Homecoming outfits are the first thing on the group chat agenda once October hits, and this year the calendar gives almost nobody a bye week. Georgetown opens the season in DC with Fall Fest on Friday, October 2. North Carolina Central runs its Ultimate Homecoming Experience from October 2 through October 10, closing with the Eagles hosting William and Mary. Morehouse takes on Savannah State on October 10, and Atlanta stays in homecoming mode the following week as Spelman programming and AUC street closures run October 14 through October 19. Tennessee State takes over Jefferson Street October 15 through October 18.
Then comes the heaviest weekend of the season. Howard’s homecoming week runs October 11 through October 18, with the Bison hosting Morehouse on October 17 at Greene Stadium, which means Howard, Morehouse and Spelman alumni all land in DC at once. Jackson State hosts Florida A&M the same day. Hampton follows with a full week in the 757 from October 18 through October 25. FAMU’s homecoming week runs October 19 through October 23 with the game against Arkansas Pine Bluff on October 24. And North Carolina A&T closes the season with the 100th Greatest Homecoming on Earth, October 25 through November 1, with the Aggies hosting Elon on October 31.
That is five straight weekends, which is why homecoming outfits get planned in September and not the Thursday before. Here is how the looks break down by moment.
The tailgate is where school colors do the most work, and the Hampton look is the blueprint. A cropped Hampton tee, royal blue parachute pants with a drawstring waist, white runners and a blue Telfar circle bag. It reads as school spirit without reading as a costume, and the parachute pant is the single most forgiving piece you can wear on a field for six hours. Gold hoops, an H pendant and a navy cap with the script logo finish it. This is the look you can walk in all day and still photograph well in at sunset.
The A&T look is built for GHOE, and it should be, because a centennial homecoming is not the weekend to underdress. A navy and gold varsity jacket with the leather sleeves over a cropped A&T tee, light wash wide leg denim with cutouts at the knee, grey and gold Dunks and a yellow Hermès Kelly. The Kelly is what turns a school jacket into an outfit. Aviators and a gold Aggie cap keep it grounded. If you are heading to Greensboro on October 31, this is the reference.
FAMU goes the athleisure route and still lands. Green sweatpants with the rattler and the 1887 print, a white ribbed crop tee, orange and green Nike Dunks, a green bucket hat and a white Hermès Evelyne. The gold F pendant is the detail people will ask about. Sweats at homecoming only work when everything around them is sharp, and the white bag against all that green is what does it here.
The Howard look is the one that will get screenshotted. A navy Howard crop tee, black parachute pants with the zippers running down the leg, red fringe mules and a red Hermès Constance. The sequin H cap and the pink and white cat eye sunglasses keep it from tipping too serious. Fringe mules on a campus lawn is a choice, so save this one for the night events or the game day where you are parking close.
Spelman is the softest of the seven and the most wearable. A cream cable knit varsity cardigan with the blue S and the campus gate knit into it, a Spelman crop tee underneath, a denim maxi skirt with the wrap and slit, white high tops and a distressed denim Telfar shopper. Pink shield sunglasses do the rest. Denim on denim reads collegiate rather than costume, and the high tops mean you can actually walk the yard.
Georgetown is the DC entry, and it is the preppiest of the set. A navy blazer with gold buttons and the G crest over a white hoodie, paint splatter wide leg jeans, grey Sacai LDWaffles and a grey Chanel Boy bag. Hoodie under a blazer is the trick that makes the whole thing feel young instead of stuffy, and it is the right temperature call for the first weekend in October.
Then there is Sunday. The AKA brunch look is the dressed up end of the weekend and the strongest argument in this whole set that homecoming outfits should not all be sneakers. A pink blazer with the crest pin over a pink corset, a pleated denim mini, pink patent Louboutin pumps, green AKA crew socks and a hand painted Birkin in green and pink. The socks with the heels are the part that makes it. Swap the letters for your own and the formula holds.
A few things that will save your weekend regardless of which look you pull from. October in Greensboro, Durham and DC is not October in Tallahassee, so check the forecast before you commit to a crop top. Grass eats a stiletto, so if the look calls for a heel, make it a block, a wedge or a mule you can carry. And the bag matters more than anything else you own at homecoming, because it is the piece that shows up in every photo and it is the piece you will still be carrying at 1 a.m.
