The Texas Tech Activities Board welcomed Tech students to the Student Union’s North Plaza with t-shirts and snacks for homecoming kick-off Monday afternoon.
Dozens of Tech students flooded into the plaza to receive free t-shirts and an introduction to their 2012 homecoming candidates as Tech cheerleaders rallied school spirit. However, not all students were as excited for the candidates as they were for the t-shirts.
“Any time I get a chance to pick up a free t-shirt around campus, you know, I try to take advantage of it,” Emily Walters, a junior media-strategies major, said. “Thankfully homecoming week seems to provide a lot of those opportunities.”
Walters said she’s much more excited for homecoming week this year than she has been in her first couple of years on the Texas Tech campus.
“I really think it’s different this year than it’s been in the last year or two,” explained Walters. “I’m really excited for a couple of events they’ve added like the scavenger hunt and the bonfire on Friday.”
Allison Suarez is a junior psychology major who transferred to Tech from Cisco Junior College for the 2012 spring semester. She said homecoming at Tech is much different from anything she experienced at Cisco.
“I mean, we had homecoming in high school and stuff, and that was always fun, but it wasn’t quite like this.” Suarez explained as she looked around the crowd at the Student Union’s North Plaza. “There are so many people here. I guess I’m just not used to it. It’s all so exciting. We definitely didn’t have anything like this at my old school.”
Walters said she’s excited that homecoming week isn’t as Greek-centric in 2012.
“In the past it’s always felt like homecoming week was just something for all the fraternities and sororities to have fun with,” Walters said. “This year it feels like there’s so much more to do for the regular student.”
Suarez, who played collegiate soccer while at Cisco, said she didn’t have much time to enjoy many of the school’s other activities, but plans to be more involved at Tech.
“I’m just excited. There is so much going on around campus this week, especially the football game,” Suarez said with exuberance. “I went to the first couple games and they’re just crazy. I’m so excited for the bonfire and the game. I’m just not used to the big school atmosphere and I love it.”
The Tech Activities Board is hosting events daily throughout homecoming week and a detailed calendar can be found on their website.
Remaining homecoming events include:
-Wednesday, 10/10:
- Custom Leather Bracelets at the Student Union Building with a Tech I.D. 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
- S.O. Sing student organization dance off at the United Spirit Arena, 8:00 p.m.
-Thursday, 10/11:
- Tamale Fest at Urbanovsky Park, 11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
- Techsan Memorial – Memorial past students, faculty and staff, at Memorial Circle, 5:30 p.m.
-Friday, 10/12:
- Rowdy Raider Rally introduces the top 10 homecoming candidates with free t-shirts, 12:00 p.m.
- Presidential Lecture: Timothy Egan, with book signing following the presentation at the Student Union Allen Theater, 7:00 p.m.
- Homecoming March and Pep Rally/Bonfire – Goin’ Band and Spirit squads march from band parking lot to Urbanovsky park for a pep rally and bonfire, 8:30 p.m.
-Saturday, 10/13:
- Homecoming parade from the First Baptist Church to the Tech Education building, 9:00 a.m.
- RaiderGate in the R-1 parking lot, featuring tailgating and live music, 10:30 a.m.
- Texas Tech vs. West Virginia, at the Jones AT&T Stadium, 2:30 p.m.
– Scott Cilke
Contributed to The Hub by Dr. Kaufhold’s multi-platform class.
About Sarah Scroggins
