Hobo Day - Current Hobo Day Events

Current Hobo Day Events

The events throughout the week, named Hobo Week, are facilitated by South Dakota State University's Program Council (UPC). One of 12 coordinators selected to be on UPC is the Grand Pooba. Whomever is Grand Pooba is in charge of selecting and maintaining a committee of students to plan, promote, and execute Hobo Week. Campus organizations and residence halls compete throughout the week for spirit points. Most of the events during the week, excluding the Cavorts Talent Show, involve a spirit point aspect. Points are awarded to teams for participation and winning events. The score is kept in the entrance way of the University Student Union.

One Month Club: Males grow their beards out and females grow out their leg hair. The male and female with the longest hair wins.

Paint the Town Various businesses in Brookings volunteer to have their windows painted, each team is assigned a window to paint and a winner is chosen based on creativity, theme, and school spirit.

Scavenger Hunt Each team is given a list of things to find from around campus. Examples include a bag of the Grand Pooba's favorite candy, and an SDSU pin.

Bum Olympics Teams from various campus organizations and residence halls compete in a variety of "hobo" athletics.

Miss Homelycoming This event allows the male population to compete in a beauty pageant dressed as girls. Talent, swimsuit, and interview are some of the judged categories.

Residence Hall Lobby Decorating Each of the residence halls on campus decorate their lobby, usually in full glory.

Bum-A-Meal Students sign up to participate in a meal one evening of the Hobo week. When they arrive for the event, they are given an address and go to eat at a home in the Brookings community.

Hobos 'CAN' do it and Hobos vs. Hunger Organizations bring all of the aluminum cans that they have been saving up to donate them to the can drive. Hobos vs. Hunger is a canned food drive that channels the energy of the week into a good cause.

Bonfire Traditionally, the Thursday night before the game, students flock out to the "Backyard" for a large bonfire. The local fire department has a large presence at this event! A concert often occurs before or after the bonfire.

Cavorts Talent Show The student talent show takes place the Friday night before Hobo Day. Cavorts, which often sells out in advance, is held in the Performing Arts Center (PAC). The acts performing go through an audition process much earlier in the semester and are selected to perform in the show by student leaders. Once chosen, the acts compete for cash prizes at the actual event. Popular faculty and staff are often chosen to judge acts based on various attributes. In 2010, an audience-voted Fan Favorite prize was introduced to accompany the traditional judge-voted first, second, and third place prizes.

Hobo Day 5k The morning of Hobo Day, there is a 5k sponsored by the local running group, Prairie Striders.