Two Ts In A Pod: "Does Joining a Sorority or Fraternity Get You on TV and Make You Famous???"

Podcast: Two Ts In A Pod with Teddi Mellencamp and Tamra Judge
Episode Date: December 8, 2025
Host: Jennifer Fessler (guest-hosting for this ep), with appearances by Gia Giudice, Charity Lawson, Mercedes & Jonathan (The Bachelor), and Bob Guiney (The Bachelor)

Overview

This lively episode explores whether being in a sorority or fraternity sets you on a path to TV stardom, while serving as a sprawling oral history of "pre-gaming" in Greek life. Former Bachelor stars, including Bob Guiney, Charity Lawson, Mercedes, and Jonathan, along with host Jennifer Fessler, share candid and often hilarious recollections about Greek life, party rituals, and the art of "pre-partying." It’s equal parts nostalgia, insider advice, and gleeful storytelling—peppered with age-gap jokes and generational surprises.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Evolving Language: "Pre-Gaming" vs "Pre-Party"

• Bob Guiney, a Michigan State alum and ATO fraternity member, notes his generation called it "pre-partying," not "pre-gaming."
  • "I'm assuming that means pre-partied... before you went to a function, or before you went to a game, or even before class. We'd saddle up, have some cocktails, turn on some music, get in the zone." (04:17)
• Today, "pre-gaming" is a required ritual before college events, according to Mercedes (Iowa State/Delta Zeta), Jonathan (Chapman/FiJi), and Charity Lawson (Auburn/Sigma Kappa).

2. How and Why Students Pre-Game

• Purpose: Take the edge off, socialize before the chaos, boost confidence before parties or bar-hopping.
  • "You always pregame the pregame too, because pregames where you go and you actually get to talk and mingle. So you want to have the edge off." – Jonathan (14:37)
• Modern Rituals: Women gather with girlfriends beforehand, men start with “shower drinks.”
  • "The girls would get together before the actual pre game...then go with the big group of guys and girls, mix, talk, whatever, and then go to the party." – Mercedes (15:16)
• Signature Moves: No one actually paces themselves well at first, but you learn (or suffer hangovers).

3. Music & Setting the Mood

• Bob Guiney favors classic playlists with Journey and Echo & the Bunnymen—he still makes specific playlists for golf or boating.
  • “I literally make a playlist for everything. Like when I go golfing, I’ll have a golf playlist...” (07:07)
• Recent grads and students lean toward rap, Billy Joel singalongs, or country.
  • “Probably always rap, honestly. In college for sure. Or friends into the oldies…they’ll play like Billy Joel and everyone’s singing along. That’s also kind of a vibe.” – Jonathan (16:36)
  • “Yeah, I love country music.” – Gia Giudice (17:05)
• For Charity at Auburn, the whole era was “Travis Scott, EDM, House...you just want something that’s obviously gonna keep you up.” (27:01)

4. Legendary Drinks (and Mistakes)

• Espresso Martini: The drink of choice for “grown-up” pre-gaming; tequila-spiked espresso martinis are “game changers.”
  • “Now that I’m older, espresso martini for sure.” – Jonathan (16:04)
  • "Except I drink mine with tequila." – Gia Giudice (16:10)
• Vodka Shots & DIY Cocktails:
  • “We would take water bottles, like plastic water bottles and fill it up with vodka and we would take that into the party and just...take pulls out of it.” – Gia Giudice (17:47)
  • "I was a big vodka girl. Shots." – Charity Lawson (29:14)
• Learning Limits: Charity recounts a disastrous night: “12 shots before my semi formal—I crashed very early...did the solid rusty hook.” (30:12 – 31:06)

5. Safety and Pacing Tips

• Charity emphasizes drink safety and learning to pace yourself is essential:
  • "I was very...particular about not letting other people fix my drinks...just safety measures...you have to keep tabs of how much alcohol you might be pertaining to." (24:55)
  • “Usually, 30 minutes in you should be on your second drink. Then there’s shots. You gotta keep tabs of how many shots you’ve taken.” (25:17)
• Everything is a system: “It really is a system. I’m telling you. But, like, you have the nights where you get too carried away—you learn. At least I learned my lesson the next morning.” (25:52)

6. The Emotional Arc of Pre-Gaming

• Rare for pre-games to get truly deep—mostly fun and anticipation. But as Bob notes, post-parties are when things might get emotional, especially as you get older and nostalgia creeps in.
  • “A pre party would turn into that, but you know, later in life it’s a post party might turn right there.” – Bob Guiney (09:21)
• The hosts and guests regularly joke about how, at their age, pre-gaming is the main event and bedtime comes early.

