UC celebrates a century of Homecoming with a parade, pride and signature win over Texas Tech

Koah Wilson was up before the crack of dawn Saturday ready for the annual homecoming parade. 

But this year it was different for the third-year marketing major.  The University of Cincinnati was commemorating a century of welcoming back alumni to celebrate school spirit and Wilson was part of the school’s Homecoming Court. She had been nominated for the honor by the Lindner Business Honors Program.

“It feels like when you wake up on Christmas morning and you’re thinking, ‘It’s finally here,’” explains Wilson. “It’s Homecoming and all the waiting and anticipation is finally worth it. Homecoming was truly amazing.”

Wilson and members of the Homecoming Court were prominent in the parade which featured 15 float entries and attracted thousands of onlookers and well-wishers the morning of Oct. 24 along Calhoun Street and Clifton Avenue. The parade is organized each year by the Student Alumni Council (SAC) and the UC Alumni Association and was one of 25 events offered during a three-day Homecoming program.

Chi Omega and Sigma Chi was named 2026 Homecoming Float winner.

"What an incredible way to celebrate 100 years of UC Homecoming," says Jennifer Heisey, chief alumni offcer, UC Alumni Association. "It was wonderful to see so many Bearcats come together, reconnect with one another and celebrate the university they love. You could really feel the pride and enthusiasm that make this community so special."

“We have people from everywhere and today is a day to celebrate UC,” said Alexander Dorr, a fifth-year chemical engineering student, who watched the parade move along Clifton Avenue, and spoke with Fox 19 for a segment. 

Dorr stood with friends; a graduate who now lives in Houston and a current master’s degree student, Anna Chen, from Dayton. He says Homecoming offered an opportunity for everyone to be part of the UC experience.

Wilson’s parents and Bearcats alumni, Kelly and Kenneth Wilson, Sr. and older brother, Kenneth Jr., made it to the UC campus to cheer her on and to be part of a tailgate with UC President Neville Pinto. They then watched the Cincinnati Bearcats defeat then No. 8-ranked Texas Tech, 37-24. 

Thousands of Bearcats fans stormed the field of Nippert Stadium at the game’s conclusion and packed area bars and restaurants for an evening of celebration.

“For the first half of the game I got to sit with my family and it was a lot of fun. We are all Bearcats fans so we were really locked into the game and it was so exciting. I wasn’t sure if UC would be able to pull it off but they did and it was awesome.”

“I honestly forgot I was on the Homecoming Court for a bit because I was having so much fun with my family while watching the game and just being a Bearcat.”

She called it a ‘once-in-a-lifetime experience.’

Hailey Kelps, a fourth-year chemical engineering major, and Noah Levitt, a third-year finance and international business major, were named Homecoming Queen and King during the game’s halftime program. Kelps was nominated by the Cincinnati Panhellenic Council and the Phi Mu – Delta Zeta Chapter. Levitt was nominated by the Interfratenity Council.

Student Body Vice President Zohair Siddiqui was named Homecoming Prince and Kripa Kumaran, a third-year medical science major, was named Homecoming Princess. Other members of the Homecoming court included Wilson; Larissa Hemker, a fourth-year nursing student; Marissa Lay, a fourth-year business anlytics and business economics major; Adolphus Addison, a fifth-year student studying biomedical engineering; Will Geneovese, a fourth-year student studying business economics and finance; and Bryce Agypong, a third-year international business and operations management major.

“I love it at UC,” says Wilson, a resident advisor in Morgens Residence Hall. “I feel like there’s not a day that I can walk into the Lindner College of Business and not see a friendly face that I know. Someone is asking how are you doing today and how was that test. All of these little moments really brighten the day and create such great memories.”

Homecoming brought positive news coverage from Fox 19, WCPO, and Local 12.

See more photos of UC’s Homecoming celebration and its big win over Texas Tech.