Rutgers Athletic Center
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Jersey Mike's Arena, commonly known as the RAC (an initialism for Rutgers Athletic Center, its former official name), is an 8,000-seat multi-purpose
arena An arena is a large enclosed platform, often circular or oval-shaped, designed to showcase theatre, musical performances, or sporting events. It is composed of a large open space surrounded on most or all sides by tiered seating for spectators ...
in
Piscataway, New Jersey Piscataway () is a township in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States. It is a suburb of the New York metropolitan area, in the Raritan Valley. At the 2010 United States Census, the population was 56,044, an increase of 5,562 (+11.0%) fr ...
on
Rutgers University Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Public university, public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's ...
's Livingston Campus. The building is shaped like a truncated tent with trapezoidal sides on the north and south ends. It is home to the men's and
women's A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female humans regardl ...
Rutgers Scarlet Knights The Rutgers Scarlet Knights are the athletic teams that represent Rutgers University's New Brunswick campus. In sports, Rutgers is famously known for being the "Birthplace of College Football", hosting the first ever intercollegiate football ...
basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
teams as well as the
wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...
and gymnastics teams. Previously, the university used the 3,200-seat
College Avenue Gym College Avenue Gymnasium is an athletic facility on the College Avenue Campus of Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey. It is the second gymnasium built on the site. The first was built in 1892 on the site of College Field, the form ...
from 1931 to 1977.


History

The arena opened on November 30, 1977, with a win against rival
Seton Hall Seton Hall University (SHU) is a private Catholic research university in South Orange, New Jersey. Founded in 1856 by then-Bishop James Roosevelt Bayley and named after his aunt, Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, Seton Hall is the oldest diocesan u ...
. The arena was known as the Rutgers Athletic Center until 1986, when it was renamed for Louis Brown, a Rutgers graduate and former member of the varsity golf team, who made a large bequest to the university in his will. Despite the name change, the building was still largely referred to as "The RAC" (pronounced "rack") by students, alumni, fans, and players. In 2019, all references to Louis Brown were quietly removed from the arena and all University websites. Following this, all university publications have begun using the arena's original name, "The Rutgers Athletic Center."


Reputation

The RAC is renowned for being one of the loudest arenas in college basketball when at maximum capacity. The trapezoidal design of the building allows the crowd noise to resonate, creating a deafening environment. The RAC has even been described as being "louder than a 747 at
Newark Airport Newark Liberty International Airport , originally Newark Metropolitan Airport and later Newark International Airport, is an international airport straddling the boundary between the cities of Newark in Essex County and Elizabeth in Union Count ...
."
ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...
's
Jay Bilas Jay Scot Bilas (born December 24, 1963) is an American college basketball analyst who currently works for ESPN. Bilas is a former professional basketball player and coach who played for and served as an assistant under Mike Krzyzewski at Duke Uni ...
has lauded the RAC, saying, "The Scarlet Knights play great there, and the crowd is right on top of you and intimidating." Former opponents have also extolled the RAC's atmosphere. Former Connecticut Guard
Ben Gordon Benjamin Ashenafi Gordon (born April 4, 1983) is an American former professional basketball player. Gordon played for 11 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA), and he played college basketball for the University of Connecticut, ...
said, "It is very difficult at the RAC. They have a great home crowd. The student body and everybody really comes out to support them. Just the way the gym is shaped, it seems like everybody is on top of you. At times, if you're not focused, you can get lost in the game just by how intense the crowd is." Former Syracuse forward
Hakim Warrick Hakim Hanif Warrick (born July 8, 1982) is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the Syracuse Orange from 2001 to 2005. Warrick won an NCAA championship in 2003 and blocked a potential game-tying three ...
notes that "they (the fans) are definitely some of the best fans on the road that I’ve played against. It's crazy how much they love their team. The way the gym is made, it's just made to keep the noise in. It's loud and crazy down there."


