Last week was Homecoming at LSU, commemorating the 100th anniversary of Tiger Stadium and providing members of the LSU community a chance to paint, dance and celebrate what makes them proud to be tigers.

To kickstart Homecoming Week 2024, the LSU Residential Hall Association hosted Splatterbeat, the annual paint party where students can shoot paint at their peers and get covered in different colors.

Bioscience major Treiu Nguyen, a freshman who had never experienced a color war before, said the event was “super cool” and “exciting.”

On Wednesday, the National Pan-Hellenic Council hosted a Greek Step Show, where LSU’s fraternities and sororities performed choreographed-routines in homage to each one of their beginnings. Dances performed by the Divine Nine brought a lively atmosphere to the River Center Theatre for Performing Arts, where the event was held. 

“I was very impressed by the talent and dedication that they put into their work,” said broadcast journalism freshman Addison Gonzalez. “It really shows in their performances.” 

On Thursday two events took place: the Greek Life Block Party and Geaux Diva Live. The Greek Life Block Party took place on Sorority Row with food trucks, live music from The Bends and Thomas Pate and a jambalaya cookoff. The party aimed to bring students from different sororities and fraternities together, along with students who are not involved in Greek Life.

Following the block party, Geaux Diva Live took place in the LSU Student Union with performances from local drag queens and LSU’s K-Pop dance club. This event brought together LSU students from LGBTQ+ community.

“Fun and lively experience,” finance freshman Sophia Janicki said of the drag show. “I think it’s a great way to represent the LGBTQ+ community.” 

The Homecoming Parade took place Friday night, with appearances from alumni, LSU sports teams and the LSU Homecoming Court. Hundreds of people crowded around parade floats to celebrate the past, present and what is yet to come at LSU. 

Later that night, the UREC Field Complex hosted the Homecoming Concert, headlined by DJ Diesel – also known as former LSU basketball star Shaquille O’Neal. O’Neal made his big entrance stating the words “I’m Home.” Playing some LSU classics and techno beats, O’Neal gave a performance to remember. 

“It was really cool to see Shaq for the first time ever in person,” construction management freshman Logan Montagnino said. “A funny thing I noticed was how tall he really is.” 

To end Homecoming Week, LSU played Ole Miss, winning 29-26 in overtime. During the game, the LSU Tiger Marching Band performed a halftime show inspired by LSU’s Homecoming history. Following this performance, the Homecoming king and queen were announced, with Brian Gage, a marketing senior minoring in advertising and entrepreneurship, and Camille Cronin, a political science senior minoring in history, winning.

The crowning of Gage and Cronin officially marked the end of LSU Homecoming Week, bringing celebrations to a close. Next year’s Homecoming Week will be announced at a later date, typically taking place mid-October.