Before Travis Kelce spent the weekend at Coachella with his girlfriend, he was in Cincinnati, picking up his diploma. Apparently, Travis and Jason Kelce went back to their alma mater, University of Cincinnati, to record a live episode of their New Heights podcast. While they were there, the university staged an “impromptu commencement ceremony.” While both Kelce bros technically graduated from the university, for some reason, neither attended their respective graduations? Weird. In any case, the clip of Travis getting his diploma went viral and became a new culture war: is it wrong for a 34-year-old man to chug a beer at his fake graduation ceremony whilst also recording his hit podcast? You decide!
Travis Kelce getting his college diploma while chugging a beer is on brand 🔥😂pic.twitter.com/JXXXDINnua
— Complex Sports (@ComplexSports) April 12, 2024
While I think Travis comes across like a frat bro in general, in context this was fine. The graduation ceremony was fake to some extent, but the college wanted to stage it and give two of their most famous alumni their diplomas. As you can see from the video, the kids were into it.
Meanwhile, Claudia Oshry recently remarked that Travis and Taylor Swift are not intellectual equals: “She’s so out of his league, especially, like, in an intellectual sense.” I agree, but I also think that’s what makes it work? I also think that Travis “plays dumb” sometimes and he’s absolutely fine with people believing that Taylor is his intellectual superior.
GRADUATE ERA: Travis Kelce finally receives his college diploma in the most Kelce way possible. https://t.co/jzhCI7nYhO pic.twitter.com/LAplOCak8K
— Fox News (@FoxNews) April 13, 2024
Instagram courtesy of Travis Kelce’s account.
Because it was a staged event during their podcast at the university I think it was fine. It’s what Travis would do. I don’t believe he is a stupid man I believe he likes to play dumb for the laugh.
It wasn’t an official ceremony. Earlier in the show, contestants jumped into paddling pools full of chilli and raced each other after Travis and Jason spun them around in swing sets. Think the hats and gowns made people think it was a serious event without the necessary context
No one ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American people.
– H. L. Mencken.
Whenever he does something that gives me the ick, I remember (1) His life, his choices (2) He’s not MY boyfriend and (3) the above quote.
Eh, I’d argue for different types of intellect. He does not strike me as dumb at all but his knowledge base is probably not on a jeopardy-level. Although I could see him on celebrity jeopardy actually. Full disclosure, I watch jeopardy most nights and while I get some of the answers, I do not know near enough to qualify for the show.
My master’s graduation was at 9am. I’d overslept, hadn’t eaten, and my classmates were chugging tequila from the bottle. The smell on an empty stomach almost made me yack. Point is, this is just normal graduation behavior.
My graduation was 9 am too and I had worked till about four the night before (bartender). I wasn’t really interested in attending but since my sister had spectacularly flunked out of college, my parents were determined to see a kid walk. I’m pretty sure I slept through most of the ceremony-the guy next to me had to shake me awake when it was time for our row to go up.
I just chose not to attend my post-secondary graduations. When I got my degree, I was depressed and felt like a fraud, so I didn’t go. When I was graduating from a non-degree program, it was for a small off campus program in a large school so I just wasn’t feeling the vibe of a stadium sized graduation in that context.
In Jason’s documentary, Kelce, Jason was making fun of Travis for missing the graduation ceremony. Travis was late, missed the flight, and ended up doing yard work on the farm Jason owns, instead.
I believe that this was a podcast event- and actually some kind of fundraiser for the school. So they were honoring their successful alumni, giving their students a good time, showing perspective students what a fun place it can be- and raising money for the school.
This is delightful, and on brand for the brothers Kelce.
The Kelce brothers speak VERY highly and affectionately about their time at University of Cincinnati. The whole event (including the “graduation ceremony”) was done with the enthusiastic support of the school. This was not something anyone should have been mad about.
I was there (proud UC alum; I was only there for the Joe Burrow interview lol) and you are exactly right. I have never listened to New Heights but the ceremony fit into the vibe of the show and President Pinto was in on it. They knew this was a stunt for a podcast and they are leaning into two of their most famous and popular alumni raising money and awareness for the school. Aka $$$$.
I was indifferent to the Kelces going into the show. I was a student at the same time as Jason but never actively followed their careers after. I came away thinking they seem like decent dudes. Kind of obnoxious and frat boy, but overall decent. The show was a lot of fun and everyone was having a great time. As usual, it’s overblown.
He seems to be smart about emotions, publicity and life overall. Not knowing fancy words or how to spell correctly, does not make a dummy yet imo.
