Homecoming dance date shifts to accomodate Saturday game

This+year+the+Homecoming+game+will+take+place+one+Saturday+before+the+dance%2C+which+is+Oct.+11.

This year the Homecoming game will take place one Saturday before the dance, which is Oct. 11.

The Varsity Football team will play its annual Homecoming game on Oct. 4. However, unlike past years, the game will be held on a Saturday night, not a Friday. Because of this change, the Homecoming dance will be held the following weekend, on Oct. 11.

The game was originally scheduled to be on a Friday night, as in past years. Due to an accidental league scheduling conflict, the original opponent, San Jose High School, had to pull out of the game, forcing the coaching staff to find another challenger.

According to Head Coach Ronald Forbes, they “hand picked” the team’s new opponent, Ribet Academy, based on factors including school size, roster size, player stature, and season records.

“We did our research […] so we hope it translates into a competitive game,” Forbes said. “But we’ve never played them and we don’t have any film on them.”

Ribet Academy, a small private school located in Los Angeles, will send its players to the Bay Area over the weekend. The game will be played on a Saturday due to the distance the opposing team needs to travel.

Ordinarily, the Homecoming dance is held on Saturday night, following the Friday night game. After this year’s game was scheduled, Student Council worked with faculty and administration to plan the date of the dance.

Before Matriculation, class officers were leaning towards the latter. However, after talking to other students, they decided against that idea because the game’s outcome could possibly impact people’s moods, the later end time could extend past students’ curfews, and the timing would make the dance less formal.

“The original intent of holding the dance on Saturday after the game was to boost attendance at the game,” Spanish teacher and 2015 Class Dean Diana Moss said. “With the change, we really want to encourage all students to come out and support our fabulous football team.”

After school on Wednesday, Butch Keller, Head of the Upper School, approved moving the dance to Saturday, Oct.11.

 This piece was originally published in the pages of the Winged Post on August 29, 2014.