'Tis the Season-Unofficially Speaking

By Lindsay Probasco on March 9, 2014

Another year of anticipation and preparation has come and gone for the UIUC community. Things are certainly quiet around town following the well-known, craziest weekend of the school year.

The 2014 Unofficial Saint Patrick’s Day at the University of Illinois took place on March 7, and was nothing short of an all out spectacular. Depending on the view point, one could say it was a success, irresponsible, incredible, catastrophic or just about anything in between.

Regardless of whether you support Unofficial or not, there is no denying the amount of spirit that comes into play when gearing up for the infamous, school-created holiday. There is a much larger turn out and loyalty to the University of Illinois on Unofficial then you will ever see at a football or basketball game. While the past few sports seasons have been somewhat disappointing, Unofficial never fails us. Shirts are made, kegs are purchased, and classes are skipped on the first Friday of March for students all across campus.

The hype of the day can be accredited to the amount of energy that goes into the short 24 hours that are Unofficial. Not only do students participate, but all aspects of the UIUC campus community aid in the promotion of the event. Faculty, police force, visitors and students all take part in the extravaganza.

Professors acknowledge the excitement as seen here by the iClicker question of the day in class:

 

The Champaign Police Department tweets about potential consequences for participating:

 

Out of town guests share their opinions:

 

As the university staff and police force try and crack down on the rules and regulations, they only end up drawing more attention to the day. Letters of safety are sent home to parents warning them of the dangers that students face on Unofficial Weekend. Surely hundreds of tickets were given and people were arrested. However, nothing seems to be stopping it.

Bars require you be 21 all weekend but gladly take part in the commotion and have special drink deals and events planned. Fraternity houses fill up with waves of people, and apartments host parties catered with breakfast and green beer.

On top of the massive amount of students who take part in the event, visitors from all over come to Champaign-Urbana to drink in all that U of I has to offer…literally. More alcohol is consumed on Unofficial Weekend at Illinois than some college campuses consume in a year. Call that impressive or call it sick, but here at Illinois it happens real quick.

As another green holiday comes to a close, students will cram in all the weekend’s homework, and visitors will make their exits from the shamrock filled streets of campus. While we hang our heads in defeat and sadness that it came and went so fast, the best we can do is start preparing for next year. March 6, 2015, we are ready for you.

 

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