Oct. 9, 2024
Ferris State Homecoming 2024 celebration welcomed alumni for campus activities, reunions and more
A teeming crowd enjoyed treats and good company as Ferris State University celebrated its 98th Homecoming with hundreds of alums returning to campus on a warm fall day amidst thousands of regular guests for Bulldog football contests.
Ferris Football alumnus and NCAA Division II record holder David Nelson was joined by his wife Tammy and daughter Maddison for the Bulldogs’ 55-13 Homecoming romp over Roosevelt of greater Chicago, Ill. Saturday, Oct. 5.
Dave Mikolajczak, a 1973 College of Business graduate and member of the Phi Eta Sigma freshman honor society, in his time, returned to Reunion Row for the Saturday, Oct. 5 event. He expressed regret that he could not join the “Golden Eagles” in his class the year before.
“I was at the 2022 Homecoming. That was the first in a while. This is fantastic. I just love having great people to talk to, great food, a great time,” Mikolajczak said. “I have run into a couple of people that I knew from my days on campus.”
Mikolajczak, a former Accounting student from Bay City, said the opportunity to look up former acquaintances was a real treat.
“We were able to share some experiences and reunite with people that you haven’t seen in a long time; I think that is the greatest part of this,” he said. “I loved it.”
Another David on the scene for the 55-13 dispatching of the Roosevelt University Lakers in the Illinois university’s first Great Lakes Intercollegiate Conference game was David Nelson, a former Bulldog football tailback who regularly attends games since the program made its surge to national prominence.
“Homecoming was always a big game that we wanted to win to help us get into the playoffs, but we also wanted to put on a good show for everyone who came,” Nelson said. “I try to get to as many games now as I can.”
Nelson still holds an NCAA Division II record, having returned 12 punts against Northern Michigan in a 47-0 rout of the Wildcats on Oct. 2, 1993. The Muskegon Oakridge graduate earned a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice and has enjoyed a long career with the North Muskegon Police Department.
“It is nice to get back with guys you have not seen in a while,” Nelson said. “My wife Tammy and daughter Maddison enjoyed football and added the Ferris hockey game against Miami of Ohio to our plans.”
Ferris’ undefeated and nationally fifth-ranked volleyball team swept Purdue Northwest in a late Saturday afternoon tilt before the Bulldog hockey team took their game against Miami in a shootout for the second straight evening, earning victories.