Stetson University alum Michael Scott hadn’t been back on campus in three years and he couldn’t believe the changes when he arrived Friday, Nov. 4, for Homecoming Weekend.

“It’s amazing,” said Scott of Fayetteville, Georgia, who graduated in 1980 with a Bachelor’s of Art in History. “The transformation is unbelievable. It’s like a different place.”

Scott was signing in at the registration desk inside the new $7 million Rinker Welcome Center Friday morning while his wife Lisa and 17-year-old daughter, Emily, took a tour of campus. Emily has applied to attend Stetson next fall.

He was one of the hundreds of alumni arriving Friday for a busy weekend of activities, and he and his family planned to “do everything.” They’ll attend Hatter Howl on Friday night with comedian Daman Wayans Jr. and go to Saturday’s football game when the Hatters (4, 4) take on Marist College (4, 4) at 2 p.m. in Spec Martin Memorial Stadium.

The weekend weather – partly sunny with temperatures in the 70s on Saturday – should be perfect football weather, said Amy Dedes ’04, associate director of the Office of Alumni and Parent Engagement.

“We are looking to break our registration numbers this year,” Dedes said, adding that 800 alumni had registered on the Homecoming website by Thursday afternoon, about 200 more than last year at the same time.

Hotel rooms were booked up in DeLand for the weekend, she said, and alumni were staying in hotels from Deltona to Daytona Beach. She expected comedian and actor Damon Wayans Jr. to “be a great draw” for Hatter Howl on Friday at 8 p.m. in the Edmunds Center, which might be filled to its capacity of 1,500 people.

“We think it (the Comedy Hour) will be the biggest attendance we’ve had for Homecoming,” Dedes said. “To have the ability to bring in someone of his caliber is just great. We’ve gotten great feedback about him.”

Wayans starred in the movies, Let’s Be Cops, and The Other Guys, and the TV shows, New Girl, and Happy Ending. He will perform following the Homecoming Pep Rally at 7:30 p.m. in the Edmunds Center. A carnival, live music and food trucks begin at 6 p.m. on Rinker Field. And after Wayans’ show, the crowd can head outside to Rinker Field for the lighting of the bonfire — a tradition that dates to the 1950s – and a fireworks show at 9 p.m.

Other weekend highlights include:

• Stetson President Wendy B. Libby, Ph.D., will present Alumni and University Awards, and give a university update at her annual President’s Champagne Breakfast on Saturday, Nov. 5, at 9 a.m. in the Vera Lea Rinker Native Plant Garden outside the President’s Home. Registration is required.

• 

  A Celebration of Dr. T. Wayne Bailey will take place in the Stetson Room of the Carlton Union Building on Saturday, Nov. 5, at 6 p.m. Bailey, a political science professor, retired from Stetson in May after teaching for 53 years. Tickets for the dinner are sold out, but people still can register to attend a free reception for him from 6-7 p.m. Saturday outside the CUB, Dedes said.

• Presenting a $10,000 check for the Greenfeather Grant to Stewart-Marchman-Act Behavioral Healthcare during half time at Saturday’s football game. The Greenfeather tradition pits students against each other to compete for a trophy while raising money for a local charity. This year, it will pay for a new fitness trail at Stewart-Marchman-Act in DeLand.

A complete list of events can be found on the Homecoming website. Alumni are encouraged to register for reunion events and purchase tickets on the website. Alumni who stop by the registration desk inside the Rinker Welcome Center will receive a free Stetson T-shirt and lanyard.

Alum Scott, who belonged to the Sigma Nu fraternity when he attended Stetson, said he visited campus three years ago for the fraternity’s 100^th anniversary celebration. Since then, Stetson Hall was demolished to make way for the new Rinker Welcome Center. The print shop moved and the entrance road behind DeLand Hall is now gone.

“The campus has changed a lot. It’s a beautiful place,” he said. “I hope my daughter goes here.”

-Cory Lancaster