'Borg Challenge' Craze Leads to 46 UMass Amherst Students Hospitalized, 28 Ambulances Called to Campus

The "BORG" challenge is the latest college craze, but has it gone too far? Health officials are sounding the alarm on the drinking fad after 46 students at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst were hospitalized and 28 ambulances responded to the campus last weekend.

A "BORG," which stands for “blackout rage gallon,” is a gallon-sized jug filled with a combination of hard liquor, water, sweeteners and electrolyte or caffeine supplements.

With spring break underway and St. Patrick’s Day weekend ahead, how-to videos detailing different combinations for BORGs are flooding TikTok.

“It can be a recipe for disaster if you’re drinking a lot of alcohol in large volumes over a quick period of time,” Dr. Tucker Woods, who heads the emergency department of Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City told Inside Edition.

He explained it’s important to know your limits when mixing a BORG. The less alcohol, the better, he advised, and drinking too much too fast can have dire consequences.

“You can stop breathing if you have acute alcohol intoxication,” Woods said.

According to a recent study, 80% of all college students drink alcohol.

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