Get to know LSU’s 2025 Homecoming King and Queen - T’Senre Gray and Kalayna Walker

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When LSU and South Carolina made their way to reset during halftime, the Homecoming Court took the field and T’Senre Gray was announced as this year’s Homecoming king.

Gray is a construction management senior, the president of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity and the founder of LSU’s On Geaux Run Club. He also serves as a sergeant in the Louisiana Army National Guard. Hailing all the way from Lansing, Michigan, Gray was crowned king alongside Kalayna Walker as queen.

Gray said he ran for Homecoming king to do something bigger than himself.

“I always want to amplify the community around me because that’s the community that provided for me, as in going to the Boys & Girls Club, having a single-parent mother, and being the oldest of four kids, having to take care of my siblings because my father wasn’t around,” Gray said. “So, just being able to impact the little boys that was just like me, who were a part of this community.”

When his name was announced during Saturday’s game, Gray couldn’t help but start dancing. The positive energy surrounding him on the court, as well as the lively spirit throughout the stadium. In that moment, all he could do was dance.

“I started dancing,” he said. “It was so crazy, there was just so much energy. Just full positivity, smiles, it was joyful for me seeing the crowd and the atmosphere of the stadium being joyful. I took a second to just detach myself and do my little dance.”

During his reign as Homecoming king, he hopes to bring more advocacy to the student body. He wants to expand his impact on students and be a friend to anyone who might need it.

“Just show everyone that they can enjoy and love LSU,” Gray said. “If they are looking for a friend, I am that friend, or I can help find you clubs or organizations that are that for you. We have so much to offer at LSU. LSU is more than just a school. It’s family.”

After his graduation, Gray plans to work for KG Industries, a leader in providing protective metal coatings and industrial lubricants, where he is currently interning. He is excited to continue his line of work, hoping to climb the ladder and start working in the same communities that have shaped him.

Gray implores students who want to get involved in campus life to just do it. He wants to be able to help people find their sub-communities within the greater LSU community.

“My advice for anyone who would like to get involved in campus life, I would say, just go up to whatever you see,” Gray said. “You see flyers, you see people just strolling in a circle, as I did within my fraternity. Just go out and research them, text them, DM them. They are people too. You can go out and join those organizations; everybody is very accepting. We’re very diverse, and that’s what makes LSU even better.”

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On Saturday, midway through LSU football’s win over South Carolina, the university crowned its 2025 Homecoming King and Queen, T’Senre Gray and Kalayna Walker.

The two were the winner of a vote by the student body, and their coronation capped off a week of celebration for LSU’s 100th Homecoming.

Gray and Walker are just the second Black King and Queen pair in the school’s history.

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Walker believes that if she puts her mind to something, she can achieve it through faith. She emphasized that her faith in Jesus is what got her through this process.

During her reign as Homecoming Queen, Walker plans to use her platform to uplift others, especially those who feel overlooked or unseen. She wants to bridge the gap within LSU and the Christian community.

Walker said being an LSU student has shaped her perspective on life.

“Life is so much bigger than just you. Wherever you go, you represent a whole community,” Walker said.

As an LSU student, Walker has taken advantage of opportunities like founding God’s Ambassadors, her Bible study. She said she started it on campus with only five people, and now it has grown to over 200 people.

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Walker said that Campus Life told her she broke the record at LSU for most votes for Homecoming Queen. Walker is the third Black woman to win Homecoming Queen at LSU, and her and King T’Senre Gray together make the second Black king and queen pair.

To Walker, no other university is like LSU. She loves the school pride surrounding football games, professors and students. Despite being from Arizona, Walker said Louisiana feels like home.

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After graduation, Walker hopes to thrive in her youth mentorship program for children with alopecia, Alo Bloom. She also plans to put her entrepreneurship minor to use by opening a business.

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