By Shaniah Taylor
Homecoming at Greensboro College is one of the most anticipated events on campus. Student Activities plans a week full of fun, themed events, everyone gets free merch and the week culminates in a Saturday night football game. It is even better when we secure a home victory.
This year’s “Hollywood Homecoming” theme truly made the entire week feel like a movie – even without the flashiness of A&T’s GHOE.
The festivities kicked off on September 28 with a special “premiere night” dinner. Students
walked down a red carpet and were able to admire the newly decorated cafeteria entrance before
heading off to Huggins Auditorium for movie trivia. It is always a good night when the caf serves a themed dinner, as it allows students to try unique dishes and desserts. With movie trivia
following right after, our brains had the fuel they needed to keep our eyes on the prize and win some cash. Trivia events usually go well on campus, likely because of the timing and cash prizes, but having trivia based on the homecoming theme was a fun experience trivia has not done recently – with the last themes it did not mesh too well. Their decision works out for the best however and hopefully that is a sign for more fun events to come.
On Tuesday night, Student Activities kept the runtime going with a showing of “La La Land” on Pride Field. The flashiness and glamour of the movie paired nicely with the week’s theming and drew in a great turn out. The field was full of students eating popcorn, getting cozy on their blankets and keeping their eyes locked on the screen. When the movie finally concluded after
one of its longer musical sequences, there was a light applause around the field – which I believe is high praise coming from college students.
On Wednesday, we had a Homecoming Volleyball game in Hanes Gym featuring many prizes and treats. The game also included a Morgan’s Message table featuring NAMI. Morgan’s Message was created to eliminate the stigma around mental health within the student athlete community and ensure athletes’ mental health is cared for as equally as their physical health. During a week
that naturally drew in a lot of athletes on our primarily athlete campus, it was a great idea to highlight Morgan’s Message.
Thursday was another action-packed day on campus with two events. One was during the day –
a kickball game featuring students vs. staff on Pride Field, a very entertaining game to watch. Then at 8 p.m. there was a paparazzi scavenger hunt, with winners taking home prizes including money on their Pride Card for Britt’s! The event involved going around different stations on campus and solving clues to get to the next one.
To close out our jam packed week before homecoming weekend, we had our Hollywood
dinner – originally planned to be a cookout but instead served in the caf. Then following was a
bonfire that brought students together in front of West Hall to roast marshmallows, make s’mores, listen to music and drink apple cider or hot cocoa with friends. Personally, the bonfire is one of my favorite events of the entire year. Unlike Bingo, it does not feel too loud or cramped. It is a nice opportunity to spend chill time with people you may not get to hang out with outside of class regularly.
On Saturday, October 3, the day came that every one had waited for. Men’s Soccer had a game on
Pride Field at 1 p.m., then student activities hosted a “One Pride Parents and Family Event” at 4 p.m. in the student center and we ended the night with our Homecoming Football game starting at 6 p.m. The crowd was excited from the moment the team walked out, and the GC Pep Band
played the Fight Song. The crowd kept that momentum throughout the night as the football team scored point after point, earning us a 42-20 win against Southern Virginia University. GC
player TJ Croom broke the football’s program record for pass breakups in a single game. His five
pass breakups surpassed the previous four from 2015.
At halftime, Homecoming court was announced for each class as well as Homecoming Royalty. Homecoming court winners included a variety people from around campus – football players taking a break from their game, other athletes, commuters, theater stars and musicians. Announced as Homecoming royalty, aka the Big Man and Big Woman on campus, were
seniors Bethany McQuinn and Guy Galardi.
The stars were shining bright all week long at Greensboro College, and Hollywood Homecoming
proved to be a success in the box office. From the red carpet to the football field, Student Activities put together a week that brought our community together and reminded us why Homecoming is one of the best weeks of the year. The 2026 Homecoming truly deserves its own standing ovation.
