GaMeCocK EnTeRtAiNMent GaMeCocK EnTeRtAiNMent

GAMECOCK ENTERTAINMENT is USC’s hub for free and exciting events on campus. The office is divided into different organizations, each focusing on certain community events: Carolina Productions, Homecoming Commission, Dance Marathon, the CarolinaClemson Blood Drive, Thursday After Dark and Tiger Burn. When you join one of these organizations, you immediately become part of the overarching Gamecock Entertainment family.

Carolina Productions is in charge of organizing entertainment events for the students of USC. Students organize all the events, ensuring they are fun and relevant to students’ interests. Some of the club’s events include a drag show, carnival, movie screenings, petting zoos and other fun events for students to meet other people on campus. This past year, Carolina Productions hosted 12 movie nights, a Mardi Gras celebration, a murder mystery night and even a performance from YouTube comedian Noel Miller, all at no additional cost to students. Last year, Carolina Productions had TikTok star and podcaster Brittany Broski host a campus version of The Dating Game. Anyone can join Carolina Productions and assist with these events by attending a weekly Programmers in Training crew meeting.

One of Carolina Productions’ most popular annual events is a partnership with Homecoming Commission to hold the “Cockstock” homecoming concert, which has featured artists like T-Pain, 21Savage and A$AP Ferg.

Homecoming is a weeklong celebration for all current, future and past Gamecocks to show off their school spirit. Homecoming Week features annual events like the Spurs & Struts stepshow, the National Pan-Hellenic Council Stroll-Off, a block party in Five Points and a Homecoming tailgate, all of which end with a Saturday at Williams-Brice Stadium. Homecoming 2023 is planned for Oct. 9–14. Sophomore Ava Uthoff was a Homecoming Commission member this past year and said she most enjoyed working with the others students on the team.

“It’s also so rewarding seeing students enjoy the events we plan,” Uthoff said.

The Carolina-Clemson Blood Drive is a friendly philanthropic competition held the week before the Carolina-Clemson football game to determine which university community can donate more blood for local hospitals and lifesaving procedures. The drive starts at the beginning of the holiday season in preparation for the coming year. Donations are made at Red Cross and Blood Connection Donation sites found around campus throughout the week. All donors receive a free blood drive T-shirt and a chance to win prizes. Students can learn more about volunteering to help with the drive on GarnetGate.

Tiger Burn is another annual rivalrybased event, occurring the Monday before the Carolina-Clemson game. For over 12 years, South Carolina’s

By Lauren Russo

“tiger,” a 30-foot or taller wooden structure made to look like a tiger, has been built by a group of students from the USC chapter of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. The tradition was born after a post-game riot in 1902 that was sparked when Clemson students became angry at a drawing showing a Gamecock on top of a beaten tiger.

Thursday After Dark provides late-night entertainment with different activities every Thursday during the semester. Events are often off campus and transportation is provided. Some events from this past semester were axe throwing, goat yoga, a Fireflies baseball game and a night at the State Museum.

Dance Marathon is the largest student-run philanthropy group on USC’s campus. The club works year-round to raise money for Prisma Health Children’s Hospital through the local Children’s Miracle Network Hospital. The main spring event is a 14-hour dance marathon — no sitting or sleeping the whole time! — celebrating all the money raised. Registration for Dance Marathon opens at the beginning of the year and can be completed at any point before the main event through Garnet Gate.

Courtney Buzan has worked for Gamecock Entertainment for the past five years as the associate director for campus programs and says her favorite part of her role is “the students, students, students.”

“It’s nice to see this small group of students find and build their community on campus while they deliver events and experiences that do the same for their peers,” Buzan said. “It truly comes full circle.”

The Gamecock Entertainment office is located on the third floor in Russell House in suite 318 and can be contacted by email at ge@mailbox.sc.edu.