By Riley Crowell
Asst. Sports Editor
Framingham State University football head coach and athletic director Thomas Kelley hosted “Coach Kelley’s Homecoming Meetup” at SKYBOKX 109 Sports Bar & Grill in Natick Oct. 26.
This event was for former Framingham student-athletes only and provided an opportunity for former teammates and coaches to reconnect with each other, along with making connections with other athletic alumni.
The event was advertised for Homecoming Weekend as a way to “reconnect with your fellow Rams and relive the glory days at this after-game celebration exclusively for alumni athletes.”
Inside the event, there was a sectioned-off space with tables for attendees, along with food and drinks set up for people to enjoy.
Former football player Jerry Jeffrey, Class of ’74, said alumni events are a great way to reconnect. “I come to them because I hope to see some of my friends. I found out about this because of my reunion that we just had in May.”
Jeffrey, a former teammate of Kelley, reminisced about the days of him being a football player at FSU and how different things are over 50 years later. He said, “When I started playing football, we were a club team. We played five games. We were undefeated, but we played B-teams.”
Jeffrey also spoke on the current Framingham football team and offered encouragement in the midst of their struggles. “Framingham has been down this year, but they’ll be back because Tom Kelley is a good coach. He’s a good guy.”
Former football player Jacques Janvier, Class of ’19, said he found out about the event during the homecoming football game and joined some of his former teammates in attending. “I’m always here to support Coach Kelley.”
Janvier emphasized his interest in alumni events and spoke about the cool and unique connections that he makes at them. “Alumni events are pretty important to me. I think my favorite thing is just getting together with past members.
“I just talked to a guy that was way older than me. He told me about growing up in the 1960s and how he didn’t have a TV. They listened to boxing fights on the radio. It’s just kind of funny to bridge that disconnect a little bit,” he said.
While alumni events are wonderful for seeing old friends and making new ones, they can also be incredibly useful for finding new opportunities.
Janvier said that he was speaking to President Nancy Niemi about his work with autistic children when she mentioned that he could potentially find a role doing that at Framingham State while also pursuing another degree. “Without this event, I would have never known that at all. … Having events like this can open doors for everybody that needs a door open.”
Niemi, President of FSU since 2022, highlighted the significance of alumni events for her and those who attend.
She said her favorite part of the events is getting to know the backstories of the attendees. “They have such specific and wonderful memories of what their time at FSU meant to them. It’s wonderful to hear it and remember that I’m part of a long tradition.”
Kelley said he loves alumni events because he gets the opportunity to see former teammates, coaches, and players of his. “These are my favorite events. There’s a guy over there from 1972 who is a teammate of mine. All of these guys played for me. It’s family. This is why you do this job.
“They’re not only alumni - they’re friends. We’ve done a lot of stuff together and accomplished a lot of good things,” he added.
Kelley and Niemi agreed that it’s still a work in progress to figure out what kind of alumni events people are interested in and how to increase attendance at them.
The tables at the event featured a save-the-date card with dates and descriptions for upcoming Framingham alumni events in the 2024-25 school year.
The upcoming events include the “Swiacki Children’s Literature Festival” Nov. 7, the “Awesome 80s Reunion!” Dec. 7, and the reunion weekend for the classes of 1975 and 2015 May 17, 2025.
Niemi said, “We’re still working on what people really want to come to and what is meaningful to our alumni, because that changes from decade to decade, but it’s a great way to have them connect with each other.”
Kelley said he hopes more alumni will come out and enjoy events like this in the future.