Homecoming

History

On November 23, 1912, KU played its first Homecoming football game against well-established rivals the Missouri Tigers. At a bonfire in front of Fraser Hall the Friday before the game, the ceremonial burning of a wooden tiger riled KU students and the next day, in front of 9,000 cheering fans, the Jayhawks defeated Missouri 12-3. For years, it was custom to play Missouri for every other Homecoming game.

In 1925, the first Homecoming Queen was crowned at KU, but the ceremony did not become tradition until 1933. A new queen was crowned each year until 1969, when anti-war demonstrations and stormy race relations led to the committee's decision that it was "more appropriate to recognize those who embody the academic spirit for which this community was established." The Ex.C.E.L. Award now recognizes two students with outstanding leadership, involvement and academics. Two more awards have since been created: the Spirit of 1912 Award honors KU graduates for lifelong commitment to the University; and the Jennifer Alderdice Homecoming Award recognizes current students who demonstrate outstanding loyalty and dedication.

In 1956 KU introduced Homecoming themes. The first official theme was "Songs of Victory." At the time, the theme was incorporated into lawn decorations created by fraternities, sororities and residence halls. Today, the theme provides a basis for Homecoming Week celebrations and guides the week's events.

Nearly a century after the first game, some traditions and events remain while others have become Homecoming lore. Hobo Day was an integral part of celebrations in the 1920s, complete with costumes, pep rallies and street theatre. A student talent show called Jayhawk Follies has evolved into today's Jayhawk Jingles. The 1971 game against Kansas State unveiled a second KU mascot when Baby Jay hatched during halftime. Today, students spend Homecoming Week participating in campus activities that build spirit and benefit the Lawrence community. By Saturday, they are ready to showcase their floats in the annual parade down Jayhawk Boulevard and cheer the Jayhawks to another Homecoming victory.

Click here to read more fun facts about Homecoming through the years.

 

Homecoming Queens

1925 -- Anna Lois Voights 1933 -- Lucy Edna Trees 1934 -- Avanell Bushmeyer 1935 -- Betty Grove 1936 -- Betty Ruth Smith 1937 -- Dorris Johnson 1938 -- Denny Lemoine 1939 -- Barbara Edmunds 1940 -- Greta Gibson 1941 -- Louise Lockhard 1942 -- Ruth Anna Bovaird 1943 -- Heloise Hillbrand 1944 -- Gwen Kistler 1945 -- Joy Godbehere 1946 -- Nina Green 1947 -- Carolyn Campbell 1948 -- Ann Cowger 1949 -- Diane Lee Brewster 1950 -- Ada Hatfield

1951 -- Jeannine Neihart 1952 -- Mary Louise Lavy 1953 -- Barbara Korn 1954 -- Betty Davis 1955 -- Marjorie Majoney 1956 -- Susie Stout 1957 -- Marcia Johnson 1958 -- Susie Kastner 1959 -- Judy Gorton 1960 -- Janice Guyot 1961 -- Mary Nan Scammon 1962 -- Barbara Schmidt 1963 -- Karen Vice 1964 -- Cathy Bergtrom 1965 -- Muff Yankey 1966 -- Cindy Dickson 1967 -- Nancy Miller 1968 -- Susan Wassenberg 1969 -- Janet Merrick

 

Ex.C.E.L. Award Winners

1991 -- Margaret Hu and Louie Lopez 1992 -- Jill Russell and Dustin Daugherty 1993 -- Carmen San Martin and Trevor Thompson 1994 -- Jennifer Ford and Marc Wilson 1995 -- Jill Bechtel and Lorraine Claassen 1996 -- Amy Turnbull (Lawrence) and Ronald Chen 1997 -- Sasha Flores (Hutchinson) and Aroop Kumar Pal (Lawrence) 1998 -- Karen Isley (Sylvania, Ohio) and Kevin Yoder (Hutchinson) 1999 -- Brenda Ting-Fai Chung (Hong Kong, China) and Eric Rush (Topeka) 2000 -- Kimberly Fuchs (Merriam) and Curtis Sloan (Powhattan) 2001 -- Anneliese Stoever (Overland Park) and Robert McKenney (Clinton, Mo.) 2002 -- Erin Michaelis (Hays) and Irakli Mirazashvili (Ness City) 2003 -- Casey Collier (Shawnee) and Jacob Williams (Topeka) 2004 -- Susan Henry (Fort Scott) and Gaston Araoz (La Paz, Bolivia) 2005 -- Jenna Sheldon-Sherman (Lawrence) and Greyson Clymer (Prairie Village) 2006 -- Lauren Pierson (Prairie Village) and Scott Ferguson (Leawood) 2007 -- Ashley Bloom (Hutchinson) and Peter Curzon (Phoenix, Ariz.) 2008 -- Rachel Burchfield (Topeka) and Nathan Mack (Lawrence) 2009 -- Ashley Moser (Topeka) and Matt Enriquez (Topeka) 2010 -- Tonia Salas (Alameda, Calif.) and Michael Wade Smith (Goodland) 2011 — Emily Lamb (Lawrence) and Hunter Hess (McPherson)

 

Spirit of 1912 Award Winners

The Spirit of 1912 Award acknowledges KU graduates who consistently display school spirit, pride and tradition throughout their lives. The award takes its name from two KU milestones--1912 held the first KU Homecoming and the first official Jayhawk logo, created by Henry Maloy.