People online get off on pontificating and pretending to know how all things should be done correctly. Let the man chug his beer on his own show. Clowns in every wind direction on social media.
I don’t have a brilliant education (they didn’t even teach grammar!) and I struggle with some basics but I know how to ask the right questions that I find people ‘in the know’ don’t /won’t.. And often those are the most important questions in the meeting. Because I don’t have a regular education everything I do /say is from an out of the box perspective.
Travis seems smart enough. Taylor probably doesn’t need a genius level whatever. He’s a brilliant footballer by all accounts – that’s genius right there
Fake graduation, funny, lighthearted event for a podcast. No big deal. At my actual college graduation, the girl next to me was so hung over she puked. Thank god we were outside and it was on grass.
He strikes me as being dumb like Paris Hilton, laughing all the way to the bank!
I think so too. I’ve known multiple people who have worked with her in the industry and they all say that’s she’s absolutely in on the joke and extremely savvy about her public persona and always has been. They’ve all said as soon as the cameras stop, she intentionally changes her voice and vibe from gum-smacking blonde to insightful, mature, and well spoken and it surprised them how drastic the change is. I think he’s a simple dude in that he likes what he likes and he’s a home grown midwestern type, but he’s certainly no dummy about how he markets himself: wisely playing up the dumb jock/just Ken thing as much as possible while he can get the $$$$$$$.
I live outside the US, don’t follow American football, and had not heard about this guy before he was connected to Taylor. He comes across as very emotionally intelligent and thinks on his feet when he’s interviewed. His vaccination comments and political views are very similar to TS’s and that’s sympathetic in my opinion.
That said, he’s definitely a drinker. Travis and his brother lauded Taylor’s ability to drink alcohol on their podcast. They’ve mentioned him being drunk. As someone who has alcoholism in my family, I do side eye him chugging the beer here.
I have noticed this too. Lots of drinking involved when they’re together. For Taylor, I think she’s finally living the college days she never got to have. It does seem like for him it’s a way of life though, and he might be one of those forever frat guys. Which yeah, can be cute and fun to a point but it can be reeeealllyyy bad when it suddenly isn’t fun. I hope they’re both able to stop.
They both seemed pretty overwhelmed by the surprise and he did give a nice little speech (I came across the sequence on tik tok) but they also were playing fight for your right? It was not serious at all and the stage was amused by it. I think they were shocked by the blowback. Even his brother posted about it after they were tagging him, and Mahomes even retweeted Jason’s response.
Bottom line is he’s become a major right wing focal point in part because of the vaccine ads, dating Taylor, etc so everything he does now is criticized way more when he’s been this party boy way forever. The team even plays it up. It’s his thing. (For example- he did not have this amount of right wing attention when he knelt for the anthem several years ago. That’s the Taylor effect.) People who’ve watched him for years know he can be serious when needed.
I believe neither of them every attended a graduation ceremony because both of them finished their degree remotely once they were in the NFL. They get drafted and start their new jobs before senior year ends (or even starts, for some of them who declare for the draft as juniors), and only the guys who actually want to get a degree end up finishing it. And as I believe was mentioned in a previous comment, Travis did in fact try to attend his graduation ceremony a couple of years ago when he completed the degree, but missed the flight, as is shown in his brother’s documentary. (Personal theory: he may not have worked to hard to make the flight, since the larger context of that scene indicates that his family didn’t make an effort to attend for him either)
He was playing to the crowd. He’s nothing if not an entertainer.
But yes, also brighter — at least in emotional intelligence — than he sometimes appears.
I run in the same academic circles as higher Ed researchers & had to patiently explain the faux ceremony often. Also Travis’ emotional IQ is high & that’s why this whole thing works. He clearly was raised well, bawling all through his brother’s retirement. Sending bro love videos on siblings’ day. Etc etc.
Travis is as serious as a heart attack when he needs to at his job. When the Chiefs were floundering last season no one took it more seriously than Travis, he dialed in and pulled out several extra gears in the playoffs. He’s one of the captains for a reason. He gave inspirational pep talks in the locker room and gave more than anyone thought his body could do. Let him do dumb stuff in his off season.
Off topic but has anyone seen the Brit rugby star who was just hired by the Chiefs? RIDICULOUSLY HOT.
This is DELIGHTFUL. If you have watched ANY of the NH podcast, you know that very few subjects are sacred, Jason is utterly humble, and Travis is trying his best not to spill about his relationship with Taylor. Intellectual equals?? That is some snobby BS right there~I’ll just bet she can’t play football on his level.
I think it’s fine. He was also liking pics of Trump at some event over the weekend so I’m more curious about that.