UT Martin welcomed over 400 people to their campus to partake in fun activities around campus from Saturday, Oct. 17 to Sunday, Oct. 18 in Martin, Tennessee.

This family weekend’s schedule differed slightly from years past due to its scheduling differences, especially with how close it was between fall break and homecoming.

“This was the best weekend to do family weekend. And because it was coming off fall break…we just kind of cut the Friday night activities to focus on Saturday and Sunday because students were just coming back to campus on Wednesday,” said John Abel, the Assistant Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs and Dean of Students.

The weekend kicked off with registration and a donut breakfast with the deans in the Paul Meek Library at 9 a.m. Saturday. Families across Tennessee and the country quickly filed in to visit their loved ones at UT Martin.

Megan Bosch, a senior veterinary technology major, was accompanied by her family that traveled all the way down from Amanda, Ohio, for this weekend at UT Martin.

Bosch chose to attend UT Martin because she thought its veterinary programs were a good suit for her even though the school was far from home. When asked how she felt about their daughter attending an out-of-state school, Julie Bosch, her mother was confident she would thrive in West Tennessee.

“We knew she could do it. She makes friends easily, so I knew it definitely would not be a problem for her,” Bosch said.

Briana Banes, a junior nursing major from Jackson. Brandi Carter, her mother, enjoyed getting yet another chance to spend time and make memories with her. The two spend a lot of time together, so this weekend serves as a way for Brandi to step into Briana’s world at UT Martin.

“We talk every day, every night,” Carter said. “Part of this weekend is just to come down here and see the UT campus and just engage with everyone around and make it a fun family weekend.”

Following the breakfast, families migrated over to the Watkins Auditorium in the University Center for the Skyhawk Family Showdown where they families competed against each other in a similar vein of “Deal or No Deal” and “Family Feud” to win prizes.

John Abel said that this was an attempt to replicate the kind of events that was held on the Friday night of Family Weekends in years past, and was happy with its results.

“We still want to do something fun and get some parents and students engaged,” Abel said. “So, that just kind of was the inspiration of ‘hey, let’s do a game show that gets students and parents both on stage and lets them have some fun’. It’s an engaging event for students and parents to enjoy together.”

Afterwards, students were invited to tailgate with their families around Hardy Graham Stadium and Veterans Park to enjoy free food together ahead of the UT Martin vs. Gardner-Webb football game.

Mackenzie Jackson, a freshman veterinary science major from Kenton, had a good experience with her mother, Charlotte Jackson, who enjoyed getting to be a part of the event together.

“We had a great time at the tailgating party yesterday. I liked getting to spend time with her,” Charlotte Jackson said.

After the UT Martin Skyhawks victoriously defeated the Gardner-Webb Runnin’ Bulldogs, families gathered together in the Watkins Auditorium yet again for a showing of the popular 2026 film “Project Hail Mary.” Everyone was provided with free popcorn and snacks, and people filled the auditorium at 8 p.m. to watch the sci-fi adventure.

“We try to have different activities that are kind of wide ranging that fits all audiences, so we try to pick a movie that was popular very recently like “Project Hail Mary” to give some students and parents time to spend together,” said Abel.

The following day, the families flocked over to the Kathleen and Tom Elam Center for the weekend’s final event. The Skyhawks took on the Central Arkansas Bears at 2 p.m. Sunday in what was dubbed the “Shulman Bowl” by WPSD; UT Martin head basketball coach Jeremy Shulman went against his uncle and Central Arkansas coach John Shulman, fitting for the weekend’s theme.

In the end, the Skyhawks lost to the Bears, but Family Weekend was considered a win regardless because of the sheer amount of attendees.

“I think there were…409 registrations that purchased either football game tickets or t-shirts for the weekend. When you add in the students connected to those families, it’s well over 500, 600 people that were engaged throughout the day,” said Abel.