Once again, the big fall attraction at Kettle Run has come to town: Homecoming. It was held on Saturday, September 17th, with the accompanying football game on the 16th. It might be just a one-night dance, but the whole week was filled with fun activities. Spirit week started off strong, featuring some new themes. The themes were Adam Sandler, Hawaiian, Country vs Country Club, Gold Out, and Class Colors. These fun days got everyone ready and excited for the events at the end of the week. 

On the 14th, the powder puff football game was held. This consists of female students playing flag football and male students cheering them on. This year, teams of 20 from each grade competed. The coaches of each team were current Kettle Run football players from each grade. The junior and senior teams were the last two standing, and their game went into double overtime. The seniors finally took control and won! This is the second year in a row that the class of 2023 has won. 

One of the most entertaining events of homecoming week took place during fourth period on the 16th. This year’s pep rally was very high energy. It was held inside the gym, like normal, but was a new experience for everyone but the seniors. This is because Covid-19 protocols forced the pep rally to be held at the football stadium last year. Each grade rallied, yelling out chants at each other and getting loud to support their classmates participating in each game. After several games, the administration deemed the seniors winners and they won the spirit stick. This is also the second time the class of 2023 has won the pep rally, as they upset the whole school their freshman year.

Next on the long list of homecoming activities was the parade and tailgate. The parade consisted of several floats. These floats ranged from clubs to fall sports teams to the homecoming court. Each float was well decorated and had members on it. Candy was tossed out to the little kids along the parade route through the student parking lot. Immediately after was the tailgate. Several clubs set up booths selling different items, such as cookies, root beer floats, and pizza rolls. There was also a moon bounce, DJ, and food trucks. Parents and students enjoyed this time leading up to the big game. 

The homecoming football game was against Riverside High School. Last year, the Cougars beat Riverside 41-21. This year, Kettle Run put on an even more impressive showing, crushing the Rams 34-0. The energy in the cage was high as students cheered on the shutout. Quarterback Abram Chumley broke the single game completion percentage record, as he completed 15/16 passes. VMI commit Jordan Tapscott also put on a show, as he now holds three school records. This includes career receptions, career receiving yards, and career receiving touchdowns. He holds the “Receiving Triple Crown” in Kettle Run’s record books.

Lastly was the actual main event: Homecoming. The theme of the dance was Old Hollywood. The dance was from 7-11, and had a red carpet, 360 photo booth, DJ, and decorations. This year it was held inside the gym like usual. This was also a new experience for most of the school, as last year it was held outside behind the bleachers at the Cougar stadium. During Homecoming, the court was announced. This is a male and female student from each grade voted in. The senior court is the only one with more than two. It consists of eight students, and from those eight a homecoming king and queen are voted for. The 2022 homecoming Queen is Kaley Frazier and the homecoming King is Carter Simpson.

Overall homecoming week was filled with many fun activities. It was exciting to see everything fully back to normal. Happy Homecoming!