One of the milestones of football season has arrived: Homecoming Week, jam-packed full of crazy costumes and school spirit, is going full-swing. Even students who avoided dress-up days throughout the week tended to get into the spirit of things on Friday, though, when mums and garters of every shape, size and color took over. Although the ribboned accessories are not a requirement of any kind, many students enjoy this part of Homecoming Week the most of all.

    “I feel like it’s important to carry out the tradition,” junior Marissa Jones said. “It’s a great way to get the whole school on a spirit high and see everyone participating.”

    It seems that with each passing year the mums get just a little more extreme. Originally being just some ribbon and a flower, the mums have morphed into all-out glitz and glam. Many of the mums this year were accompanied by feather boas and LED lights. However, not all people choose to participate in the lavish style mums; for them, sticking with the very simple and traditional style was important.

    “It’s fun to see all of the different styles that people come up with,” junior Taryn Morman said. “But it’s become a competition between a lot of the girls; the mums keep getting bigger and bigger because everyone tries to outdo each other.”

    Many of the students find it hard to focus during homecoming week, and giant mums only add to the distraction. With the creations becoming more intricate every year, students tend to focus more on what the mums look like than what the formula for slope is during math class.

    “They are definitely a distraction,” senior Ryan Slatter said. “They make it hard to work in class, but it’s important to have school spirit. That’s why we put up with them.”