MSU President's Newspaper Column
July 29, 2023
Teamwork will make the combined Farmers Bowl/Homecoming celebration one to remember
Mark your calendar for Sept. 15-16, the weekend when Mayville State Homecoming meets Farmers Bowl for an epic Comets Family Reunion! While the idea has been tossed around from time to time, this will be the first-ever combined Farmers Bowl/Homecoming celebration. Though not originally planned this way, the change in conference football teams impacted the game schedule and made it necessary and possible to try this new format. It is sure to be a big weekend for Mayville State alumni and friends.
The Alumni Association Board and Farmers Bowl Auction Committee have lots of great plans underway and the various selection committees have done their work to name this year’s Homecoming honorees. The preparations and planning will all culminate in a time to recognize people for their achievements, a time to gather, a time to celebrate our agricultural way of life, and a time to reminisce and remember our roots.
The activities begin Friday, Sept. 15 with tours of Old Main. This will be a great time to see the building before the transformation that comes with a major $52 million renovation project begins.
This year’s Performing Arts Hall of Fame inductees Jeff Jacobsen (’74), Tim Thueson (’78), and Greta (Anderson) Paschke (’85, ’99) (posthumous) will be recognized at a program planned for 2 p.m. Sept. 15. It will be held in the Classroom Building Auditorium and include musical selections from Mayville State’s band and choir. Stay tuned, as there may be an alumni combo assembled for the occasion as well.
Friday’s events will include time for socializing and the Homecoming Awards Dinner, which will begin at 6 p.m. in the Campus Center Luckasen Room. The Athletic Hall of Fame and Athletic Coaches Hall of Fame inductees will be honored, as will the recipients of the Distinguished Alumni and Distinguished Service Awards.
The honorees will include:
- Athletic Hall of Fame inductees - the 1998 softball team, the 2001 baseball team, Dana (Wiseth) Dean (’03), and Rebecca (Hayden) Rue (’02);
- Athletic Coaches Hall of Fame inductees - Jay Frydenlund (’84) and Dave Nelson (’81);
- Distinguished Alumni Award recipient - Laurie (Thompson) Robinson Sammons (’74); and
- Distinguished Service Award recipient - Steve Bensen.
The Alumni Association board is inviting everyone to come by and see the beautiful Edson and Margaret Larson Alumni and Leadership Center and the lovely and meaningful gardens that surround the building starting at 8:30 a.m. on Sept. 16. This will be followed by the traditional Ceremony of Remembrance at the Military Honor Garden starting at 9:30 a.m.
A Hall of Fame on the 5s Reunion will start at 10 a.m. at the tailgating area northwest of Jerome Berg Hall. This gathering is meant to bring together Athletic Hall of Fame teams marking anniversaries in five-year increments since they played at Mayville State. The teams being honored this year are the 1958, 1963, 1988, 1993, and 1998 baseball teams and the 1997-98 men’s basketball team.
The parade will begin in downtown Mayville at 11 a.m. It will start just north of the Goose River Bank and follow Main Street through town, ending at Jerome Berg Field. We’re excited that we’ll be able to have our homecoming honorees be a part of the parade this year. Immediately following is the corn on the cob and hot dog feed and pre-game festival outside of Jerome Berg Field. There will be inflatable games for the kids and fun for all.
The Comets will host Waldorf in the Farmers Bowl/Homecoming football game starting at 2 p.m.
The grand finale for the weekend will be the much-anticipated Farmers Bowl Auction. Socializing and bidding on the silent auction will begin at 5 p.m., and the live auction will begin at 7 p.m. The auction was back last year after a short hiatus. People who attended had a great time socializing and bidding, all for a great cause, Mayville State University and its students. We look forward to making this year’s event even bigger and better.
A big celebration like this would not be possible without a lot of planning and effort put forth by many. We are extremely grateful for the alumni, friends, employees, students, financial supporters, and others who are coming together to make this happen. There is no doubt that teamwork makes the dream work. Go, Comets!
You can see all the details about the combined Farmers Bowl/Homecoming event at www.mayvillestate.edu/reunion.