Drury University is home to a vast student body that is intriguing, ambitious, individualistic and a delight to know. To showcase these varying personalities, the Mirror has created Panther Profiles, an outlet for those across campus to share their memories and experiences at Drury.

Women’s fraternity Zeta Tau Alpha recently had another successful year with their “Big Man On Campus” event that supports their philanthropy, breast cancer research. The event is a male pageant, and the proceeds from the student body buying tickets go toward this cause. Throughout the show, the audience was able to learn more about breast cancer, how to check for it, and hear stories from survivors. Then came the six competitors to show off their talents—Alex Ince, Garett Weber, Ben Fiske, Navi Gunalan, Colin Years (voted “Mr. Think Pink”) and this year’s winner, Danny Behlmann. 

When asked about his favorite part about the event, Behlmann had this to say: “My favorite part of BMOC is always the people. My fellow competitors were awesome and really made everything so much fun. The Zetas came ready to put together a great show and were super flexible. We all made some friends along the way.” 

With each guy having a “talent” they performed on stage, Behlmann had this to say about preparing to do his Bob Ross-style painting skit: “I really didn’t prepare much for the show, if I’m honest. I did have one practice run for my painting, but it was pretty rough. But that’s the magic of BMOC, even if you improvise and go with the flow, it’s a great time regardless.”

With BMOC raising money for a worthy cause, Behlmann had this to say about the fundraiser: “The fact that the money is being used for breast cancer philanthropy makes everything better. There is no pressure, there’s no animosity between the competitors, there’s just a lot of people trying to have a good time for a good cause. And it is a good cause, breast cancer affects millions of people, including everyone who helped put together the show.”

Taking home the crown and the title of 2022’s Big Man On Campus was an accomplishment for Behlmann. In his own words, “I participated in Mr. FZN at my high school, and came close to winning but never made it. And then at Drury, in my last semester, when I did win, it was incredible! The competition was tough, and I felt really honored to finally be the Big Man on Campus!”

Congratulations to Behlmann and the rest of the guys that were a part of Big Man On Campus, and the Drury chapter of Zeta Tau Alpha for putting on such a great show for the whole student body to enjoy!

Article by Emily Fuge