Rudy Ruettiger Swindled Millions From Sports Drink Investors

Rudy Ruettiger is the most famous walk-on college football player of all-time. In 1993, Sean Astin immortalized the Notre Dame walk-on in a goosebump-inducing sports movie that taught kids everywhere that you can accomplish anything if you work hard and don’t take no for an answer. Well, it’s finally time for the sequel to the original – Rudy 2: Money Never Sleeps. Ruettiger has been selling a sports drink called “Rudy” and has used that drink to swindle millions of dollars from investors. From the LA Times:

The drink, called Rudy, carried the slogan “Dream Big! Never Quit!” A promotional mailing claimed that in “a major Southwest test, Rudy outsold Gatorade 2 to 1!” An email boasted that in “several blind taste tests, Rudy outperformed Gatorade and Powerade by 2:1,” the SEC suit states.

Both statements were false, according to the lawsuit, filed in federal court in Las Vegas. The promoters are accused of manipulating trading to artificially inflate the price of Rudy Nutrition stock while selling unregistered shares to investors.

Only $800,000 of the more than $11 million raised went back into Rudy Nutrition, said Scott W. Friestad, associate director of the SEC’s enforcement division.

If Samwise Gamgee or Mikey ever did something like this, I would be devastated.