America’s most well-regarded mullet sits on the head of a 6-year-old slugger from Montgomery County.
Rory Ehrlich — the soon-to-be first grader from West Pottsgrove who asked his parents for permission to compete in the USA Mullet Championships — won the kid’s division this week by nearly 6,900 votes.
Ehrlich, who is referred to as the jorts-loving “Cheddar Whiz” on his mullet profile, earned more than 16,000 votes to clinch the top spot, according to competition founder and Michigan-based barber Kevin Begola. He beat out Ezekiel “Mr. Aloha Mullet” Arita of Hawaii and Luzerne County’s Kamden Cunningham, whose curly mullet was the result of an impromptu haircut from his older brother.
“I feel famous,” Rory told The Inquirer after waking up from a nap on Wednesday. “I’m never going to cut my hair off.”
Begola started the mullet championships in 2020 after watching beard competitions take off. In the kid’s division, Begola said Rory competed against around 900 children over four rounds to become America’s favorite pint-sized mullet.
Contestants are judged on the number of votes they receive, money raised for former Minnesota Viking defensive end Jared Allen’s charity Homes 4 Wounded Warriors, and style points awarded by judges. Fan votes are weighed the most, Begola said.
Rory’s mullet has “great flow,” said Begola, 43, who is part of the juding panel. “If Rory was older I could see him playing for an NFL team and taking off his helmet and whipping around. It’s cool.”
Rory’s mom, Airen Ehrlich, previously told The Inquirer that her son’s commitment to the “business in the front, party in the back” lifestyle likely comes from his devotion to the Phillies. He asked his parents about the haircut after seeing video of pitchers such as Austin “Big Fudge” Davis and Mitch “Wild Thing” Williams throw strikes (and balls) with long tresses flowing out of their caps.
Ever since, Rory has been going to Sal’s Barbershop in Boyertown to maintain his mullet.