Homecoming in November; that really doesn’t sound right and it’s because it’s not.
Homecoming should be in October and it doesn’t feel right for San José State to have its Homecoming during the week of Nov. 8.
SJSU’s Homecoming takes place almost a month later compared to last year when it took place from Oct. 13-19.
The Homecoming game this year happens on Nov. 8 where the Spartans play the U.S. Air Force Academy for a week 9 matchup which is very late.
Other Bay Area schools have Homecoming games in October, such as UC Berkeley’s game on Oct. 4 and Stanford’s game on Oct. 18.
SJSU’s football schedule is interesting this year – the Spartans only had three games in the month of October and the only home game was Oct. 3 on a Friday night.
Since the only home game was on a Friday night, this made it impossible for SJSU to have its homecoming in October.
This is because Friday is typically reserved for high school, according to the Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961 published on the National Law Review website.
The Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961 gives high school football priority, while Saturdays are for college football and Sundays are for the NFL, according to the same source.
This makes it impossible for colleges to host their homecoming game on Fridays since high schools also have their homecoming spirit weeks and games all throughout October.
Since the Homecoming is surrounded around the game, this pushes out all the other festivities that come with the spirit week.
Some of the festivities specific to SJSU include “Taste of the Bay,” the 6th annual block party on 7th Street plaza and the 18th annual Fire on the Fountain.
It doesn’t feel right to have the Homecoming festivities this late in the school year.
Even when I was in high school, Homecoming was always in October and it just fit the overall vibe of the festivities.
In the fall, the school spirit everyone shows beginning in the cool bristling air makes you feel the Homecoming spirit.
The bright side about Homecoming being so late is that it’s the start of an eventful ending to the semester which includes Veterans Day on Nov. 11 and Thanksgiving break which starts Nov. 27.
That’s towards the end of the semester because the last day of instruction is Dec. 8, so when homecoming comes around, the last month of the semester is going to fly by.
Even though there are some positives from homecoming being so late, it still doesn’t feel right to have it in November.
The spirit week can also give students somewhat a sigh of relief since midterms are typically around the middle or end of October which can be a stressful time for students.
Homecoming should stay in October, it flows better with the fall semester and offers a time for students to relieve some stress during midterm season.
