Actor and Marquette Alum, Danny Pudi, traded in the beautiful Los Angeles weather for the frozen tundra of the Midwest to celebrate his Alma Mater once again. Pudi emceed the National Marquette Day pep rally on Friday, Feb. 26, 2016. The evening prepared Golden Eagle nation for the big game against Villanova the following day. I had the chance to chat with Pudi about being back on campus.
Q. How does it feel to be back on campus?
A. It's always good. It’s always refreshing to come back to where a lot of my crazy dreams started. So, it’s wonderful. It’s nice to come back always, for me, because it’s not always the same. It’s changing so much, and Dr. Lovell has done a great job of re-energizing the school. It’s kind of a special bonus that Marquette is playing the number one team in the country tomorrow. So, I’m excited for Marquette to take them down. It’s great to celebrate here and I'm meeting a lot of buddies here. I’m excited.
Q. What is one of your favorite memories, looking back at your days at Marquette?
A. So many. I met my wife here, so that’s like the number one thing that has sort of illuminated my life. I mean, I lived in Schroeder Hall. In terms of memories, it was just hanging out with friends, you know. It was the first place I came, I went to an all-boys high school, so meeting girls was like kind of a big deal. But it was just the people. It’s always been the people. Hanging out with friends, staying up way too late, not studying enough. That is what I always remember.
Q. You were a super fan during your time at Marquette. What is your favorite basketball game memory?
A. I got to shoot a basket during halftime one time for free pizza first semester. And I actually made a three-pointer. It was the luckiest shot of my life. I think I took off my pants. But, I won free pizza, which was like amazing. So that was like a highlight for me. For someone who doesn’t look like he doesn’t make a lot of baskets, it was really special.
Q. Are you going to the game tomorrow?
A. Yes, I will be going to the game tomorrow. Cheering. I will lose my voice. Plan on doing it.
During the pep rally program, President Lovell announced that Pudi is the student who has been on the jumbotron the most.
Q. Are you going to get on the jumbotron tomorrow?
A. I hope to, I hope to. I’m super excited. This is just fun. It’s like a family, so it’s exciting to be part of National Marquette Day weekend.
Pudi is best known for his role as Abed Nadir in the NBC show "Community," which concluded in 2015. He studied communication and theatre at Marquette and graduated back in 2001.
