Darius Rucker donates nearly $3K to ETSU after 'awkward' game day appearance where he didn't sing 'Wagon Wheel'

Darius Rucker donated nearly $3,000 to East Tennessee State University after an "awkward" game day appearance in which he didn't sing hit song "Wagon Wheel" live as promised to fans.

The country star was in attendance at the Nov. 9 football game and did lead the song on the field, but Rucker did not sing live. He did not have a microphone or guitar, instead walking around the field.

Rucker called the experience "awkward" on social media.

"Really just wanted to be there to bring attention to this great program and say thank you for singing our song at the top of your lungs every weekend," Rucker said on X, formerly Twitter. The star was not paid to appear at the game.

ETSU's athletics department announced on Nov. 4 that Rucker would sing "Wagon Wheel" at the end of the third quarter, following the school's new tradition of playing the song each gameday.

According to ETSU spokesperson Jess Vodden, the university knew the afternoon of Nov. 8 that Rucker would not sing live at the next day's football game, but the school failed to notify fans of the change.

“Initially, to be perfectly honest, he thought he could sing 'Wagon Wheel,' but his management team called us and said that they didn’t want him to do that,” ETSU’s Athletic Director Richard Sander said during a press conference at ETSU.

Following, the country star's donation, ETSU took to X to thank Rucker. "It’s clear you have a lot of goodwill toward our community, and we can’t say THANK YOU enough for your appearance at the game and now for this gift in support of our athletes," the athletics department posted.

Rucker's team did not announce the reason why the performer did not sing live at the game.

A record-setting attendance

At the Nov. 9 game against Western Carolina, ETSU had a record-setting attendance of more than 12,000 fans. Vodden could not say if the higher-than-usual attendance was connected to Rucker's announced performance.

The university has no plans to reimburse or refund the tickets of disappointed fans, according to Vodden.

Typical attendance for an ETSU football game is around 10,170 fans.

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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Darius Rucker responds to 'Wagon Wheel' flap at East Tennessee State