Homecoming: The ultimate college tradition

Homecoming. The word is synonymous with parades, beautiful autumn leaves, chrysanthemum corsages, and football. At Pittsburg State, Homecoming is one of the most popular campus traditions.

PSU begins a week-long countdown to Homecoming on Monday, Oct. 16. Throughout the week, student groups will compete for points in a variety of activities. The ultimate winner will take home the 2006 Sweepstakes Trophy.

The fun begins at 4 p.m. Monday with Gorilla Games on the Oval. Gorilla Games is a sometimes-messy spoof on the Olympic Games in which teams representing various groups on campus compete for points. The deadline for groups to complete their Homecoming Yard Art on the Oval is also 4 p.m. on Monday. The Yard Art will reflect this year’s Homecoming theme, “Where in the World is Gus Gorilla?”

At 6 p.m. on Tuesday, the 2006 candidates for Homecoming king and queen will face the public during the King and Queen Presentations in the Overman Student Center. Each candidate will be asked to select a question from a fish bowl and will be judged on their answer.

At noon on Wednesday, Oct. 18, students will gather in Carnie Smith Stadium to select this year’s Homecoming King and Queen. At 8 p.m. that day, students will gather at the Overman Student Center for a performance by Comedy Central’s Vic Henley.

At 7 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 19, student groups will gather once again in Carnie Smith Stadium for Yell-Like-Hell, a competition in which student groups combine dancing and cheering in an imitation of the Crimson and Gold Dancers and the PSU Spirit Squad.

Alumni will be the focus on Friday, Oct. 20, at a reception for this year’s winners of the Outstanding Alumni Award. The reception will be held at 5 p.m. in the Overman Student Center. The reception will be followed by the Crimson and Gold Dinner honoring the award recipients. Reservations are required for the dinner. For ticket information, please contact Theresa Keller-Swink at 620-235-4763, tkeller@pittstate.edu.

Homecoming Day starts off early on Saturday, Oct. 21, with the Gorilla Grind 10k-5k race and 2-mile walk. The race begins at the Weede Physical Education Building. At 9 a.m., the annual Homecoming parade, featuring bands, floats and a wide range of entries, begins in downtown Pittsburg. After the parade, the focus shifts to Gorilla Village where GorillaFest, a free, community tailgate party begins at 11 a.m. GorillaFest includes free games for kids, a live band and a variety of tailgate food vendors. The live band for GorillaFest on Homecoming is Winter Circle. For information on GorillaFest, contact Ron Womble at 620-235-4124, kwomble@pittstate.edu.

The final event of Homecoming is the football game in which the Gorillas host Southwest Baptist University. For ticket information, call the PSU Ticket Office at 620-235-4796 or visit www.pittstate.edu/tickets/

For information:
Student events: Edie McCracken at 620-235-4795, emccrack@pittstate.edu.
Alumni events: Theresa Keller-Swink at 620-235-4763, tkeller@pittstate.edu.
GorillaFest: Ron Womble at 620235-4124, kwomble@pittstate.edu.
Tickets: 620-235-4796, www.pittstate.edu/tickets/

---Pitt State--