Spirit Week began on Monday, replacing what was previously known as Homecoming Week.
The main difference between the two event-filled weeks is that spirit week will not host competitions between Greek organizations and between registered student organizations.
“We are really trying to make sure everyone is still excited to support Tiger Basketball,” Catie Blackwood, freshman executive member in Blue Crew said. “We are trying to promote the basketball game. That is our main goal.”
Blue Crew is a student group who focuses on cheering on the Tigers at games, as well as promoting the team. The crew leads chants on game day and serves as leaders to the student section. They also help to coordinate themed nights.
While the budget of spirit week is the same as Homecoming used to be, the focus has shifted from a highly competitive week of creating banners and floats, to a week of free giveaways and food.
“A big difference between spirit week and homecoming week is the competitive aspect,” Ali Kingston, speaker of the student government senate said. “Spirit Week is not about an overall winner and more about the whole student body participating for fun.”
Spirit Week will last from Monday to Saturday. It began yesterday with a banner signing in the University Center with cupcakes and juice. Today there will be a food drive in the UC Atrium sponsored by the Student Government Association. On Wednesday the Pouncer Pep Rally will be held in the UC Atrium from 12 to 1 p.m. The spirited days will finally lead up to the main event, the Memphis Tiger men’s basketball team games against SMU at 6 p.m. in FedExForum.
“I hope students get excited about what it means to be a Memphis Tiger,” Kingston said.“There are two huge opportunities to serve during this week. The first is on Tuesday with the SGA food drive and the second is Wednesday with the Up ‘til Dawn email sending party. A huge thing about being a Tiger is giving back and this week is a great way to do so.”
The letter sending party helps raise money for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital by having participants send letters to friends and family about donating money towards the hospital. Each participant is required to send 50 letters with the hope of better helping the lives of the children at St. Jude.
Tiger Spirit Week teamed up with U of M’s Residence Life and Dining Services by hosting a poster making party at Centennial Place Monday. Additionally, the women’s basketball team will play ECU on Saturday, ending a festive week of Tiger blue and white.
“I hope students go out and support their team and cheer them onto victory,” Kingston said.
Kingston isn’t the only one who’s supporting Tiger basketball during this week. Aiden Willis, 21, junior at the U of M, plans on attending as well.
“Going to the men’s basketball game during Tiger Spirit week is something to look forward to,” Willis said. “The game is just that more special and filled with excitement.”
