Although they couldn’t line College Ave. with floats and performances this year, many Penn State and Centre County organizations put on a show during Homecoming’s virtual parade Friday night.

Some groups submitted videos of old performances or past parade floats, while others got their organizations together on Zoom to record a message. Heck, some folks even recorded new, original content for the parade!

Naturally, we compiled some of the very best of Homecoming’s virtual parade livestream. The event lasted around an hour, so it’s possible we missed some great acts. Please send Ryan Parsons an angry email with any complaints.

Governor Tom Wolf

Pennsylvania’s very own governor made an appearance on the stream with a message for the Penn State community.

“Although we’re celebrating virtually this year, I’m sure you’re all as full of Penn State pride as ever,” Wolf said. “So, let’s see your blue and white and together we will celebrate the spirit that makes State College, Pennsylvania’s very own Happy Valley.”

Although Wolf went to MIT, he’s surely at least a little bit of a Nittany Lions fan.

Association Of Residence Hall Students

ARHS really put on a show during the virtual parade. Members of the organization came together to recreate the iconic “Parks and Recreation” title sequence.

Hearing the show’s upbeat theme song was a refreshing break in-between Zombie Nation and Fight On State.

Emanating the all-powerful Leslie Knope, Natalie’s 45 Step Plan for Ethernet was a personal favorite addition to the video. Penn State’s wireless network has been hanging on by a thread ever since ethernet was disconnected and Zoom became the norm at the beginning of this year.

Rince Na Leon Penn State Irish Dance

These folks definitely stole the show by recording and cutting together a virtual tap-dancing routine. Members of the group sent in their portions of the performance, which they set to a very Celtic-sounding song.

Folks were tapping from Penn State dorms all the way out to waterside docks. Apologies to this student’s downstairs neighbor.

Triangle, Orchesis, & Alpha Rho Chi

There were many, many floats and videos put together by members of Greek life, but these folks certainly took the cake. Their Toy Story-themed float was set to the tune of Randy Newman’s “You’ve Got A Friend In Me.”

The costumes, float decorations, and signs really pulled this together.

Harmony Penn State

Harmony at Penn State is a “multidisciplinary performing arts program that helps integrate individuals, both with and without special needs.” Out of all the Zoom recordings featured on Friday’s live stream, this one may have been the best.

The group put together a well-executed virtual performance of “Journey To The Past” from the Broadway musical “Anastasia.” The coordination they were able to pull off across 25 people was very impressive.

PSAA Florida Gulf Coast Chapter

Many different chapters of the Penn State Alumni Association put together videos for the parade, checking in from places all around the country. Although all of them were very well put together, Florida Gulf Coast perhaps was the best of them all.

Perhaps it’s the imminent threat of the State College tundra making me crave for warmer weather, but it was nice to know some Penn State alumni are in beachy locations.

The Centre County Chapter did a good job as well, checking in from different spots around campus sporting Nittany Lions gear.

Impact Benefitting THON

Impact, a special interest THON organization, did a really, really good job with its video. The group members put together a narrative video featuring their big, green mascot illustrating how its meetings are virtual now.

The narrative video combined with a quick social distancing PSA and a check-in from Jeremy, the organization’s THON child, made for a great video altogether.

Homecoming Emcees

Addison and Brad did a great job as the “hosts” for the virtual homecoming parade. They checked in time-to-time to share a quick Penn State fact or nugget of Homecoming history

All in all, Homecoming did a great job pulling off a “parade” completely virtually. While it certainly wasn’t the same as a big, in-person event, it was nice to hear from many of Penn State’s organizations and even discover some new ones.