Cornell students who watch The Office were excited two weeks ago to find out that Dwight had his heart set on becoming a Cornellian. In keeping with their usual attention to detail, the show’s writers sprinkled the episode with details about Comstock Hall, the Ag School and students’ love of a cappella groups. But for fans of the Big Red, perhaps the greatest moment in the episode was when Dwight said to Andy, “So, uh, how do you think we’re gonna do against Penn this year? Nathan Ford’s arm looks pretty strong,” referring to the football team’s starting quarterback. Sun News Editor Jasmine Marcus asked Nathan Ford a few questions about the primetime shout-out.
Did you know ahead of time that they were going to say your name on the show?
No, I had no idea, so they caught me by surprise.
So how did you find out? Do you watch the show regularly?
No, I wasn’t watching. I watch it a decent amount, but not every time. That night, I was at dinner, but my sister called to tell me. I had to watch it online later.
What was your reaction when you found out?
At first I thought she was joking, but then my teammates started calling and texting me. They said I should make a guest appearance, but I don’t think that’s happening.
So what was practice like the next day?
Every time I did something, people would say something about my “strong arm.” I got it pretty good.
What were your other friends’ reactions?
Well, I’m from California, so the show wasn’t on there until three hours later, around midnight. My phone was going off while I was trying to go to bed.
Did any strangers have strong reactions to it?
I got a whole bunch of friend requests. Some from kids here, and some from kids at schools I’ve never even heard of. They all wrote things like “Dwight said your name on The Office. Can we be friends?”
So did you friend them?
I think I did. Yeah.
[After the interview, Jasmine friended him too. She’s still waiting for him to accept.]
— Reporting by Jasmine Marcus