2007 -- Rich, c'57, and Judy Howard Billings, d'57 (Lakewood, Colo.) 2010 -- Margey Wallet Frederick, j'69, g'78, and the late Bob Frederick, d'62, g'64, EdD'84 (Lawrence) 2011 -- Amy Hurst, c'74 (Whitmore Lake, MI)

 

Jennifer Alderdice Homecoming Award Winners

In her 13 years at the KU Alumni Association, Jennifer Alderdice inspired countless students to become involved and take pride in their University. The award was created to honor Jen, a longtime Steering Committee adviser, who left the Alumni Association after adopting a daughter. The student award recipients demonstrate Jen's qualities: dedication, initiative, motivation, positive attitude and contributions to KU.

2009 -- Hunter Hess (McPherson) 2010 -- Jill Nowak (McPherson) 2011 — Laken Avonne Rapier

 

Homecoming Themes

1956 -- Songs for Victory 1957 -- Comic Strip Characters 1961 -- Broadway Musicals 1962 -- Television Advertising 1963 -- To the Skies Through Difficulties: Higher Education - The Road to the Future 1964 -- Circus 1965 -- 'Hawkers History 1966 -- Husker's Last Stand 1967 -- Jayhawker Headlines 1968 -- Jayhawk Laugh-In 1969 -- A Little Pepper Helps the Buffalo Go Down 1970 -- KU of the '70s 1971 -- Welcome to Big Blue Country 1972 -- (no theme) 1973 -- (no theme) 1974 -- The Great Entertainer: Hollywood 'Hawk 1975 -- Jayhawk Rebellion 1976 -- J. Hawk for President 1977 -- To the Stars 1978 -- We Have the Wizard on Our Side 1979 -- Kansas: The Real Wild West 1980 -- The Magic of Homecoming 1981 -- 1981: The Year of Great Expectations 1982 -- Fabulous Forties 1983 -- Under the Big Top 1984 -- Contemporary Comics Come to KU 1985 -- 'Hawks Go Hawaiian (downtown parade) 1986 -- Jayhawks Celebrate! KU's Great

1987 -- Great Faces, Great Places 1988 -- Back to the Glory Days 1990 -- Building a Tradition of Excellence 1991 -- KU Tradition: Keeps on Going and Going and Going 1992 -- I'd Sooner Be a Jayhawk Celebrating KU Traditions 1993 -- Recycle the Cyclones 1994 -- The Spirits Come Alive 1995 -- Hollywood on the Hill 1996 -- Jayhawk for President 1997 -- Haunt the Hill 1998 -- Tangled Up in Crimson and Blue 1999 -- Games Jayhawks Play 2000 -- Passport to the World 2001 -- A 'Hawk Odyssey 2002 -- Traditions Anew in 2002: A 'Hawk of a Good Time 2003 -- Jayhawk Generations: Bringing Back the Classics 2004 -- Hawktoberfest: Home Is Where the 'Hawk Is 2005 -- 'Hawks on Haunted Hill: Legends of the Fall 2006 -- Once a Jayhawk, Always a Jayhawk 2007 -- Jayhawk Nation 2008 -- Hail to the 'Hawks 2009 -- Peace. Love. Jayhawks. 2010 -- Rock Chalk Roadtrip 2011 -- From Lawrence with Love

 

