NEW ORLEANS, LA – The James Ralph “Shug” Jordan Award was created by the Grand Chapter in 1996 to honor the scholar-athlete who best exemplifies the qualities of leadership, citizenship, academics, brotherhood, loyalty to alma mater, and a commitment to excellence in intercollegiate athletics.
The award is named in honor and memory of Brother James Ralph “Shug” Jordan, of Chi Chapter at Auburn University, who served as Auburn’s head football coach from 1951 to 1975. Brother Jordan’s team went undefeated in the 1957 season and won that year’s National Championship.
Theta Chi Fraternity proudly announces Brigham Freeman (Delta Omega/Ripon 2024) as the winner of the Fraternity’s 2023/2024 James Ralph “Shug” Jordan Award. Brother Freeman was selected from the Fraternity’s active chapters for demonstrating impressive leadership, service, and scholastic accomplishments as well as athletic ability and a commitment to excellence in intercollegiate athletics.
Our 2023/2024 recipient of Theta Chi’s “Shug” Jordan Award is originally from Appleton, WI and has just completed his bachelor’s degree as a double major in mathematics and interdisciplinary physics & computer science at Ripon College. He completed his coursework with a 3.27 GPA and joined the Chi Chi chapter of Order of Omega in April 2023, and as a petitioning member for a new chapter of Alpha Phi Omega service fraternity.
A leader within his chapter, he served as the Chaplain, Scholarship Chairman, Vice President, and as the First Guard. He served on the Delta Omega Philanthropy Committee from Fall 2021 to Fall 2023, helping plan the chapter’s largest philanthropy events such as the 24-Hour USO Live Stream, which raised over $1,500 each year and the Frisbee Golf Tournament for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, which raised over $500.
Brother Freeman was also active in his campus community and has served as the Greek Council Treasurer, where he was responsible for the budget of Ripon’s Greek Council, and as Vice President where he was responsible for planning and executing the 2024 Greek Week. He also coached off-season workouts, communicated with recruits and incoming freshmen as the Swim and Dive Team Captain. On the Ripon College Swim Team, our recipient has set the all-time marks in the 500-yard, 1000 yard, and 1650-yard freestyles, the 100 yard and 200-yard butterfly, and 400-yard IM. These accomplishments have also allowed him to qualify for eight out of nine possible finals within his time swimming. Moreover, Brother Freeman has been a top-five finisher within our Division III Midwest Conference 12 separate times, including a medalist honor in the 200-medley relay, along with being the recipient of the Ripon College Swim and Dive MVP Award in 2023. Within the Tennis team at Ripon College, Brother Freeman has been recently awarded the Men’s Tennis Best Teammate Award for his performance and leadership this previous season.
Ryan Goggans, head coach of St. Norbert's College Swimming and Diving Team said, “During my two years of coaching Brigham, he was one of the most consistent performers on our team and helped our men’s team finish with some of the highest finishes in recent years. He was able to accomplish this by being one of the hardest-working members of the team and was constantly asking for ways in which he could improve his racing. He is extremely dependable and consistent as he was always early to practice and was always leading our training groups throughout the season. Brigham was not afraid to swim difficult events for the team and it speaks a lot to his character that he wanted to swim long-distance events and fulfill that role for our team. All of this hard work has led him to be an Academic All-Conference award winner and one of the top 10 swimmers in many events at Ripon College."
The Grand Chapter of Theta Chi Fraternity created the Shug Jordan Award in 1996 to honor the scholar-athlete who best exemplifies the qualities of leadership, citizenship, academics, brotherhood, loyalty to alma mater, and commitment to excellence in intercollegiate athletics.