Upon graduating from Duke University in 2001, most of his friends headed for Wall Street or law school. He used his mom's Nissan Altima to travel to South Dakota for the 2001 Dakotas Tour. Burned out three cars logging in more than 300,000 miles criss-crossing the country while playing various Tours.

Met future wife, Courtney, unexpectedly in Las Vegas in 2004. She competed as a swimmer for the University of Miami (Fla.) and Arizona State University.