Homecoming Games

1912 -- Nov. 23 vs. Missouri (W 12-3) (9,000) First Homecoming game; Arthur Mosse is head coach 1913 -- Nov. 15 vs. Nebraska (L 0-9) 1914 -- Nov. 21 vs. Missouri (L 7-10) H.M. Wheaton is head coach 1915 -- Nov. 13 vs. Nebraska (L 0-33) Herman Olcott is head coach 1916 -- Nov. 30 vs. Missouri (L 0-13) 1917 -- Nov. 17 vs. Nebraska (L 3-13) 1918 -- Jay Bond is head coach; season shortened due to campus-wide influenza outbreak 1919 -- Nov. 29 vs. Missouri (L 6-13) Leon McCarty is head coach 1920 -- Nov. 13 vs. Nebraska (T 20-20) Forrest C. "Phog" Allen is head coach 1921 -- Nov. 24 vs. Missouri (W 15-9) Potsy Clark is head coach 1922 -- Nov. 11 vs. Nebraska (L 0-28) Official dedication of Memorial Stadium 1923 -- Nov. 29 vs. Missouri (T 3-3) 1924 -- Oct. 25 vs. Nebraska (L 7-14) 1925 -- Nov. 21 vs. Missouri (W 10-7) 1926 -- Oct. 23 vs. Nebraska (L 3-20) Franklin Cappon is head coach 1927 -- Nov. 19 vs. Missouri (W 14-7) Memorial Stadium capacity increased to 35,000 with the addition of the North Bowl 1928 -- Nov. 3 vs. Nebraska (L 0-20) Last season in the Missouri Valley Conference; Bill Hargiss is head coach 1929 -- Nov. 23 vs. Missouri (L 0-7) KU joins Big 6 Conference 1930 -- Nov. 8 vs. Nebraska (L 0-16) Season of the first night game in school history 1931 -- Nov. 21 vs. Missouri (W 14-0) 1932 -- Oct. 22 vs. Nebraska (L 6-20) (15,000) Ad Lindsey assumes head coaching position during season 1933 -- Nov. 30 vs. Missouri (W 27-0) 1934 -- Nov. 17 vs. Nebraska (L 0-3) 1935 -- Nov. 28 vs. Missouri (T 0-0) 1936 -- Nov. 7 vs. #8 Nebraska (L 0-26) 1937 -- Nov. 25 vs. Missouri (T 0-0) 1938 -- Nov. 5 vs. Nebraska (L 7-16) 1939 -- Nov. 25 vs. #10 Missouri (L 0-20) Gwinn Henry is head coach 1940 -- Nov. 9 vs. Oklahoma (L 0-13) 1941 -- Nov. 22 vs. Missouri (L 6-45) 1942 -- Oct. 31 vs. Nebraska (L 7-14) 1943 -- Nov. 20 vs. Missouri (W 7-6) Henry Shenk is head coach 1944 -- Oct. 21 vs. Nebraska (W 20-0) 1945 -- Nov. 17 vs. Kansas State (W 27-0) Season of 100th game in Memorial Stadium 1946 -- Oct. 19 vs. Nebraska (L 14-16) KU enters season tied for 1st in the Big 6; George Sauer is head coach 1947 -- Nov. 22 vs. #17 Missouri (W 20-14) KU enters season tied for 1st in the Big 6; makes first bowl appearance, loses Orange Bowl to Georgia Tech 1948 -- Oct. 23 vs. Nebraska (W 27-7) (36,500) Big Seven Conference established; J.V. Sikes is head coach; KU plays its 500th game in school history 1949 -- Nov. 19 vs. Missouri (L 28-34) (40,500) 1950 -- Oct. 28 vs. Nebraska (L 26-33) (39,000) 1951 -- Dec. 1 vs. Missouri (W 41-28) (35,000) 1952 -- Nov. 8 vs. #7 Nebraska (L 13-14) (33,500) Season of first nationally televised game (NBC) 1953 -- Nov. 21 vs. Missouri (L 6-10) (34,000) 1954 -- Nov. 20 vs. Missouri (L 18-41) (29,000) Chuck Mather is head coach 1955 -- Nov. 19 vs. Missouri (W 13-7) (30,000) 1956 -- Nov. 10 vs. Nebraska (L 20-26) (28,000) 1957 -- Nov. 23 vs. Missouri (W 9-7) (32,500) Big Eight Conference established 1958 -- Nov. 8 vs. Nebraska (W 29-7) (23,000) Jack Mitchell is head coach 1959 -- Nov. 21 vs. Missouri (L 9-13) (40,000) 1960 -- Nov. 12 (10) vs. Colorado (W 34-6) (33,000) Later ordered to forfeit victory due to ineligible player 1961 -- Nov. 11 vs. Kansas State (W 34-0) (34,000) Season of first bowl victory (Bluebonnet Bowl in Houston) 1962 -- Nov. 10 vs. Nebraska (L 16-40) (38,000) 1963 -- Nov. 2 vs. Kansas State (W 34-0) (30,000) Memorial Stadium capacity increased to 44,900 and Gale Sayers sets NCAA record with 99-yard run 1964 -- Nov. 7 vs. #6 Nebraska (L 7-14) (45,000)

