Rallying together in a sea of red, students proudly held their Cougar paws up and shouted cheers demonstrating their school spirit and commitment to all things UH.
Homecoming Week kicked off with a pep rally Monday at Lynn B. Eusan Park. Complete with the Spirit of Houston Cougar Marching Band, cheerleaders and Cougar Dolls, everyone worked hard to show support to UH Athletics and to get ready for the big game.
“The main thing about the pep rally is to build student spirit along with school spirit, and get students connected to UH Athletics,” said William Munson, associate vice chancellor for Student Development.
“I think it went very well today. We had a very spirited group. We need even more students to come to the game this Saturday and to bring their friends.”
For education senior and cheerleader Kacie Johnson, the day was a little bittersweet. It is her last Homecoming Week to participate in as a student. She said she and her teammates have been working hard to prepare for the week and have been spreading the word of Homecoming festivities through Facebook and Instagram.
“I really love pep rallies because it gets everybody ready for the big game and promotes school spirit,” Johnson said. “We are doing lots of cheers today, including my favorite, ‘We are Houston.’ I love that one because it shows we are the school that represents Houston. It’s who we are.”
Hotel and restaurant management junior Jasmine Dennis, director of productions for the Homecoming Board, has been preparing since January. She said she was thrilled to watch the pep rally become a reality and see her UH family celebrate together.
Cheerleaders showed off their aerodynamic abilities and kept school spirit high during the pep rally at Lynn Eusan Park. | Carolina Trevino/The Daily Cougar
“The pep rally is a tradition, and it is the start to what is going to be a great week,” Dennis said. “Today is also crazy hair (and) hat day. Every day this week has a theme. We decided to make this year’s Homecoming Week more like high school so people who can’t make it to the events can still participate in their own way.”
The highlight of today’s pep rally was the announcement of the Homecoming court. To become a nominee, students are required to find a sponsor, maintain a high GPA, write an essay, be active in community service and engage in an interview.
Out of the 17 applications, five men and five women made the cut. The finalists include Emma Baker, Anum Hassan, Channler Hill*, Marrisa Marshall, Lauren Tolat, Westen Lewis, Ethan Tucker, Michael Szymanski, Mohammad Elsaodi and Taylor Vigil. Nominees will be present at all events, and winners will be announced at the game on Saturday.
To conclude the pep rally, running back Kenneth Farrow took the stage with a few of his fellow players and urged students to come watch the Cougars bring home 6-0 against BYU.
“We need y’all to fill the stands and be loud,” Farrow said. “I know I play a lot better when y’all are out there cheering us on.”
*Hill serves as editor of The Daily Cougar
