Breaking down who truly started the long-held tradition of homecoming

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STANDING ALONE IN the middle of the grassy Francis Quadrangle at the University of Missouri are six ionic-style columns. They are the last remaining features from the school's first building, constructed in 1840, and when photographed with the domed, red-brick Jesse Hall in the background, it makes for a welcoming postcard.

During campus tours, it's on The Quad where prospective students have long been given a crash course on university lore.

"There were absolutely two things that we hit on every tour," said broadcaster Kevin Gehl, a Missouri alum and former homecoming king, who guided campus tours as an undergraduate student from 2006 to 2009. "Getting…