Tom Holmoe Exits BYU As Halloween GOAT
Feb 13, 2025, 2:28 PM | Updated: 2:36 pm
BYU AD Tom Holmoe owns Halloween. (Photos courtesy of BYU Photo)
(Photos courtesy of BYU Photo)
PROVO, Utah—With longtime BYU Director of Athletics Tom Holmoe announcing his upcoming retirement, the program is losing a legend who propelled it to new heights since accepting the position in 2005.
Twenty years of spearheading BYU’s movement from the Mountain West to independence, and now the Big 12, means Holmoe’s name will forever be synonymous with Cougar excellence. Along with leading BYU into a new age of college athletics, Holmoe quickly developed a reputation for elaborate and well-planned Halloween costumes. Each October, the Cougar fan base waited expectantly for the AD’s glamourous, ghoulish garb.
Beards, body paint, and an uncommon willingness to not take himself too seriously separated Holmoe’s costumes from your everyday, run-of-the-mill Halloween getups.
RELATED: Ranking Every Halloween Costume Worn By BYU AD Tom Holmoe
TOM HOLMOE'S (@TomHolmoe) HALLOWEEN REVEAL 🎃#BYUSN pic.twitter.com/WTSPhEEwb7
— BYUtv Sports Nation (@BYUSportsNation) October 31, 2022
During Holmoe’s retirement press conference, BYU President C. Shane Reese praised the 64-year-old’s costume creativity.
“…I should also add that Tom’s pretty good at Halloween costumes as well,” Reese quipped.
The Halloween tradition of Tom Holmoe
Details on the origin of Holmoe’s Halloween antics are hazy, but the BYU Daily Universe quoted him in 2014 as a longtime lover of the tradition.
“When I was a kid, I loved Halloween, and my mom was really creative,” Holmoe said. “So, we always had great costumes and ideas. I loved trick-or-treating in my hometown. It was a huge thing. Me and my friends, we always dressed up.”
Nobody does Halloween like BYU's Athletic Director, Tom Holmoe 🔥🎃
(Via @BYUCougars) pic.twitter.com/0PXTFAvV8U
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) October 31, 2023
The tradition began when Holmoe was inspired by the BYU women’s soccer team tradition of dressing up and practicing in their Halloween costumes. Still, it has evolved into a full-blown production every October.
RELATED: Holmoe Unveils Disney-Inspired Halloween Costume For 2024
According to Y Magazine, Holmoe has teamed up with BYU makeup artist Jennine Tolley Hollingshaus to design and execute his look since 2013. Planning begins early in the year, and final details are determined by late summer. The makeup and costume can sometimes take hours, meaning the always-busy AD must exercise patience.
Athletic department families are always spellbound by Holmoe’s Harry Potter characters, Disney favorites, Abraham Lincoln, and Yoda from Star Wars, to name a few of his many faces.
“Our department people come up and bring their kids and grandkids dressed up,’ Holmoe said. ‘I like seeing the kids as much as dressing up myself. It’s good to have fun, and that’s one of the reasons why I do it is, because it’s good to have fun around here.”
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Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for sports.ksl.com and hosts the Cougar Tracks Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and Cougar Sports Saturday (12–3 p.m.) on KSL Newsradio. Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU in the Big 12 Conference on X: @Mitch_Harper.
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