7. College Culture: Nightlife, Rules, and Social Scenes

• Weeknight Parties: Wine Wednesdays, Thursday bar nights, Friday/Saturday house parties, Sunday day drinks (17:16)
• Shot Rules Are Out: Modern students ignore “liquor before beer” adages—mixing is rampant. (18:35)
• Kickbacks & House Parties: At schools with limited bars, students would get creative with “kickbacks”—chill gatherings meant to “see where the night takes us.” (28:56)

8. Accidents, Hookups, and Embarrassing Moments

• Everyone seems to have an “I didn’t even make it to the party” story, especially after overdoing pre-gaming.
  • “You get yourself going a little too much at the pre party and by the time the actual party begins, you’re so, you pre-partied your way into full on post party.” – Bob Guiney (05:38)
• Host prods about hookups, but mostly the vibe is friendly nostalgia, not scandal.

9. Sorority/Fraternity Life & Pathways to Fame

• Greek life is memorable for the parties, but also for forging bonds and, evidently, producing participants for reality TV.
• The episode playfully leaves the central question—does Greek life make you famous?—unanswered, but the sheer number of Bachelor alumni on the pod speaks for itself.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Bob Guiney on aging out of partying:

  "Now at my age, the game becomes the pregame becomes the game." (08:14)

• Bob Guiney on pre-parties and emotion:

  “Post party might turn right there...my father just passed away...my buddies brought him up last night because everyone just loved my dad so much.” (09:21)

• Charity’s pregame pacing guide:

  "Usually, 30 minutes in, you should be on your second drink. Then, obviously, there’s always shots...that’s when it gets tricky...keep tabs of how many shots you’re taking." (25:17)

• Charity’s cautionary tale:

  "12 shots before my semi-formal...I crashed very early...did the solid rusty hook." (30:12 – 31:06)

• Mercedes on college confidence:

  "You don’t have the confidence you do as an adult. Back in college you’re like, alright, we’re gonna talk to girls, take a couple drinks. You still don’t talk to girls, but at least you have the drinks in your system." – Jonathan (15:49)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [03:41] – Bob Guiney joins to reminisce about Michigan State Greek life
• [04:17] – Old-school "pre-partying" explained; differences in terminology
• [07:00] – The importance of playlists to set the mood
• [09:21] – Emotional turn: post-parties, nostalgia, and losing loved ones
• [13:24] – Mercedes and Jonathan (Bachelor) discuss sorority/fraternity modern pre-gaming rituals
• [14:37] – The logic behind pre-gaming (taking the edge off, socializing)
• [16:04] – The rise of the espresso martini as the go-to drink
• [17:47] – Water bottles of vodka, “taking pulls”—college drinking hacks
• [18:13] – Hangover immunity: “I still have yet to have a hangover ever.” – Jonathan
• [23:21] – Charity Lawson shares systematic tips for “pacing” and party safety
• [27:01] – The pregame soundtrack: Travis Scott, EDM, and the motivational beat
• [29:14] – Charity’s disaster night (12 vodka shots and the “rusty hook”)
• [32:08] – How pre-gaming changes in post-college life; weddings and reunions

Tone and Highlights

The tone is light, self-deprecating, and full of generational ribbing. The hosts and guests swap funny, sometimes cringeworthy college stories and party lessons with the affectionate hindsight of people who (mostly) made it out alive. There’s lots of laughter about aging, misadventures, and pre-gaming being the real “main event” as you get older.

Summary:
This episode offers a candid, immersive view into the culture of pre-gaming in sorority/fraternity life across generations—full of confessions, teachable moments, and Bachelor Nation inside jokes. While it never delivers a simple answer about whether Greek life makes you famous, it shows how these rituals create community and, sometimes, reality TV storylines.