Homecoming is a fall tradition at American high schools and colleges that welcomes former students home for a football game. It usually falls in September or October and fills a whole week: spirit days, a pep rally, a parade, the game, the crowning of the homecoming court and, at high schools, a semi-formal dance. It’s more casual than prom and open to every grade.
On this page
Ask three people what homecoming is and you’ll get three answers. A freshman will tell you it’s a dance. A parent will tell you it’s a football game. Someone who graduated twenty years ago will tell you it’s the one weekend a year they go back. They’re all right. Homecoming is a fall tradition at American high schools and colleges, built around welcoming former students home for a football game, and over a century it has grown into a whole week of school spirit, a parade, a royal court and, at high schools, one of the biggest dances of the year. Here’s what happens, when it happens, where it came from and how it differs from prom, plus how groups plan the ride.
Homecoming at a glance
| What it is | A fall tradition that welcomes alumni back for a home football game, with a week of school spirit around it |
|---|---|
| When | September or October, on a home game weekend |
| Who takes part | Every grade, 9 through 12, plus alumni, families and the town |
| The big moments | Spirit week, the pep rally, the parade, the game, the homecoming court and the dance |
| Dress code for the dance | Semi-formal |
| Also called | Hoco |
What happens during homecoming week
At most high schools, homecoming isn’t one night. It’s a week that builds to a weekend. The details change from school to school, but the shape is familiar from coast to coast:
- Spirit week. Each day has a theme, like pajama day, twin day or decades day, ending with school colors before the game. Classes compete for the most spirit.
- The pep rally. The whole school packs the gym for the band, the cheerleaders, the team and a lot of noise.
- The parade. Floats built by each class, the marching band, the team and the homecoming court, who traditionally ride in convertibles with the top down, waving to the town.
- The game. Friday night lights, with alumni back in the stands. At many schools the homecoming king and queen are crowned at halftime.
- The dance. Usually the next evening, often in the school gym or cafeteria, in semi-formal dress. Friend groups meet for photos and dinner first.
Before any of it come the asks. A “hoco proposal” is how a lot of students invite a date: a poster, a pun, or a pizza with “HOCO?” spelled out in pepperoni. Plenty of students skip the date and go with friends, which is part of what makes homecoming feel easier than prom.
Texas does it bigger: mums and garters
In Texas, homecoming means mums. A mum started life as a simple chrysanthemum corsage that a boy gave his date for the game, a custom that came south from Missouri and reached Texas by the 1930s. From the 1970s on, Texans kept adding: school-colored ribbons, bells, charms, names and glitter, until the biggest mums hung past the knees. Boys wear a matching garter on the arm. Today the flowers are silk, and every school has its own colors and styles. If your group is wearing them, they take up real room in a car, so leave space.
When is homecoming?
Homecoming happens in the fall, usually in September or October, on a weekend when the football team plays at home. Each school picks its own date, so it can land anywhere from early September to early November, but most fall in late September and October.
- The game is usually on Friday night at high schools and on Saturday at colleges.
- The dance is often the next evening, though some schools hold it the same week or the weekend after.
- Spirit week runs through the school days before the game.
- Winter homecoming: a few schools hold a second homecoming, or their only one, around basketball season.
Check the school calendar early, because the weekends fill fast. September and October are also peak wedding season, so on a homecoming Saturday the limos and party buses are in demand for weddings as well as dances.
Where homecoming comes from
Homecoming began at American colleges in the early 1900s, as a way to bring graduates back to campus for a big game. Three universities claim the first one, and each has a case:
| Year | School | What happened |
|---|---|---|
| 1909 | Baylor University, Texas | A two-day “Home-Coming” in November with a bonfire, a pep rally, a parade and a football game. The earliest on record, but it wasn’t held again until 1915 and became a yearly tradition only in 1934. |
| 1910 | University of Illinois | Two seniors, Clarence Williams and Elmer Ekblaw, built a homecoming around the Illinois–Chicago game on October 15. Illinois has held one every year since, except 1918, during the flu pandemic. |
| 1911 | University of Missouri | Athletic director Chester Brewer invited alumni to “come home” for the game against Kansas. The NCAA credits Missouri with the first homecoming, and so do Jeopardy! and Trivial Pursuit. |
Whoever was first, the idea spread fast. Colleges added parades, bonfires, decorated houses and royal courts, and high schools took the tradition up and made the dance a centerpiece. More than a century later, it’s still one of the most distinctly American weeks of the school year.
What homecoming really means
Strip away the floats and the corsages and homecoming is about exactly what the name says: coming home. It started as a way to bring graduates back, and that’s still at its heart. On homecoming Friday, the class of 1985 is in the stands next to this year’s freshmen, and a whole town turns out for its team.
For students, it’s more personal. For a freshman, it’s the first high school dance. For a senior, it’s the last homecoming, and the start of a year of lasts. It’s the week the whole school, not just the seniors, gets dressed up, cheered, crowned and photographed. That’s why parents care about it as much as students do, and why the photos before the dance matter so much.
Homecoming vs prom: what’s the difference?
