How did Aaron Rodgers spend his bye week? You’ll never guess. He, along with Packers third-string quarterback Graham Harrell, joined a fraternity. No joke.
As The Sports Bank first pointed out to us, Rodgers and Harrell joined the Sigma-Xi chapter of Tau Kappa Epsilon at St. Norbert College in Wisconsin last Thursday. The ceremony took place at Old St. Josephs Church on the college campus, and it included members from the local and neighboring chapters, as well as the national chapter.
Tom McAninch, the fraternity’s director of communications, tells LBS that both Rodgers and Harrell were loosely affiliated with the TKE chapters on their respective college campuses when they were in school. Rodgers went to Cal where apparently coach Jeff Tedford wouldn’t let him join because of his obligation to the football team. Harrell went to Texas Tech.
So how did the initiation process come up?
Before the season began, a mutual friend talked to the quarterbacks about college life, and the subject of joining the fraternity came up. When the two had time off last week, they called the fraternity to make it happen. They were initiated last Thursday.
McAninch says Rodgers and Harrell are now considered alumni of the Sigma-Xi chapter and they have all the rights and privileges of alumni members of the fraternity.
“They were very engaged and very gracious with the [members],” McAnich says. “It shows a lot about what great of guys they already are. This is something that they really wanted to do.”
That’s right Rodgers, from now on, your Tau Kappa Epsilon name will be … mothball.
Picture Credit: Steve Lopez, Tau Kappa Epsilon
