With a rare shot at a football victory in sight, the university community and returning alumni are geared up for a jam-packed Homecoming weekend planned by the Alumni Association and the Office of Advancement.

The plans for this year’s Homecoming have been in the works for months, according to Homecoming Chair Ana-Alicia Siqueiros (COL ’11). “We have been planning elements and working parts of [Homecoming] since last spring,” Siqueiros said.

Planning Homecoming 2010 was a collaborative effort among student groups and student leaders such as Fitz Lufkin (COL ’11), Katy Lewandowski (NHS ’12), Ryan Gavigan (COL ’11) and Siqueiros.

Headlining the homecoming sporting events this year is the Saturday football game between the Hoyas and the Holy Cross Crusaders, scheduled to take place at 2 p.m. on Harbin Multi Sport Facility. The 23rd meeting between the two teams, the contest will also serve as the Patriot League opener.

Before the matchup, the Homecoming tailgate will feature Jack the Bulldog, barbecue, pizza, ice cream, a Sweetgreen sweet flow-mobile and beverages.

The game against the Crusaders, however, is not the only sporting event of the weekend. The Hilltop Challenge Homecoming 5K will start at 9 a.m. Saturday, beginning and ending in Red Square, according to running club member Sharanbir Grewal (SFS ’13).

Homecoming also gives students the opportunity to attend various interdisciplinary lectures. Thursday marked the start of the lecture series with “The Economics of Russia’s Modernization Project” at noon. Later that day was a theological lecture given by Dean Chester Gillis in Riggs Library, titled “Cardinal Newman Today: Issues of Faith and Culture”; the event featured Fr. John O’Malley, S.J., a professor in the theology department.

The university will also be highlighting the artistic talent of its faculty and staff throughout Homecoming. To celebrate campus musicians, four student a cappella groups will perform this afternoon on White-Gravenor Patio, followed by the Battle of the Guild of Bands tonight on Copley Lawn. Dance groups will also showcase their talents this afternoon, with performances by Irish Step Dancing, Ritmo y Sabor, GU Step Team and Hawaii Club.

Stretching the Homecoming celebrations to the National Mall, the department of art and art history is sponsoring an exhibit at the National Gallery of Art titled “Edvard Munch: Understanding His Master Prints” that runs until the end of October. Closer to the Hilltop, an ongoing Art Faculty Exhibition in the Walsh building’s Spagnuolo Gallery includes a wide array of faculty work, in such media as drawing, painting, sculpture, photography and video.

To kick off Traditions Day, the pep band and cheerleaders will lead Hoyas in the fight song in front of the John Carroll statue at noon today. Following the song, a Traditions Day Mass in Dahlgren Chapel will pay tribute to the university’s Jesuit roots.

And Homecoming has proved a perennially popular event for current students.

“I had fun last year despite the rain and [football] loss,” Evan Israel (SFS ’13) said. “I enjoy the atmosphere of the entire school being out celebrating together.”