🐝 Homecoming 10/26/25

Hi Everyone!

My mom once told me that the day before her birthday, she would repeatedly remind herself of her age, because she will never be that age ever again. This is a practice that I’ve begun to adopt, because it truly is wild that I will never be a certain age ever again. Now, since this is a weekly newsletter, I have to take some liberties with the “day before”, and instead have it be the week before, but here we go:

I am 26 years old, and next week I will be 27. I will never be 26 ever again, and that’s crazy to think.

Now with that out of the way, let’s find out What’s Up With Will…

Two years is a deceptively short amount of time for a grad program. It’s just long enough to give you a false sense of calm, like you have all the time in the world. I figured that while I might have just started, I should start looking into what to do after graduate school and see if there are any steps I can take now.

To start, I attended SFSU’s Lunch and Launch. This program effectively acts as an office hour with the Communication Studies Department career advisor to chat about potential career paths and on-campus resources to make it happen.

I also listened to a presentation on LinkedIn, as well as research from SFSU’s very own Dr. Merrigan, who took some time off to explore what SFSU Communication Studies Master’s alumni are doing. According to her research, out of all people surveyed, 56% have jobs in either education or healthcare services. Education makes a lot of sense because of SFSU’s strong teaching program, but the healthcare part is interesting.

In my leadership certificate course, we explored a framework called Social Styles, which categorizes leadership into four types: Analytical, Expressive, Driver, and Amiable. I love tools like this and Myers-Briggs, for that matter, as they feel sort of like the Buzzfeed quizzes of the business world. In case you’re wondering, I landed as an Expressive Leader, meaning I am good at inspiring and motivating others, generating excitement for ideas, and building relationships.

Also quote of the week I heard from a professor: “Wikipedia is more credible than AI”. Essentially, if you are going to cite something that’s not credible, professors would rather you do Wikipedia over AI.

I had to take an insane uphill walk to get up to the Randall Museum, a combination natural history museum, science museum, and arts center showcasing the importance of conservation and protection of our natural world. It’s a tiny spot that has several animals from the diverse habitats of California; however, most of the animals were nocturnal, like the weasel and raccoon, so I didn’t get to see them. I did meet a couple of reptiles, including a turtle, a snake, and a lizard (side note: why do some animals have such scary names? I mean, I don’t know about you, but I wouldn’t want to be anywhere near a Death-Feigning Beetle). There was also some art and pottery on display. The place felt geared more towards kids, but it was free, and I got my workout in for the day getting there. Additionally, the museum itself had a wonderful view of SF.

I’ve been on a pizza kick, so when my public transit got delayed on the way back, I was *forced* to stop for lunch at Square Pie Guys, a Detroit-style pizza joint in SoMa. I got a dang good half pepperoni pie, with what I feel was an optimal ratio of pepperoni based on the size of the pizza. The edges were extra crispy and caramelized too, just like any good Detroit-style slice.

Every year for the past few years that we have been living in California, we have made a yearly pilgrimage to our Alma Mater, Georgia Tech, for the Homecoming Game, and this weekend, we would take the trek out for a 3rd time. I flew in Friday afternoon and met up with Brent, Lexie, Sterling, and Ryan. We got the weekend started by catching up, eating dry Triscuits, and then Hunter joined us to hit one of the bars we used to go to every so often, Blake’s on the Park. Hunter did have the audacity to ask, though, if we were still partying out in old age as alumni…

We kicked off Homecoming Game Day with a stop at campus favorite Blue Donkey Coffee. This year, they were serving a Pumpkin Harvest Iced Coffee, which is something I definitely don’t remember from my undergrad days. While the menu may have changed, as I wandered through the library where the café sits, I couldn’t help but think back to all those late-night study (and let’s be honest, procrastination) sessions, and the overwhelming feeling of having absolutely no idea what I’m doing. It’s funny how that feeling still lingers. I guess some things never change.

After being properly caffeinated, we took off to my old Fraternity, Delta Sigma Phi, to tailgate. We listened to tunes, watched some intense beer pong matches, and caught up with some old friends. Even a couple of years out at this point, I ran into many familiar faces, some of whom I haven’t seen in years. All of these people are off living their lives and doing really cool stuff now, so it’s even cooler that we can all take time to come back for homecoming.

Delta Sig was an incredible formative place that provided me with so many amazing memories and experiences. I think about our parties, chapter meetings, and brotherhood retreats, all of which pushed me to better myself both academically and socially. It is because of this place that I was able to make a great group of friends that I still keep in touch with to this day. It was the place that helped me decide that instead of being miserable as an electrical engineering major, I should become a Literature, Media, and Communication major. It was also at Delta Sig that I met Rylee for the first time.

Before I left, I had to snap a photo of my first composite photo with young William Willis, Circa 2019.

We then went to the game against Syracuse. We screamed the fight songs “I’m a Ramblin’ Wreck” and “Up With The White & Gold” as the scored touchdown after touchdown, after touchdown.

At halftime, the Georgia Tech Yellow Jacket Marching Band performed, of which I was a part for all of my years as a clarinetist. It made me think about the practices spent memorizing drill sheets and music scores, the thrill of being on the field, and starting the clarinet section’s obsession with pencils (ask if you want to learn more).

As the game ended, Georgia Tech crushed Syracuse 41 to 16, making their record for the season 8-0. For some context, the last time that GT had 8-0 It was back in 1966. More importantly, though, there is something about the energy of the GT football games, being in the stadium surrounded by friends, that is indescribable. Watching the game on a television or at a watch party can’t compare.

I love coming back for Homecoming every year, and while there is some repetition to coming back to the same place, around the same time, every single year, every trip is different and special in its own way.  It’s a beautiful reminder of how much of an impact Georgia Tech had on me, and I honestly can’t say that I would be the same person writing this newsletter to y’all if I didn’t go here. I am proud to be a Yellow Jacket and a Helluva LMC Major.

Sunday was Brent’s birthday, and when we asked him what he wanted to do to celebrate, he told us that he wanted to go get Bahn Mi and Pho for brunch. I didn’t know this before we arrived, but the place we were going to was none other than Lee’s Bakery, which has been highlighted by National Geographic. I got an extra tender pork Bahn Mi and a hearty portion of pho, and as we slurped down our noodles, we listened to Brent talk about some of his favorite memories from the past year. Another year older, another year wiser. Happy Birthday, Brent!

The birthday celebrations didn’t stop there, though. We booked it for a birthday lunch for Rylee’s sister, Michaela. Michaela decided that she wanted to go to a Hibachi grill, which is an excellent choice, in my expert opinion, as it is effectively a dinner and a show. Not to brag, but I was the only person to catch the rice in their mouth on the first try. What made it extra special, though, was that Michaela had no clue that we were going to be there. Happy Birthday, Michaela!

This is one of my favorite Georgia Tech traditions. It happens at the end of every home game!