Ohio University students and faculty are gearing up to welcome back former Bobcats during this weekend's Homecoming celebration.
The OU Student Alumni Board kicked off the weekend last night at Peden Stadium with their Yell Like Hell pep rally, which featured performances by the Ohio Marching 110 and the OU Dance Team, among others.
The events continue at 8 p.m. today at Templeton-Blackburn Alumni Memorial Auditorium as the Alumni Association hosts its annual Alumni Awards Gala, where distinguished OU grads are recognized for their accomplishments.
The event is the first of many opportunities for current students to interact with alumni, said Sean Hughes, alumni association director of marketing and communication and a 1996 OU graduate.
It's a really great way to network with some really great and often times prestigious alumni
Hughes said. It is beneficial for students to see the things alumni do after they graduate, he said.
Hughes said last year about 5,000 alumni came back to Athens for Homecoming, and he anticipates an even bigger draw this year. The Alumni Association also will be hosting the Homecoming Festival at Pepsi Tailgreat Park prior to the OU football game against Bowling Green, which begins at 2 p.m. Saturday.
There's just some really exciting things going on at Ohio University that are bringing people back to Athens Hughes said. It's really a great time to be a Bobcat.
Chosen by the Alumni Association, the theme of this year's parade and float competition is 200 Years and Still Rockin. The parade will begin on East State Street, proceed west on Carpenter Street, south on Court Street and down Union Street and University Terrace to The Oasis, where the floats will be judged.
The theme this year was incredibly creative; it's giving people a chance to build floats that have something to do with rock and roll said Laura Alexander, annual events planner for University Program Council, who organized the parade. Some floats plan to feature live music.
The floats must coincide with the theme of the parade and show OU spirit. The competition will have five judges, including two students, two faculty members and one alumnus.
OU junior Ira Young, vice president of Alpha Epsilon Pi fraternity, said although Homecoming week is a lot of work, the parade makes it worthwhile.
Watching your letters getting pulled down the parade is so meaningful
he said. It gives you such a sense of pride.
Young said Homecoming can be especially rewarding for the fraternity's pledges.
This is the first fraternity-wide project they have participated in
and it's a good bonding experience for them as a pledge class
Young said. It's something they will remember long after they graduate.
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