By Sarah Brookbank

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Campus Ruckus took over Johnson Center Fields on Saturday night, as students engaged in one of the biggest events during K Week — a week of meetings, activities and events that are designed to help new students acclimate to UK.

The event, though it had relocated from its space at K Lot by Commonwealth Stadium, was still packed with student favorites: free T-shirts, food, music, candy and inflatables. K Week events will continue until Aug. 29. Other events include Fusion, K Team dinners, Common Reading Experience discussion, college meet-ups, We Are UK and the return of the Christian Student Fellowship’s World’s Largest Water Balloon Fight.

On Friday, incoming students met for the first time with their K Teams, a group of new students that will spend time together during K Week and meet up periodically throughout the semester. These meetings are set up by K Crew and are supposed to help students get to know people in their residence halls and around campus.

Diamond Kinnard, a kinesiology freshman, said that her favorite part of K Week was meeting her K Team on Friday at the fields. Her friend, undergraduate studies freshman Ashley Henry, said her favorite part has been meeting new people.

This was music to the ears of Super Crew member and political science junior Trent Patrick, who got involved with K Week after his freshman year. He said that he joined to make sure the freshmen and incoming students had the same great experience he had during his freshman year.

“K Week is a full, long, introductory week for all incoming students, both transfer and freshmen. It’s really just to help them get adjusted to life here at UK — and not only that, it’s to help them get resources and meet people on campus,” Patrick said. “It helps them find their home away from home.”

Patrick spent the night making sure new students were having a good time and checking up on K Crew members. Patrick also spent time snapping photos with his friends and the students he met.

“My favorite part of K Week is meeting the awesome people,” Patrick said. “You make great friends, great memories. I have tons of pictures that I’m going to keep for the rest of my life and those memories are what make K Week worth it.”

Before Campus Ruckus was Big Blue U, where students were invited onto the field of Commonwealth Stadium. This year as students crowded onto the field, they were greeted by the stadium’s renovations.

Spencer Madden, a nursing freshman on the cheerleading squad, said his favorite part of K Week so far has been cheering in the stadium for the first time.

“I’m really looking forward to meeting a lot of new people here at K Week,” Madden said. “I love K Week so far.”

Tanner Smith, a first year graduate student in architecture, was running around Campus Ruckus in a pancake costume with a spork companion.

“This might be a cop-out answer but I love the freshmen. The freshmen are the best. They’re the whole reason we do everything,” Smith said.