Meet the Students Behind Columbia's College Bowl Team on NBC

Three stellar students will be representing Columbia University next week as they step up to the plate on NBC’s newly revived Capital One College Bowl. The quiz show, which originally aired in the 1960s, features 12 teams representing different colleges across the country facing off against one another for the title of College Bowl champions. It is hosted by football legend Peyton Manning and his older brother Cooper Manning. 

Shomik Ghose (SEAS’23), Tamarah Wallace (CC’22), and Jake Fisher (SEAS’22) will represent Columbia University in the competition.

While the show premiered on June 22, the first episode Columbia students will compete in is scheduled to air on June 29, at 10 p.m. Eastern Time. Get ready to cheer on your Lions!

We caught up with Ghose, Wallace, and Fisher to learn more about their experiences on the show and to get some behind-the-scenes intel about how it all came together. 

Shomik Ghose, SEAS’23

What are you studying at Columbia?

I'm majoring in Computer Science and minoring in Economics.

How did you first hear about the College Bowl?

It was actually very random for me. One day, I got messaged on Facebook by a casting producer for the show who said they were looking for students to join Columbia's team. After that, I went through a 30-minute audition where they asked me some questions trying to gauge how I would be on TV and also gave me a short test to see my gameplay skills. Luckily, I got the call shortly after that I would be heading out to LA for filming!

What has been the best part of the process?

I'd say the best part was walking on set for the first time and meeting the host, Peyton Manning. I've always been a huge football fan, so Manning has always been someone I've wanted to meet since I grew up watching him. Just having him walk over to us for the first time, introducing himself, and asking us a few questions about who we were and how we were feeling was a very surreal experience and one I'll always treasure.

What's the show like behind the scenes?

There's so much going on that you don't see on TV—I could probably go on for over an hour about it! Filming was definitely a very interesting experience: to ensure gameplay integrity, we were all actually kept totally in the dark and weren't told about any of our matchup details or who we'd be playing until we got to set. We also didn't know how any other of the past games went, so we had no idea what score we needed to be aiming for. A day before filming, we were given a time at which we had to report to the hotel lobby, all ready to go. At that point, we were driven to set, where the wardrobe team determined what we would be wearing for the day. After that, we went through some gameplay rules and procedures and also went through some questions they might ask us with the story team. Then, we waited in a sequestered room for a while until it was time for our game. 

Finally, they walked us through the studio lot onto the stage, which is where the real fun began. I was amazed at how many moving parts there were the first time we got there. There were screens all over the stage and over the host's podium. (None of which the viewers will see!) There was also a teleprompter so both us and the host would know what was coming up. Each episode (which is a 1-hour time slot on TV) took about 1.5 to 2 hours to film, as we would typically stop to leave time for commercial breaks, refilm moments that either we or the hosts flubbed, or just simply pause for everyone to prepare strategies for the next stage of gameplay. 

What's your favorite piece of Columbia trivia?

My favorite piece of College Bowl-related Columbia trivia is that Columbia played in the first-ever College Bowl match, losing to Northwestern University 135-60. Hopefully, we can reverse the curse!

What are your hopes for the future?

I'm still deciding on what I want to do right out of college, but a dream of mine down the road has always been to build and grow my own company from the ground up.

Tamarah Wallace, CC’22

What are you studying at Columbia?

Political Science and Human Rights with a specialization in Economics.

How did you first hear about the College Bowl?

A casting director DM-ed me on Instagram.

What has been the best part of the process?

Meeting my teammates!

What's the show like behind the scenes?

Very well organized and surreal.

What's your favorite piece of Columbia trivia?

My favorite piece of Columbia trivia is that Langston Hughes attended!

What are your hopes for the future?

I hope to go to law school and study the interaction between legal theory and activism.

Jake Fisher, SEAS’22

What are you studying at Columbia?

I’m majoring in Computer Science with minors in English and Economics.

How did you first hear about the College Bowl?

A casting producer from College Bowl actually reached out to me back in the fall asking if I would be interested in auditioning. I figured there was no harm in trying, so I said yes, and soon ensued a whirlwind of auditions and calls, eventually culminating in going to film the show. 

What has been the best part of the process so far?

Meeting my teammates has been incredible. We all have such different areas of knowledge, so we can each bring our own trivia talents to the team, but we also work so well together. Getting to know them over the course of filming was so fun and rewarding.

What's the show like behind the scenes?

It’s a ton of fun to film. While the game can be intense, everyone is always light and happy, and there’s a great atmosphere on set. And the people I filmed with were great as well. All the other students were so friendly and we had great time talking and getting to know each other. Of course, Cooper and Peyton were so much fun to film with—it was great joking around with them in between segments.

What's your favorite piece of Columbia trivia?

I found out about a year ago that Columbia used to own the land under Rockefeller Center until the mid-eighties—that was really unexpected for me to hear!

What are your hopes for the future?

Short-term, I’m so excited to get back to school in the fall and have a great senior year back on campus with everyone.

Read more about Jake Fisher from Columbia College here.