HOMECOMING 2011: Pajamarino, tailgate and football

by Dave Jones
September 29, 2011

PREVIEW DAY

Homecoming 2011 isn’t just about our alumni coming home. This year we will also host thousands of people whom we hope will call UC Davis home in the future.

The prospective students and their parents are coming for Preview Day, 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 15. The homecoming football game (against the University of Texas, San Antonio) is scheduled the same day, with kickoff at 2 p.m.

Preview Day visitors are being advised to use the north entry parking garage. Overflow parking will be in Lot 25 in front of the Activities and Recreation Center.

More about Preview Day.

The Aggie athletics catchphrase tells us “The Blue Is in You!” To this we add “And You and You and You and You” as a shout-out to staff, faculty, alumni and the entire Davis community to get involved in Homecoming 2011.

Homecoming Week culminates in the football game against the University of Texas, San Antonio, Saturday, Oct. 15. Kickoff is set for 2 p.m. The Cal Aggie Alumni Association is holding a tailgate party before the game, for members and nonmembers.

The 99th annual Pajamarino will be held Friday, Oct. 14, and will be followed by an alumni social in downtown Davis.

The Pajamarino originated when pajama-clad students snuck out of their dormitories to greet alumni as they arrived by train for homecoming 1912. Most alumni do not come by train anymore, but the Pajamarino tradition lives on — and, if the Pajamarinos of recent years are any indication, we can expect to see at least a few folks in PJs.

“Gunrock will definitely be in pajamas,” said Jennifer Thayer, assistant director of programs for the Cal Aggie Alumni Association. She said members of the Cal Aggie Marching Band-uh and the Student Alumni Association often wear PJs to Pajamarino, and so do children.

The Student Alumni Association is presenting this year’s Pajamarino. It starts at 5:45 p.m. at the Amtrak station, where Second and H streets come together.

The entertainment program includes the band-uh and the spirit squad, student drummers (Bakuhatsu Taiko Dan) and student a cappella singers (three groups: the Spokes, Afterglow and Liquid Hotplates).

The Sacramento Kings lion mascot, Slamson, is expected to meet up with Gunrock at the Pajamarino.

The Pajamarino program also includes games and crafts, face painting, prizes and food — all for free.

At 7:30 p.m., the Cal Aggie Alumni Association hosts the Pajamarino Alumni Social, with appetizers, at the Our House restaurant and lounge, 808 Second St., at G Street, a block west of the train station. The cost is $5 for CAAA members, $7 for nonmembers. For more information, contact Alex Hanway ’04 at or (530) 752-0287 or aphanway@ucdavis.edu.

Registration and more information.

Football Saturday

• Tailgate party — Food, fun and Aggie camaraderie, outside Aggie Stadium, 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. $13 for members of the Cal Aggie Alumni Association or the Parents Association, $17 for nonmembers. The price includes lunch from Buckhorn Catering: barbecued tri-tip and chicken sandwiches, vegetarian sandwiches, salad and baked beans, and a drink.

Tickets are available online. The CAAA suggests that people make their purchases by Thursday, Oct. 13, for guaranteed meals. Tickets will be sold at the tailgate only as long as food is still available. Tailgate tickets do not include game admission.

The UC Davis Emeriti and Retirees associations have arranged for a homecoming package that includes the tailgate and a game ticket: $23 for members, $27 for nonmembers. Click here to make your purchase.

Questions about the emeriti-retirees homecoming package? Contact Sue Barnes, program manager, (530) 752-5182 or slbarnes@ucdavis.edu.

• UC Davis Aggies vs. UT San Antonio Roadrunners — 2 p.m., Aggie Stadium. Tickets are available at the UC Davis box office, Freeborn Hall, (530) 752-1915, and via Tickets.com.

Other Homecoming Week activities

• Activities Fair — 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 12, Quad. Student organizations and campus units are welcome to participate; the registration deadline is 4 p.m. Wednesday (Oct. 5).

• Women’s soccer vs. Pacific — 3 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 13, Aggie Field, east of the Activities and Recreation Center and south of Lot 25. Free homecoming T-shirts for the first 250 people who come to the game. Tickets. Free admission for staff and faculty with UC Davis identification cards.

• San Francisco Symphony — 8 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 13, Jackson Hall, Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts. Tickets and more information.

• Aggie Pride Friday (Oct. 14) — Wear Aggie Blue at any Silo restaurant, the ARC Starbucks, Scrubs Cafe or Bio Brew and receive a coupon for something free.