People and Community University

Homecoming 2022: ’Canes get ready to ‘Game On’

This year’s spirit week aims to bring events old and new to homecoming, all in preparation for the Hurricanes to take on Florida State Saturday in the traditional rivalry game.
Fireworks over Lake Osceola during Homecoming festivities.

The hanging of banners, booths buzzing with announcements of free merchandise, and fireworks soon dazzling above Lake Osceola all mean it is once again that time of year— homecoming season.  

After the Halloween weekend, students are getting ready for one of the most important football games of the year, and ’Canes are ready to get their “game on,” the theme of this year’s spirit week. 

“It’s been a really exciting adventure to work with this year’s ‘Game On!’ theme, because it’s given us a lot of creative freedom,” said Katarina Jenkins, a senior who serves as one of the vice chairs on the executive board of the Homecoming Executive Committee. 

“Something we focused on is a really inclusive theme and building a storyline with it, so since we’re focusing on a video game theme, we decided to make everything pixelated. Everyone has seen or interacted with a video game, so it felt like it was a somewhat relatable idea,” she said.

Several traditional events will be back this year, including the opening ceremony at the Student Center Complex Lakeside Patio, Homecoming Trivia Tuesday at the Rathskeller, and the ceremonial boat burning at the end of the week. 

Hurricanes Help the Hometown will take place on Wednesday, Nov. 2, in which the committee works with several student organizations to be involved in several service projects to help the local Miami community. 

“This year, our amazing chairs worked with finding over 18 student organizations to participate,” said Esther Alexandre, a senior on the executive board who oversees the hometown event as well as several competition subcommittees. “Each organization will be working on their own service components, and we’ll be working with each of their budgets to help fund their projects.” 

Along with these recurring events, some aspects of homecoming week are seeing new changes and additions to the schedule. For instance, the homecoming pageantry has been rebranded to the “Royalty Court” rather than the “King & Queen Court.” According to Lindsey Faucher, a junior and vice chair of the homecoming executive board, this was one way they hoped to make some of the events more inclusive to students. 

“Basically, the idea was to open [the pageant] up and make it more inclusive for students of all identities on campus, because everyone should be able to enjoy homecoming no matter who you are or what you identify with,” Faucher said. 

“Within the event itself, it's going to be a little bit different as far as crowning the winners. Instead of having the king and the queen and the prince and the princess, we'll just have the top four,” Faucher added. 

The fireworks display will also be slightly rearranged compared to previous years, as the Hecht Residential College is no longer around to host some of the pyrotechnics. 

Some old traditions are also coming back for the first time since the pandemic, including the Homecoming Concert presented by student organization Hurricane Productions (HP) on Thursday, Nov. 3. This year, award-winning rapper Flo Rida will be performing for students at the Watsco Center as they get ready to kick off their homecoming weekend. 

“We haven't had one in three years, so it's very, very exciting,” said Meera Patel, a senior who serves as the chair of the homecoming committee. “We’re very appreciative of HP and everything that they've done for our campus, especially with bringing back a great tradition for homecoming this year.” 

Several competitions will also be open to students, including the Spirit Tree competition, the Organized Cheer, or “O-Cheer,” competition, and the Alma Mater competition. 

There will even be events and opportunities for alumni looking to trek to Coral Gables for homecoming and alumni weekend festivities. These include gathering at the ’Canes Lounge during Hurricane Howl on Friday, a pregame celebration at 4:30 p.m. Saturday at Hard Rock Stadium, and the Beat FSU: ’Canes Takeover Watch Party at several local establishments. 

Finally, the week will wrap up with food trucks, the Hurricane Howl Block Party, and the Homecoming Awards Ceremony on campus for students Friday evening, culminating in the boat burning and fireworks display over Lake Osceola. The next day is the rivalry game. 

“Since I’m a senior, it's been very bittersweet [planning homecoming week],” Patel said. “It feels very full circle and like all paths have led me to this moment, which is absolutely incredible and honestly a little bit scary. I'm feeling very grateful for the support system that are our amazing student leaders. We’re all extremely excited for what’s to come.” 

View the full listing of Homecoming events here.