Getting into the role reversal spirit, Mr. Cool Water male beauty pageant emcee Cheryl Turski declared, "I think I'm ready for a walk-off!" Keenan resident John Hart prevailed, winning the title of "Mr. Cool Water" out of a group of men from 13 dorms, as well as an off-campus resident. The event was sponsored by Sports Illustrated on Campus and Cool Water Cologne and hosted by Legends.A diverse assortment of men competed in casual wear, evening wear and short answer competitions before the field was narrowed down to Hart, runner-up Judah Wilson of Keough, and second-runner up Marques Bolden of Siegfried. Each winner and his dorm received $100, $50 and $25, respectively.The other finalists were Drew Updike of Zahm Hall and Jon Piposar of Alumni. Semi-finalists were Michael Riess of Morrissey, Collin O'Keefe of Sorin, Kevin Phipps of St. Edward's and John Lyons of Knott Hall. Also participating were Andre Valdivia of Carroll Hall, Christian Brown of O'Neill, Dave Welch of Stanford, Russell Morton of Fisher and Peter Boldin, representing off-campus students.The judges were representatives from the women's residence halls."It was a really pleasant surprise," said Valerie Ralph, a sophomore and the Cavanaugh hall president, "because originally it was something I had to do ... but it turned into a front-row seat at the most hilarious display of attractive men I have seen in my life."The standing-room-only crowd at Legends attended for a variety of reasons."I came to support Collin O'Keefe," said Walsh hall junior Laura Fraczek. "The pageant was run really well ... there was a really good turnout."The contestants were presented in the first round, with a variety of dance moves and runway styles. Updike channeled John Travolta with a cigarette and "Stayin' Alive," while Lyons parodied the movie "Zoolander" and Riess simply removed his shirt.Eight contestants moved on to the final round, with crowd response selecting the final semi-finalist: Alumni's Piposar. The evening-wear phase allowed each contestant to show his sophisticated side, with Riess modeling a shirtless tuxedo and Wilson distributing flowers and chocolates. The final five contests were each asked a question and allowed a set amount of time to respond. Piposar was asked which cartoon superhero best suited his personality."Clark Kent, because when he's not Superman, he dresses really well as a reporter," Piposar said. At the crowd's laughter, he elaborated, "I'm a metrosexual, yes ... Superpowers mean nothing when you look good."Bolton described his dream date with a Sports Illustrated swimsuit model, explaining that "she doesn't have to wear a swimsuit, just not a lot of clothes ... we'd go back to her place and play some Monopoly."Hart then explained his dream vacation to the Australian Outback, and Wilson answered a question regarding a hypothetical pet monkey."I'm a big fan of Frank Sinatra, so I would name it Frank," Wilson said. "I don't know if monkeys can sing, but I'd try to teach him to do this," he said, breaking into Sinatra's classic hit "The Way You Look Tonight." "It would be a really cool monkey," he concluded.Hart said he was pleasantly surprised to be named Notre Dame's Mr. Cool Water, having entered on a whim. "I thought I'd have a lot of fun with it, I'd go out there and be ridiculous," he said. "[Winning] was kind of surprise."The event also featured three raffle winners, gift bags for attendees and free blue martinis for audience members of legal age. Notre Dame was the first school to host the Mr. Cool Water event, with Sports Illustrated on Campus also traveling to the University of Colorado and the University of Virginia for similar events.
