Homecoming chock full of ‘Peace and Love’

This past weekend, UTM held the Homecoming game with the 9th annual Quad City taking place beforehand.


Beginning the day at 10 a.m., the statues of former UTM Women’s Athletic Director Bettye Giles; former UTM Women’s Basketball Coach Nadine Gearin; and UTM alumnae and former UT Coach Pat Head Summitt were revealed in front of the Elam Center, showing how much the three women have meant to this school.


Then, Beatles tribute band, “The Return” played for those at Quad City, beginning the festivities. This fit in perfectly with this year’s theme and further established the 70s vibe throughout the Quad.


“I thought they were a really good band; it added an authentic touch to Homecoming and Quad City,” said senior Accounting major Laura Gullett.


Afterwards, the Skyhawk football team did the annual Skyhawk Walk, but with a new twist. This year, there was also a Memory Lap to honor Summitt’s foundation for finding a cure for Alzheimer’s.


Another new addition to this year’s Quad City was Sorority Village. The Alpha Delta Pi, Alpha Omicron Pi and Chi Omega were featured here, allowing alumni an opportunity to visit the tents of their sororities easily. At the tables, alumni from each sorority were able to look at a layout of how the future sorority houses will look and donate money to help the building projects prosper.


Quad City’s theme of “Peace, Love, and Skyhawks’’ was a success, with many tents decorated with bright colors, peace signs and psychedelic flowers. With all the decorations and fun, Quad City allowed many busy college students and the Martin community to just relax and have a good time.

For these reasons, Quad City was a success, serving its purpose by providing a reunion-like atmosphere for students, alumni and their children, and giving many organizations the opportunity to get their name
out there.

Then, later at the game halftime, Julie A. Boswell, UTM Chancellor Tom Rakes, former UTM Women’s Athletic Director Bettye Giles, former UT Coach Pat Head Summitt, Dr. Brenda J. Cude and UT President Joe DiPietro were recognized as outstanding UTM alumni. After being recognized and waving to the crowd, they made their way off the field and the Homecoming court were called onto the field one at a time. Katie Pigg, representative of Zeta Tau Alpha was crowned Homecoming queen by former
 Homecoming queen Meagan Meketi.


Overall, this year’s Homecoming was a success, giving students and alumni the opportunity to come together and have a good time.