Even if you don’t have TikTok, you’d be lying if you said you didn’t know what Bama Rush is. The social media phenomenon, centering around sorority recruitment week at The University of Alabama, has launched several college students into internet stardom. This year, a new face (and a fresh perspective) entered our FYPs and stole our hearts, and her name is Bama Morgan. “I decided [to rush] last minute, literally, two days before the deadline,” Morgan says in an exclusive interview with Her Campus. “I was like, ‘I’m just gonna rush.’ I guess I did.”
Morgan is a freshman at, you guessed it, The University of Alabama, and went through the sorority recruitment process for the 2023-2024 school year. Like most potential new members (PNMs), Morgan decided to document her experience on TikTok — but with a new approach. Instead of showing up in a perfectly made-up dorm with perfect outfits, Morgan filmed GRWMs and recaps while chugging orange juice (right outta the bottle), and was candid about her exhaustion and experience rushing a sorority at Alabama. “I know I had an effect on orange juice sales because when I went to the store? None left,” Morgan jokes.
In short, Morgan wasn’t trying, or expecting, to go viral… but that’s not exactly how the internet works, is it? “When I went viral, I was kind of stunned because I was expecting to be made fun of by the other girls, or something along those lines,” Morgan says. “I wasn’t expecting it to have such a positive response, and I’m very happy that it has, but I really just thought that maybe some of my friends from high school would watch and joke around like, ‘She’s totally not getting a bid.'”
Through her videos, Morgan amassed over 178,0000 TikTok followers and 1.8 million likes on the platform. Her “relatable” approach to recruitment resonated with college students (and graduates, like me) and showed off a new side to the often-glamorized Bama Rush experience. “I wanted to show [people] what it was like to be out there on the front lines, and with the humidity,” Morgan says. “Your hair never looks as good. Your makeup’s not that great either. Nobody was showcasing the really bad aspects of it. And I didn’t like that aspect of it at all, period. I wanted to humanize RushTok.”
While Morgan’s videos garnered a lot of praise, this popularity didn’t exactly translate into Morgan’s rush experience. On Bid Day, fans of the creator were shocked to learn that Morgan didn’t receive a bid for any houses at The University of Alabama. And instead of people supporting Morgan, internet users were quick to point the finger at the Alabama freshman — accusing her of not being “for the sisterhood” and blaming her “attitude” as the reason for not getting a bid. “A lot of people didn’t like how I was utilizing my platform,” Morgan says. “They didn’t like that I was pointing out the very noticeable flaws in Greek life.”
However, while Morgan didn’t end up running home to a sorority, there were parts of the recruitment experience that Morgan will remember: the community she created online and the friends she made through Rush, like fellow Bama Rush favorite, Bella Grace. “We hang out often, we’re real friends in real life,” Morgan says. “I text her all the time, too. She’s so happy to be in the house she’s in right now — I’m so happy for her.”
While Morgan does have a standing invite to every Frat Friday on the Row (you go, girl), the budding TikTok star has her sights set beyond rush, and she’s ready to start creating content that is authentically, and unapologetically, Morgan. “I really want to show people the more relatable aspects of college life, like not buying a textbook because you can’t really afford it or finding it online for free,” Morgan says.
In addition to her TikTok stardom, Morgan is a talented, and passionate, instant camera photographer — shooting sick Polaroids and other in-the-moment flicks. “It was my passion for a really long time — it still is my passion,” Morgan says. “But, I’m fine with keeping it as a hobby. It’ll always have a special place in my heart.”
As Morgan gears up for the first chapter of her college life (I mean, the semester just started, y’all), she hopes to continue to inspire folks like her and remind them that there is a place for them in college — whether they’re in a sorority or not. “It’s okay to not get into a house, it’s not the end all, lose all,” Morgan says. “There are other things for you to do on campus. There are clubs, and friend groups — the only difference between a girl who’s not in a sorority and a girl who’s in a sorority, is the girls who are in [one] have to clean up after the parties.”