Binghamton University hosted its annual tailgate party outside the Events Center to celebrate alumni weekend and get fans excited for the men’s soccer homecoming game against Vermont on Saturday afternoon.

The Alumni Association organized the event which drew a crowd of hundreds.

Alumni Association President Ray Russolillio, class of ‘80, said the tailgate has grown in size since it began several years ago.

“I’ve made a lot of friends over the years, folks who graduated in the ’60s all the way to folks who graduated a year or two ago,” Russolillio said. “The tailgate party’s kinda the signature event, we added it four, five years ago and it’s just gotten bigger and better every year.”

Tailgaters barbequed, played pickup sports, socialized and browsed tables that were set up to represent campus organizations like Hillel, Harpur’s Ferry and WHRW.

The University sold BU apparel inside the Events Center and offered free food at locations throughout the tailgate.

University President Harvey Stenger joined tailgaters for his first homecoming as BU president.

“I’ve never been to homecoming before, so I wanted to see it firsthand and meet a lot of our alums, students, and our faculty and staff,” Stenger said.

First-year graduate student Justin Pierce led the Hooligans, a booster group for BU sports teams, in their support for the men’s soccer team.

“I like to get more fans out because we normally don’t get so many, and we want them to see how fun it is and what they’re missing out on,” said Pierce, who is studying student affairs administration.

Visiting alumni also attended the tailgate.

“I came out because I miss Bing,” said Dani-Leigh Ross, class of ‘12. “Being in the real world is nice, but coming back is cool because you get to see friends and how much the campus has changed.“

Representatives of the Alumni Association offered the event as a chance to see old faces, as well as a networking opportunity for BU graduates.

Jared Kirschenbaum, a former president of the Student Association and a member of the Alumni Board of Directors, was promoting Bearcats of the Last Decade (BOLD), a group dedicated to connecting BU graduates of the last 10 years with one another.

“It’s all about providing services and career networking,” said Kirschenbaum, class of ‘11. “And it’s social, about having a good time in the community and New York City for people that just graduated within the last 10 years.”

Daniel Palhamus, associate director of alumni relations, said homecoming is an opportunity to look back on time spent both on and off campus.

“It’s about seeing the University, but also about seeing the city; seeing favorite places, pubs and restaurants,” Palhamus said. “We want people to come back and relive their memories.”

Current students, such as Tom Sheehan, were happy to see alumni return for the weekend.

“I like that all the alumni come back,” said Sheehan, a sophomore double-majoring in political science and economics. “It means that they love us.”