The first Mr. Wolfpack competition in Witherspoon Cinema Tuesday night raised $693.45 for local school initiative group Communities in Schools. The event was put on by CSLEPS and the Union Activities Board as a fundraiser.

“We were brainstorming service project ideas in a meeting and this was one of them; a male beauty pageant.  It just stood out,” Elizabeth Abernethy, a junior in graphic design and active member of CSLEPS, said.

Prizes, like an iPad, iPod shuffle, and a digital camera were raffled off during the competition as well.  All proceeds went to Communities in Schools.

There were 10 contestants total in the competition.  There were contestants representing every class and nearly every college at the University.  According to Abernethy, CSLEPS hopes to get one representative from each college for the competition in the future.

“Our contestants are pretty diverse.  There is a good mix from every class.  Next year we’re hoping to get an official representative from every college on campus,” Abernethy said.

There were four components to the competition.  First was an opening dance number that the contestants choreographed themselves.  They performed to a mash-up of songs they selected.  A section that focused on what contestants wanted to be when they grew up when they were children followed the opening number.  Contestants dressed up as cowboys and even rappers to show what they had once wanted to do as adults. 

“We thought that talking about what the contestants wanted to be as children was appropriate because of the organization they are supporting by participating,” Hillary Simpson, the director of youth programs for CSLEPS and a senior in biochemistry, said.

The talent section of the competition was extremely diverse.  Contestants sang, danced, played musical instruments, drew, and even demonstrated cooking techniques. 

Evan Drahzal wrote a rap about Waffle House as his talent and engaged the crowd by dancing around the room as he performed and spoke about the importance of finding a cure for cancer after his performance ended. 

Many of the contestants spoke about an issue that was important to them during their performance time.  Contestants had 2.5 minutes to perform the talent of their choice.

The final section of the competition was a question and answer session with the contestants dressed in full Wolfpack gear.  Scarves, hats, and even wolf masks were worn in an effort to stand out onstage. 

The contestants were funny and appropriate in their answers according to Andy Walsh, a sophomore in political science, who attended the event. 

“The contestants were funny on the questions where it was appropriate and highlighted important social issues when those questions came up.  The answers were very diverse,” Walsh said.

The audience was very enthusiastic during the competition, clapping and singing along with the contestants during the talent portion. 

Contestant Ethan Grimmer got the entire crowd to dance along to the YMCA during his talent section. 

Mr. Wolf sat in the front row and Mrs. Wolf handed out shirts as prizes during the audience trivia portion of the show.

Patrick Angle was announced as the first official Mr. Wolfpack.  He also won the Facebook competition that students voted on the week before the event.  He took home a prize pack from the bookstore and an engraved watch as his reward for winning the competition.