A 2018 Pillow Academy graduate will be featured on Mississippi State University’s homecoming court Saturday.
Smith Lyon, the son of Paul and Lane Lyon of Greenwood, was elected by Mississippi State students as the university’s 2021 homecoming king.
“I feel really honored,” said Lyon.
He will represent MSU alongside the 2021 homecoming queen, Hayden Tucker of Brandon. The court will be presented at halftime during MSU’s homecoming matchup against the University of Kentucky. The game begins at 6 p.m.
“I was really in shock,” Lyon said about the moment when he found out he was voted homecoming king. “I love Mississippi State a lot, and it was just such an honor to hear my name called. I got emotional; I had tears in my eyes. It just felt like a culmination of everything over the three and a half years that I’ve been here. Just to be able to represent the university in this way, it just really felt surreal. I still sometimes don’t really believe it because it’s just such an honor for me.”
Lyon, 21, is a senior at Mississippi State, where he is working toward a degree in marketing and a minor in political science.
Attending Mississippi State is a Lyon family tradition. His parents are MSU graduates, as well as his two older siblings. He has one younger sister who is a freshman at State.
His mother, Lane Lyon, said she watched a livestream of the election. “We were real excited; we were just dying for them to get to the announcement,” she said. “We were just ecstatic for him.”
The 2021 homecoming king’s love for Mississippi State grew even deeper as he began attending the university.
“I just never would have expected this level of love for my college,” he said. “Back in high school, I thought, ‘OK, I’ll go to college and maybe I’ll meet some friends,’ and it ended up exceeding every expectation I could have had.”
Lyon is active at his school.
He serves as a Roadrunner, was an orientation leader and was on the New Maroon Camp staff for three years. He was involved in the Student Association as a cabinet member, serving as director of outreach for Freshman Forum. He was part of the Brickfire Mentoring Program, serving as a mentor as well as marketing coordinator for the executive board. His freshman year, Lyon was a member of Freshman Council, a branch of the Student Association. He is a member of Gamma Beta Phi Honor Society
“I definitely like to be involved,” he said. “I like to make anything that I’m involved with better. I just do the best I can to make it the best it can be with any organization or anything that I’m ever a part of.”
Lyon said the people at the school are what he enjoys most about being a student at Mississippi State.
“I feel like it’s kind of cliché to say it feels like a family; other universities may say that. But I can attest that I truly, absolutely feel it here,” he said. “I’ve met the best people that I’ve ever known at Mississippi State. ... Always being welcomed with open arms, I’ve always felt that here.”
Lyon said homecoming week has been an enjoyable experience, and he’s anticipating Saturday’s halftime festivities.
“I’m looking forward to walking on the field most,” he said “We did field practice the other day. This whole time it didn’t really feel real, and it just hit me.”
- Contact Ruthie Robison at 581-7235 or rrobison@gwcommonwealth.com.
