With odds of one in 8,000, the chance of having triplets is very low, but not for the Hardee family. Three freshmen brothers, Noah, Caleb, and Luke,  have grown up with built-in friends. 

School is difficult at certain times, but having people to help can make it better. Noah explained that when it comes to academics, having brothers in the same classes makes it easier to do schoolwork.

“We all have a lot of the same classes together, so if I ever don’t understand something I can always get [help] from them and they can always explain it to me,” Noah said.

Caleb said having similar friends has positively affected their relationship.

“[It has affected our relationship] slightly, we still share experiences with [our friends]. I mean, it just makes [our bond] stronger,” Caleb said.

Similarly, Noah explained how if they did not share the same friends, he believes he would not be as close to his brothers.

“I feel like if we were in different friend groups we might’ve turned out differently, I don’t know, like different personalities,” Noah said.

Luke described how he feels the best part of being a triplet is the experiences they share with each other.

“It’s nice because anytime I need help with anything, they’re there. They’ve been through a lot of what I’ve been through,” Luke said.

Competition is a common theme among family members. Noah shared how he feels that it is tiresome when people compare him to Caleb and Luke.

“Everyone always compares us to one another. It’s like I can do one thing and I can be like ‘Oh I do this or I do that’ and then they’re like ‘Well Caleb and Luke do this and that’, so it’s kind of annoying,” Noah said.

While Luke said that he doesn’t compare himself to his brothers, Caleb explained how he finds himself striving to be better because of his brothers. 

“Sometimes [having brothers] just makes me drive to be better, and like better at what I do,” Caleb said.

With each brother being in a different activity, Luke explained how he doesn’t feel like he has to weigh his performance in his sport to his brothers.

“I wrestle, Caleb swims, and Noah runs. We all do our own thing,” Luke said.

A sibling bond is like no other. Caleb described that when growing up, he and his brothers were always close and together.

“Well, I always had a friend with me, so it’s not like I had to make a ton of friends growing up because I had my brothers with me,” Caleb said.