The infamous Unofficial weekend is just around the corner. Students are buying t-shirts, hats and all sorts of gear to get ready. To get a sense of just how crazy Unofficial is, here are a few stories from students sharing some memorable experiences.

“One of my friends was at a party, and when the cops showed up she ran to a bedroom and hid under the bed. When they came into the room she was in, she stayed as quiet as she could for over an hour because she could still hear the cops in the other room.

When she thought the coast was clear, she went to move out from under the bed and realized that there was a boy that had been hiding under it the whole time with her. And the best part is, I’m pretty sure they’re dating now.” —
Adrian McLaughlin, sophomore in Media

“I’ve only participated in Unofficial my freshman and sophomore year, so (I) wasn’t ever too crazy. But the craziest thing I ever saw was last year, we had a resident come in and he was hammered, and he assaulted a cop and had a fake (ID). He was taken into a police car and then was brought back to the dorm, and I thought it was really funny.

I saw people throwing things off balconies and police were there — police are everywhere on Unofficial, like (people are) throwing stuff off balconies and police rush up there and arrest them. I’ve also seen people pee in public. Crazy stuff happens on Unofficial.” —
Lauren Schultz, senior in LAS

“I had just broken up with my girlfriend and my friends were mad at me for something, so then I decided, ‘OK, I guess I earned this (going out).’

So I started drinking at about 6:30 in the morning, went to class, then kept drinking. Eventually it became dark and it was about 9 p.m. and I didn’t remember anything after that. I guess I called my roommate and told him I was going to be home soon and he says, ‘OK, good.’

Then I was along some train stops. I later came to the shoulder of I-74 walking somewhere, phone dead, really cold and I had no idea where I (was). Then in my logical drunk state, I decided that I would walk the other way since I came from that direction. I decided that I would cross the expressway, because I would obey traffic laws or something, hopped over the barb wire median and then crossed the expressway again onto the shoulder of the other side.

Meanwhile, I’m trying to get people to help me by screaming and trying to hitchhike, but it wasn’t working. Eventually, two squad cars, lights flashing, come up behind me. They gave me two tickets: one for being underage and another for being a drunk pedestrian on the shoulder of the interstate — which is apparently a ticket? The cops took me home ’cause they realized I was just stupid and scared. But yeah, that’s probably the best Unofficial story ever.” —
Jack Starzec, senior in FAA