BMOC will really help shed light on a cause that many people are ignoring at this stage in their lives.”