When BYU athletic director Tom Holmoe announced his retirement on Tuesday after 20 years at the school, Cougar fans and BYU alumni took to social media to praise his leadership, his character — and his Halloween costumes.
The posts about Holmoe’s love of Halloween referred to his annual tradition of unveiling an elaborate costume at the end of October.
He’s dressed as a number of iconic characters over the years, from Yoda to Voldemort.
Holmoe’s costumes came together with the help of Jennine Tolley Hollingshaus, an adjunct faculty member at BYU and makeup artist, and Rhonda Montgomery, Holmoe’s sister-in-law.
Montgomery spent months each year constructing Holmoe’s costumes, while Hollingshaus spent hours completing the look with makeup, including accessories that changed the shape of his nose and cheeks.
“Tom’s really letting me glue a lot of things to his face,” Hollingshaus joked in a 2023 video about that year’s transformation.
In 2014, Holmoe told BYU’s student newspaper that he’s loved Halloween since he was a little kid.
“My mom was really creative,” he said. “So, we always had great costumes and ideas. I loved trick-or-treating in my hometown. It was a huge thing.”
In that same interview, Holmoe credited the BYU women’s soccer program with inspiring his Halloween tradition at BYU.
“Our women’s soccer team is the one that got me to dress up years ago, because they have a tradition that they always dress up, and they actually have a light practice in their costumes,” he said.
Here’s a look at Holmoe’s Halloween costumes from the past 10 years.
2024: Jafar from ‘Aladdin’
For what will be his last Halloween as BYU’s AD, Holmoe dressed as the villainous Jafar from “Aladdin.”
His outfit was complete with a fake bird perched on his shoulder and a snake-themed staff to carry.
2023: Albus Dumbledore from ‘Harry Potter’
In 2023, Holmoe dressed as Hogwarts headmaster Albus Dumbledore.
The BYU Cougars YouTube account shared a behind-the-scenes video on Oct. 31, 2023, that showed how the Dumbledore costume came together.
In the video, Holmoe joked about wearing the costume for a Zoom call with the Big 12 executive council.
“I don’t know what the dress code is for this Zoom, but I’m going to be dressed like a wizard,” he said.
2022: Yoda from ‘Star Wars’
Yoda, he was.
Holmoe dressed as the beloved Jedi in 2022.
2021: Rafiki from ‘The Lion King’
Holmoe drew costume inspiration from the Disney classic “The Lion King” in 2021.
He dressed as wise Rafiki.
2020: The Phantom of the Opera
Holmoe’s 2020 costume stands out from his other outfits because he was embodying a character from a musical, rather than a children’s movie.
He dressed as the Phantom of the Opera.
2019: Genie from ‘Aladdin’
In 2019, Holmoe turned blue.
He needed to take on a new shade to dress as Genie from “Aladdin.”
2018: Ernesto de la Cruz from ‘Coco’
Holmoe chose a lesser-known character in 2018.
He was Ernesto de la Cruz from the 2017 movie “Coco” and carried around a black-and-white guitar to complete the look.
2017: Mad Hatter from ‘Alice in Wonderland’
With flaming red curly hair — and eyebrows — Holmoe had fun as the Mad Hatter in 2017.
His look included a large top hat and scarlet suit coat.
2016: Voldemort from ‘Harry Potter’
Holmoe must love villians.
In 2016, he dressed as the ultimate bad guy: Voldemort from the “Harry Potter” series.
2015: Albert Einstein
Holmoe paid homage to a real person in 2015 when he dressed as Albert Einstein.
The costume required less makeup than most of Holmoe’s other outfits. He mostly needed a larger grey mustache.