Both are school dances with a king and a queen, but they’re different nights, not a big one and a small one:
| Homecoming | Prom | |
|---|---|---|
| When | Fall: September or October | Spring: mostly April and May |
| Who goes | Every grade, 9 through 12 | Mostly juniors and seniors, and their dates |
| Built around | A football game and a week of school spirit | The dance itself |
| Dress code | Semi-formal: cocktail dresses, suits, or a shirt and tie | Formal: gowns and tuxedos |
| Where | Often the school gym or cafeteria | Usually off campus: a hotel ballroom, a banquet hall or a venue |
| Royalty | Homecoming king and queen, often crowned at the game | Prom king and queen, crowned at the dance |
| Who you go with | Friend groups are the norm; a date is optional | More couples, often in a group |
| The ride | Often there and back, with photos and dinner first | A bigger plan: photos, a send-off, dinner, the arrival and after-prom |
The short way to put it: homecoming is the whole school’s night, and prom is the seniors’ night. For the spring side, see prom limos and party buses.
What people hire for homecoming
Homecoming groups tend to be bigger and more casual than prom groups, and the ride is part of the fun. These are the usual choices, by group size:
| Group | What fits | Why it works |
|---|---|---|
| 2–6 | A luxury SUV like a Cadillac Escalade | Simple, comfortable and roomy enough for dresses and mums |
| 8–10 | A stretch limousine | The classic dance-night ride, in black, white or pink |
| 10–14 | A Sprinter party van | Lights, sound and room to move |
| 14–20 | An SUV limo, like a Hummer or an Escalade | The biggest arrival in the parking lot |
| 15–40 | A party bus | The whole friend group in one ride |
| The court | A convertible or a classic car | Top down for the parade |
A party bus for the whole group
Homecoming is the night friend groups go big: twenty, thirty, sometimes half the team and their friends. A party bus keeps everyone together from the photos to the dance and back home, with the lights and the music already on. Not sure what size to book? Here’s how many people fit in a party bus.
A Sprinter for a smaller crew
For ten to fourteen, a Mercedes Sprinter party van packs much of a party bus’s fun into a smaller size that’s easy to park outside a house or a restaurant: leather seating, lights, sound and room to move.
A limo for the entrance
Nothing says dance night like a limo pulling up to the school. A classic stretch limousine seats eight to ten. A pink limo is a homecoming favorite with groups of friends. And an SUV limo, like a Hummer or an Escalade, takes a bigger group, up to about twenty.
An SUV for a couple or a small group
Not every homecoming needs a limo. For a couple or a small group of friends, a chauffeured luxury SUV is simple and comfortable, with room for dresses, suits and mums, and it looks great in the photos.
A convertible for the court
If you’re on the homecoming court, or organizing the parade, the tradition is a convertible with the top down, so the whole town can see the king, the queen and their court as they pass. A classic car, like the 1965 Ford Mustang GT convertible at the top of this page, makes it a parade to remember, and it’s just as good for photos before the dance.
Planning the homecoming ride
A homecoming booking is usually simpler than prom, but the same few things make it go smoothly:
- Book as soon as you know the date. Schools across an area hold homecoming on the same handful of fall Saturdays, and weddings want the same cars, so the best vehicles go first.
- Count heads honestly. Groups change until the last week as friends join and couples split. Book for the number who will really ride, and check the seats against the group.
- Plan the night as one block. Photos (they always run long, because every parent wants one more), dinner, the dance and the ride home. Most vehicles have a minimum booking of a few hours anyway, so use them. Here’s why minimum hours exist.
- Pick one parent to organize. Usually one parent books, shares the pickup addresses and times, and is the contact on the night. Often a parent signs the booking and is there at pickup.
- Agree on the rules. With a group under 21, the night is alcohol-free, on board and off. Set the drop-off time around curfew.
- Leave room for the extras. Corsages, boutonnieres and, in Texas, mums and garters all need space and a gentle hand.
- Plan the tip. Check whether gratuity is in your quote. If it isn’t, here’s how much to tip.
Questions people ask
What is homecoming in high school?
A fall tradition built around a home football game: a week of spirit days, a pep rally, a parade, the game, the crowning of the homecoming court and a semi-formal dance, usually the night after the game.
What does hoco mean?
Hoco is short for homecoming. A “hoco proposal” is a creative way of asking someone to the dance.
Is homecoming only for seniors?
No. Every grade can go, from freshmen to seniors, and alumni come back for the game. Prom is the dance that’s mostly for juniors and seniors.
Do you need a date for homecoming?
No. Lots of students go with a group of friends, and the group photos are half the fun.
What do you wear to homecoming?
Semi-formal: a cocktail or knee-length dress, a suit, or dress pants with a shirt and tie. It’s dressier than a school day and less formal than prom.
Is homecoming bigger than prom?
Prom is the bigger, more formal night. Homecoming is bigger on school spirit: it involves the whole school and the town, not just the dance.
When is homecoming?
In the fall, usually in September or October, on a home football weekend. The school calendar will have the date.
Can you rent a limo or a party bus for homecoming?
Yes, and homecoming weekends are among the busiest of the fall. Party buses, Sprinter vans, stretch limos and SUV limos are the most popular choices. Book early, and plan the photos, dinner and the dance into one booking.