What are BORGs? The college drinking trend taking over TikTok

What are BORGs? The college drinking trend taking over TikTok.

Key points

• In March of 2023, the Amherst fire department dispatched 28 ambulances in response to intoxicated drinking linked to BORGs at University of Massachusetts Amherst parties.
• Rachel Hale's role covering Youth Mental Health at USA TODAY is backed by a partnership with Pivotal and Journalism Funding Partners.
• Almost one-third of BORG drinkers report blacking out, according to a study in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, published by Rutgers University.
• One of the earliest social media references to BORGs stems from a March 2020 TikTok.
• The study discovered that 95% of participants share their BORGs with others, and King states any of the drink's effects to minimize hangovers would be minimal.

Students decorate these alcohol-filled jugs with names like "BORG to be wild" and "Teach me how to Borgie."

Notably, a BORG, short for "blackout rage gallon, " typically consists of a 1-gallon plastic water jug filled with a mixture of hard alcohol, water and flavor enhancement. It's a drinking trend that has taken TikTok and colleges by storm over recent years, with controversial claims BORGs support reduce drink contamination and hangovers. But a new study, the first to examine BORG employ and its consequences among college students, offers a look at the trend's dangers.

Almost one-third of BORG drinkers report blacking out, according to a study in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, published by Rutgers University. Another 59% report embarrassing behavior and 17% reporting vomiting.

"The thought is, 'great, you control your own beverage, risk contamination, especially in a post-pandemic world, and nobody could alter your beverage, '" notes lead researcher Andrea C. King, professor of psychiatry and behavioral neuroscience at the University of Chicago. "That's not really what it is."

Notably, the drinks, which are typically DIYed at home, can contain up to a fifth of liquor, or regarding 17 standard drinks, according to the study. It polled more than 100 participants from a range of private and public U.S. Colleges and universities.

That amount of alcohol should be consumed over a week of time, if not longer, notes Dr. George Koob, director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism at the National Institutes of Health.

"I wouldn't recommend drinking that amount of alcohol under any circumstances in the context of a party, " Koob notes. More: College kids, an old drug, and why it's everywhere again. What is a BORG?

For context, the drinks often reference popular internet phrases, pop culture moments or memes. A recent TikTok demonstrates a pink, sparkling "Dolly Parton memorial BORG." Others have names like "The GettysBORG Address" and "Hate being SoBORG." The hashtag #borg has more than 31, 200 posts on TikTok.

"Fill my BORG with me!" one TikToker announces at the start of a video of her filling a jug with neon-green liquid ahead of St. Patrick's Day. Other videos on the platform show dozens of half-consumed confiscated BORGS lining St. Patrick's Day celebrations and popular college block parties like Boston's Marathon Monday and the University of Wisconsin-Madison's Mifflin party.

Seventy-six percent of BORG drinkers say the beverage supported facilitate conversation, and 62% say it led to more fun than a regular party.

"I'll admit it, how fun that you get to do a clever statement that reflects who you are, " King notes. "We have a population now that may socially not quite understand how to interact with each other the way maybe prior generations did because there is this online presence, and it may be a great. Conversation starter." Why are BORGs so popular?

One of the earliest social media references to BORGs stems from a March 2020 TikTok. Social media has supported propel the popularity of these drinks on college campuses in the years since, according to King. Google search interest in "BORG" more than tripled in early 2023 and again during the summer of 2025.

In March of 2023, the Amherst fire department dispatched 28 ambulances in response to intoxicated drinking linked to BORGs at University of Massachusetts Amherst parties. Schools including West Virginia University, Northwestern University, the University of Michigan, Stanford University and Boston University have put out notices regarding the trend on their campus.

When the drinks exploded in popularity in 2023, they drew mixed reactions from experts and internet commentators, with some pointing out that the BORG could reduce drink contamination and spread of sharing-based illness.

"We were drinking gin buckets and jungle juice out of plastic containers and trash cans in the basement of frat houses, " millennial content creator Erin Monroe. This person is credentialed in substance employ prevention in New York, posted in a TikTok concerning BORGS that garnered more than 1 million likes. "Whether or not they realize they are doing it, this is actually really solid harm reduction. They're deciding what they're drinking, they're keeping it in a closed container and they're bringing it with them everywhere."

But King notes this isn't the case. The study discovered that 95% of participants share their BORGs with others, and King states any of the drink's effects to minimize hangovers would be minimal. Plus, the combination of hard liquor with sweet flavoring from electrolytes, energy drinks or juice may create it easier for someone to consume a substantial amount of alcohol without realizing it.

More: They're small, discreet and everywhere. Young individuals are obsessed with caffeine pouches. What to know regarding safe alcohol consumption.

Young adults' executive functioning, abstract thinking and decision-making skills continue to develop through age 25, and the prefrontal cortex can be impacted by underage drinking, according to Koob.

"The frontal cortex is basically, I always say, it's your super ego, " Koob notes. "When your frontal cortex isn't working well, and this is a hallmark of intoxication, you're more likely to make rash decisions and impulsive-like activity actions."

Four drinks for a woman and five drinks for a man, consumed over the span of regarding two hours, typically meets the criteria for binge drinking, according to the National Institutes on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.

Koob and King recommend having nonalcoholic beverages, like water and soda, on hand at college events as a safe form of hydration. For those of legal drinking age, limit yourself to one standard drink per hour, and alternate every alcohol beverage with a water or seltzer.

"Parents being aware is important, " King notes. "Most people are finding out about these (BORGs) before they even go to college. On social media, and if the parents don't understand that, then they can't have that conversation."

Rachel Hale's role covering Youth Mental Health at USA TODAY is backed by a partnership with Pivotal and Journalism Funding Partners. Funders do not provide editorial input. Reach her at [email protected] and @rachelleighhale on X. Share your feedback to support improve our site!

Taken together, the developments around what are BORGs? The college drinking trend taking over TikTok point to a situation that is still moving, and the coming days should bring more clarity.