125 Years of Vim

In case you haven’t heard, it’s Homecoming here at MSU, and the theme is “Celebrating 125 Years of Vim.” If you missed the homecoming events that already took place — the lecture and book signing at the Museum of the Rockies on Monday, bingo at Rocking R Bar on Tuesday and the barbeque on the mall or the annual M lighting on Wednesday, fear not. The best is yet to come with the remaining events, and we’ll give you all the details below to get involved this week and celebrate MSU.

Thursday

Thursday will be host to three events dedicated to MSU’s Homecoming. The Jake Jabs College of Business and Entrepreneurship will give out their homecoming awards in Jabs Hall room 207 at 4 p.m., kicking off the slew of award ceremonies taking place Thursday and Friday. Later, the MSU volleyball team will face off against the University of Idaho in Shroyer Gym at 7 p.m., and if you are hoping to keep your school spirit alive after that match wraps up, you can head over to the Hedges residence halls to watch residents use their room lights to spell out “Go Cats” along the exterior walls.

Friday

All day on Friday, MSU students and faculty are encouraged to wear blue and gold to show their school spirit for “Blue and Gold Friday.” MSU will also host the President’s Homecoming Breakfast, along with the presentation of the Blue and Gold Awards, given to alumni who, according to MSU’s website, have brought “national or international distinction to MSU or the state of Montana.” Several colleges will be giving out homecoming awards on Friday as well, including the College of Nursing, the College of Agriculture, the College of Arts & Architecture, the College of Health and Human Development, the Norm Asbjornson College of Engineering Academy of Distinguished Alumni, the Honors College, and the College of Letters and Science. Like the Blue and Gold Awards, the homecoming awards honor past Bobcats for their current accomplishments and the recognition they have brought to MSU. These awards will take place throughout the day and, unlike the Blue and Gold Awards, do not require an invitation, so feel free to check for times and places to go and support MSU alumni.

In addition to the academic celebrations, Rocking R Bar will host their alumni night on Friday from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m., where MSU alumni can get a free drink if they are part of the Alumni Association. Rocking R Bar will also host their fraternity and sorority social starting at 5 p.m., where past and present members of MSU’s Greek life can connect. If you aren’t interested or able to go to the bar, you can celebrate Homecoming at the pep-rally taking over Main Street at 5:30 p.m. Spirit of the West will perform, Head Football Coach Jeff Choate and other notable MSU football players will speak, and there will be food and fun aplenty to get you hyped for Saturday’s game.

Saturday

MSU’s chorale will perform their annual recital at 9:30 a.m. at Holy Rosary Church, and from there you can watch the ASMSU Homecoming Parade come down Main Street, featuring floats honoring various clubs and a performance from the Spirit of the West Marching Band. There will be a Streamline shuttle available throughout the morning so students living on campus have transportation. Next, you can move from downtown to the stadium for the Homecoming Tailgate for some great pregame food and activities. The tailgate is $25 a person and you must RSVP online at montana.edu/calendar/events/27019. 

Finally, the two main events: the homecoming football game and volleyball match. The MSU football team will play the University of Idaho at 2 p.m. at Bobcat Stadium, where Homecoming Ambassadors of Service, Leadership and Involvement will be crowned during the halftime performance. There are eight candidates this year — Sammy Clark, Molly Ward, Molly Sherner, Micah McFeely, Connie Brownotter, Clare McShane, Nick Johnson and Casey Wolfe, and three will be crowned as ambassador of one of the three platforms. To access homecoming royalty bios and learn more about your homecoming candidates, visit montana.edu/homecoming/.

Don’t forget to also attend the final event of Homecoming week on Saturday night. The MSU volleyball team will face off against Eastern Washington at 7 p.m. in Shroyer Gym to wrap up the week of celebrating MSU.

For more information on any of the Homecoming events or other ways you can get involved and show your MSU Spirit, visit msuaf.org/homecoming