Ole Miss officials have announced a preliminary slate of events for the 2009 Homecoming festivities. The week is highlighted by the annual meeting of the Ole Miss Alumni Association, a homecoming parade and pep rally on Friday night and a football contest with the Blazers of the University of Alabama-Birmingham on Saturday. Events will revolve around the theme, “Ole Miss: An Experience that Lasts a Lifetime.”
Throughout the week, movies and live music will grace the Grove stage and various activities will be hosted at the Student Union.
The week kicks off on Sunday afternoon, Oct. 11, at 4:30 p.m., with Rumble in the Grove presented by the Student Programming Board and the Department of Campus Programming, featuring Blues Traveler with special guests The Dirt Brothers. The Homecoming Movie Series begins on the Grove stage at 8 p.m. on Thursday with Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. The movie will be replayed on Friday night at 7 p.m. in the Turner Center.
In the Student Union, yearbook class photos will be taken throughout the week from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. The Union Plaza will host game shows, rock climbing and a shooting range, among other activities sponsored by the Mississippi National Guard. Events at the Union’s Southern Breeze lounge include Monday Night Football with free Papa John’s pizza and an air hockey tournament on Tuesday night. Friday at 5:30 p.m., the annual Homecoming parade will commence on campus and end on the Oxford Square with a pep rally.
At 6 p.m. on Friday, the Alumni Association will host a reception at The Inn at Ole Miss honoring the recipients of the university’s highest alumni award, the Ole Miss Alumni Hall of Fame. The free, public event also honors the recipients of the Alumni Service Award and the Outstanding Young Alumni Award for their services to the university and the Alumni Association. A ticketed dinner for the honorees follows. For more information about the inductees or alumni awards-related events, click here.
The annual meeting of the Alumni Association is tentatively scheduled for 10 a.m. on Saturday in the Gertrude C. Ford Ballroom at The Inn at Ole Miss. The meeting time is expected to be confirmed when the kickoff time for the game is announced. New Alumni Association officers are to be elected at the meeting, which is open to all members of the Alumni Association.
Hall of Fame inductees will also be introduced during pre-game ceremonies on Saturday.
For more information about Homecoming events, please contact Campus Programming at 662-915-1044 or the Alumni Association at 662-915-7375.