Rikki Hegwood’s bubbly personality and wide grin garnered special consideration from the casting agents of one of America’s favorite game shows. The communication studies senior will be making her national television debut tonight on “Wheel of Fortune” at 6:30 p.m. on CBS.Hegwood, a native of Picayune, Miss., grew up watching the show with her grandmother.”When I was a little kid, I was a bit of a freak about it,” Hegwood said. “Hangman was one of my favorite games, and I even won a spelling bee in elementary school.””Wheel of Fortune” is the longest-running syndicated game show in American television history and has been the most-watched syndicated program since May 1984. The show sends out casting agents twice a month to find contestants.Hegwood first heard of an open casting call for the show last fall but was disappointed because she had to work and couldn’t attend.Hegwood works as a Red Bull representative and was scheduled to be in New Orleans at the same time as the casting call. That’s when Lady Luck intervened.The Red Bull car broke down on the way to New Orleans, leaving Hegwood with just enough time to make it to the first round of casting at the Belle of Baton Rouge Casino.The Wheelmobile, a 39-foot-long yellow bus that travels across the country in search of potential contestants, marked the first stop on her journey to game show stardom.At the Wheelmobile, Hegwood shared her interests of dancing and karaoke with the casting agents and played a fake round of Wheel of Fortune with Pat Sajak and Vanna White impersonators Wally and Holly.”Then they put me on the spot to perform in front of hundreds of people,” Hegwood said. “So I just started singing ‘Hey Wally, you’re so fine, you’re so fine, you blow my mind.’ I figured that would get me in good.”Hegwood didn’t win her round and went home feeling disappointed. Two months passed, and there was no word from the show.Finally, she received an e-mail from the show inviting her to a second casting.”I started watching the show every day and bought a handheld game to practice,” Hegwood said.The practice paid off. She did well at the casting, and the agent said she would get a letter in the mail in a few weeks telling her if she had been selected.She left feeling confident, and while driving on Burbank Drive, she got a call from a California area code. It was the casting agent telling her she would not be receiving a letter. She was a special case. They loved her so much, they wanted her to fly out to Los Angeles in two weeks.”I literally pulled over into the McDonald’s parking lot, got out of my car and did some strange jumping-up-and-down dance for a few minutes,” Hegwood said.She immediately told her family, who purchased plane tickets and booked a hotel room.Last year, more than a million people requested the chance to audition for Wheel of Fortune, but fewer than 600 people were selected to appear on the show, according to the show’s Web site.”I wasn’t nervous, but I did think a little bit about how I might make a fool of myself on TV,” Hegwood said. “I think I might have at first, but I made up for it by the end.”Hegwood is keeping her winnings a secret, but won something because she’s already making spending plans.”I was thinking maybe scuba diving lessons, or I might get some DJ equipment and try to be a DJ, but I also want to travel to Argentina,” Hegwood said. Hegwood made some friends while at the show and stays in contact with them through Facebook. She even led the 20 contestants in the wave backstage before the show.”It’s weird because they film six shows in one day, but every time Pat and Vanna leave and come back, they’re wearing a brand new outfit,” she said. “And they completely pretend like it’s a whole new day.”Hegwood’s friend Ann Smith, communication studies senior, said she wasn’t surprised by Hegwood’s success, but she thinks some people might be.”Rikki’s the craziest girl I’ve ever met in my life,” Smith said. “‘Wheel of Fortune’ is just a baby step for her. She’s going to be famous now. I knew she was just going to come out of left field with something crazy and solve some puzzles.”  Hegwood is having a “watch party” tonight at Chelsea’s Cafe.”I might as well keep auditioning for stuff,” Hedgwood said. “You never know what’s going to happen. ‘The Price is Right’ is next, perhaps?”—-Contact Jack LeBlanc at [email protected]