1965 -- Oct. 30 vs. Kansas State (W 34-0) (36,900) 1966 -- Nov. 5 vs. #6 Nebraska (L 13-24) (40,881) 1967 -- Nov. 4 vs. Kansas State (W 17-16) (42,435) Pepper Rodgers is head coach 1968 -- Nov. 2 vs. #3 Colorado (W 27-14) (43,442) Loses the Orange Bowl to Penn State 14-15 1969 -- Nov. 8 vs. Colorado (L 14-17) (37,893) 1970 -- Oct. 24 vs. Iowa State (W 24-10) (35,837) Season of KU's first home game on artificial turf 1971 -- Oct. 9 vs. Kansas State (W 39-13) (51,151) Don Fambrough is head coach 1972 -- Oct. 28 vs. #15 Iowa State (L 8-34) (33,710) 1973 -- Oct. 13 vs. #19 Kansas State (W 25-18) (51,574) Loses the Liberty Bowl to North Carolina State 18-31 1974 -- Oct. 26 vs. Iowa State (L 6-22) (31,134) 1975 -- Oct. 25 vs. Oklahoma State (L 19-35) (35,727) Bud Moore is head coach; KU loses the Sun Bowl to Pittsburgh 19-33 1976 -- Oct. 16 #15 Kansas vs. #6 Oklahoma (L 10-28) (49,085) 1977 -- Oct. 15 vs. #3 Colorado (T 17-17) (34,725) 1978 -- Oct. 28 vs. Iowa State (L 7-13) (32,768) 1979 -- Oct. 27 vs. Oklahoma State (L 17-30) (29,671) Don Fambrough is head coach 1980 -- Oct. 18 vs. #19 Iowa State (W 28-17) (30,000) 1981 -- Oct. 10 vs. Oklahoma State (L 7-20) (39,810) Loses the Hall of Fame Bowl to Mississippi State 10-0 1982 -- Nov. 6 vs. Iowa State (W 24-17) (26,796) 1983 -- Nov. 19 vs. #19 Missouri (W 37-27) (38,400) Mike Gottfried is head coach; season of 300th game in Memorial Stadium 1984 -- Oct. 27 vs. #2 Oklahoma (W 28-11) (29,500) 1985 -- Nov. 9 vs. Colorado (L 3-14) (25,000) 1986 -- Oct. 11 vs. Iowa State (L 10-13) (20,500) Bob Valesente is head coach 1987 -- Oct. 24 vs. Iowa State (L 28-42) (28,300) 1988 -- Oct. 15 vs. Colorado (L 9-21) (22,500) Glen Mason is head coach 1989 -- Oct. 7 vs. Iowa State (L 20-24) (31,500) 1990 -- Oct. 27 vs. Kansas State (W 27-24) (45,000) 1991 -- Oct. 19 vs. Iowa State (W 41-0) (37,000) Season Tony Sands sets NCAA game rushing record with 396 yards 1992 -- Oct. 24 #22 Kansas vs. Oklahoma (W 27-10) (43,500) KU defeats BYU in the Aloha Bowl 23-20 1993 -- Oct. 16 vs. Iowa State (W 35-20) (28,500) 1994 -- Oct. 29 vs. Oklahoma State (W 24-14) (31,000) 1995 -- Oct. 14 #10 Kansas vs. Iowa State (W 34-7) (43,000) Season included 1,000th game in school history and a win in the Aloha Bowl against UCLA 51-30 1996 -- Oct. 19 vs. #9 Colorado (L 7-20) (48,500) Big 12 Conference is established 1997 -- Nov. 1 vs. Iowa State (W 34-24) (43,000) Terry Allen is head coach; season included 500th win in school history 1998 -- Oct. 24 vs. #17 Colorado (W 33-17) (31,600) 1999 -- Oct. 23 vs. Missouri (W 21-0) (42,300) 2000 -- Oct. 21 vs. Colorado (W 23-15) (32,600) 2001 -- Oct. 13 vs. #3 Oklahoma (L 10-38) (48,700) 2002 -- Oct. 12 vs. Colorado (L 29-53) (34,500) Mark Mangino is head coach 2003 -- Oct. 18 vs. Baylor (W 28-21) (40,088) Loses Tangerine Bowl to North Carolina State 56-26 2004 -- Oct. 9 vs. Kansas State (W 31-28) (50,152) 2005 -- Oct. 29 vs. Missouri (W 13-3) (48,238) KU wins the Fort Worth Bowl against Houston 42-13 2006 -- Oct. 7 vs. Texas A&M (L 18-21) (46,455) Anderson Family Football Complex groundbreaking 2007 -- Nov. 3 #8 Kansas vs. Nebraska (W 76-39) (51,910) KU enters season tied for 1st in the Big 12 North; beats Virginia Tech 24-21 in the Orange Bowl 2008 -- Oct. 25 #19 Kansas vs. #8 Texas Tech (L 21-63) (50,125) KU beats Minnesota 42-21 in the Insight Bowl 2009 -- Oct. 10 vs. Iowa State (W 41-36) (48,203) 2010 -- Oct. 23 vs. Texas A&M (L 10-45) (44,239) Turner Gill is head coach 2011 -- Oct. 1 vs. Texas Tech