(Live stream: http://livestream.com/fresnostate)

Fresno State’s Homecoming Week reaches its crescendo this weekend starting with a new event today (Oct. 9): Top Dog Talks will be held 9 a.m.-11 a.m. at the North Gym 118, featuring four of the 14 outstanding alumni being honored this year.

Friday night, the Fresno State Alumni Association’s Top Dog Alumni Awards Gala will be at 5:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 9 at the Save Mart Center.

Armen Derian Bacon, author and education administrator, will be honored as the 2015 distinguished alumna for Fresno State. Bacon, along with 13 other outstanding alumni, will be honored for her professional accomplishments that include service to the community, professional achievement in education and nonprofit administration, and success as the published author of two books.

She will be part of the new Top Dogs Talks program Friday morning. Modeled after the   renowned TED Talks and designed to showcase this year’s Top Dog recipients, speakers will share their passions, ideas and motivations in the form of short powerful talks to the campus community, students, their family and friends.

The speakers will give 15-minute presentations on an engaging topic of the speaker’s choosing. In addition to Bacon, the other Top Dogs participating are Marvin Meyers, Robert Aguilar and Judge Mark Anthony Scott.  

Top Dog Talks will also be streamed live at http://www.gobulldogs.com/videos/.

Also, a number of homecoming events will be held across campus including the Faculty and Staff Red Friday Homecoming Spirit Rally for employees at 9 a.m. in the University Student Union Pavilion. The winner of the Bulldogs Office Decorating Contest, sponsored by the Fresno State Staff Assembly, will be announced and the Bulldogs Spirit Team will be performing with the Bulldog Beat band.

On Saturday, Homecoming kicks into higher gears starting with Women’s volleyball taking on San Diego State at 1 p.m. in the Save Mart Center. The team has won four of their last six games, including a win at home against Utah State on Oct. 1.

Four separate tailgate events will set the stage for the homecoming football game against Utah State on Saturday night:

  • The ASI Student tailgate will be in the Red Lot Space #57 at 5:30 p.m.;
  • The College of Science and Math Homecoming BBQ will be in the Science II Courtyard at 4:30 p.m. for social and 5:30 p.m. for dinner. Current and previous faculty members, alumni, current students and supporters of the college are welcomed for a BBQ dinner.
  • The University Courtyard Homecoming Meetup will be from 4:15 – 5:15 p.m. on the University Courtyard lawn before joining up with at Homecoming Student Tailgate
  • The Homecoming Student Tailgate will begin at 5:30 p.m. on the Beiden Field Concourse (across from the Bulldog Stadium Student Entrance). With their student ID card, students will receive a free Homecoming T-shirt, food, pom-poms, mocktails and gear up for the game at the Ultimate Fan Zone.

And no Fresno State football game is complete without the Bulldog Marching Band, which will perform with 70 members of an alumni band Saturday morning for a special Homecoming collaboration. They will perform music from the Broadway musical “Wicked” at the tailgates beginning at 6 p.m., followed by the pre-game show at 7 p.m.

The football team will host Utah State at Bulldog Stadium with kickoff at 7:30 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at theUSU Information Center or online atwww.gobulldogs.com.

On Sunday (Oct. 11), the Second Annual Red Wave Run will provide a family-friendly conclusion to Fresno State’s Homecoming Week beginning at 7:15 a.m. Presented by the Fresno State Track and Field program, the race features a 5K run and two kids races with both finishing in the Bulldog Stadium. See http://bit.ly/FSN-RedWaveRun15.

For more information, see the Homecoming Week schedule: http://www.fresnostate.edu/studentaffairs/homecoming/events/index.html

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