After weeks of planning, preparation and practice, on Thursday, Nov. 21, senior Henry Wild was crowned Mr. Longhorn. Initially stepping on stage as a salsa dancer during the occupation portion of the night, Wild immediately made waves with his unique performances and twists on generational classics.

From playing Beca from “Pitch Perfect” in a group skit with seniors Bart Connors, Gavin Hamlin and Colin Hughes to rapping Dr. Suess’ “One fish, two fish, red fish, blue fish,” Wild captured hearted and elicited laughter from the audience and judges alike.

Following the formal attire section, where Wild walked alone due to an odd number of participants, he was slated as the top three finalist alongside seniors Carson Hughes and Jacksen McNeal. From there, he answered an interview question with which the judges — composed of West High faculty members — deemed him the victor.

“After I gave my interview answer, I kind of thought I had it locked in, [but when] I heard my name announced, I was in awe. I was like ‘this is pretty crazy’ — I’m up here winning Mr. Longhorn. I just did it to have fun with the boys, so it’s kind of surreal. 

To kick off his reign with the title, Wild has advice in store for those looking to compete in the coming years.

“You have to come in prepared for the interview questions. They give you some in practice, so you just got to know what they’re going to ask, and I suggest you bring something with you,” Wild said. “Everybody should be doing Mr. Longhorn — it’s a great time. We didn’t have many guys this year, but we still had a lot of fun.”