Non-Rutgers sporting events

The arena was the home of the
NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...
's
New Jersey Nets New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...
from their second year in the
NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...
, 1977, when the team moved from the
Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum (or simply the Nassau Coliseum) is a multi-purpose indoor arena in Uniondale, New York, east of New York City. The Long Island venue is approximately east of the eastern limits of the New York City Borough of ...
in Uniondale, New York, until 1981, when the
Brendan Byrne Arena Meadowlands Arena (formerly Brendan Byrne Arena, Continental Airlines Arena and Izod Center) is a closed indoor arena facility located in the Meadowlands Sports Complex in East Rutherford, New Jersey, United States. The arena is located on N ...
opened at the
Meadowlands Sports Complex The Meadowlands Sports Complex is a sports complex located in East Rutherford, in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. The facility is owned and operated by the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority (NJSEA). The complex currently consi ...
. It also hosted the 1985 and 1989
Atlantic 10 Conference The Atlantic 10 Conference (A-10) is a collegiate athletic conference whose schools compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's (NCAA) Division I. The A-10's member schools are located in states mostly on the United States Eastern ...
men's basketball tournaments. The arena is also the site for the girls and boys Middlesex County high school basketball tournament finals, and various boys and girls New Jersey high school basketball state playoff games. On Saturday April 13, 1996, a Professional Bowler's Association tournament was broadcast live from the arena on ABC, the Johnny Petraglia Open.


Non-sporting events


Concerts

The
Grateful Dead The Grateful Dead was an American rock music, rock band formed in 1965 in Palo Alto, California. The band is known for its eclectic style, which fused elements of rock, Folk music, folk, country music, country, jazz, bluegrass music, bluegrass, ...
played at the Rutgers Athletic Center on May 15, 1981.
Styx In Greek mythology, Styx (; grc, Στύξ ) is a river that forms the boundary between Earth (Gaia) and the Underworld. The rivers Acheron, Cocytus, Lethe, Phlegethon, and Styx all converge at the centre of the underworld on a great marsh, whic ...
brought their Grand Illusion to the RAC on October 24, 1979. Linda Ronstadt also played here on her "Living in the USA" tour and sang with a terrible sore throat. Also, Linda Ronstadt played the RAC on April 11, 1980 for her "Mad Love" tour, and on October 22, 1987, R.E.M. played the RAC with 10,000 Maniacs opening. On April 25, 1980, Frank Zappa played a show at the RAC. The arena was used on Friday, April 27, 2007 for Rutgersfest, an annual concert normally held outdoors, but held in the RAC that time due to rain. The performers were
The Roots The Roots are an American hip hop band formed in 1987 by Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter and Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The Roots serve as the house band on NBC's ''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy F ...
,
Hawthorne Heights Hawthorne Heights, formerly A Day in the Life, is an American rock band from Dayton, Ohio, formed in 2001. Their lineup currently consists of JT Woodruff (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), Matt Ridenour (bass guitar, backing vocals), Mark McMillon (l ...
, and Everclear. Due to lack of seating, only 5,000 tickets were given out, angering the 15,000 or so (est.) other students who were then unable to attend. May 3, 2008 The RAC hosted SpringBlaze 2008, a concert featuring
Christian rock Christian rock is a form of rock music that features lyrics focusing on matters of Christian faith, often with an emphasis on Jesus, typically performed by self-proclaimed Christian individuals. The extent to which their lyrics are explicitly Ch ...
bands with a special appearance by Rutgers Football Head Coach
Greg Schiano Gregory Edward Schiano (born June 1, 1966) is an American football coach. He is the head football coach at Rutgers University, a position he held from 2001 to 2011 and resumed before the 2020 season. Schiano served as the head coach for the Tampa ...
.


Other events

On December 2, 1983, a local nonprofit, Visions-Innervisions Productions, hosted a fundraiser for Headstart and other community services at the RAC beginning with the annual university Step-Show, viewing the debut of Michael Jackson's ''Thriller'' on 20' screens, one above each hoop, followed by Motown's D-Train, live. The arena is used every June as a graduation hall for
Piscataway Township High School Piscataway High School is a four-year comprehensive community public high school serving students in ninth through twelfth grades from Piscataway in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States, operating as the lone secondary school of the P ...
, Edison High School, and
North Brunswick Township High School North Brunswick Township High School (NBTHS) is a four-year comprehensive public high school located in North Brunswick, in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States, serving students in ninth through twelfth grades as the lone secondary sc ...
, as well as for other high schools in surrounding cities. The graduations are free for anyone to attend. Starting in 2014, Rutgers University Dance Marathon is held at the RAC, having moved from the College Avenue Gym.


Possible expansion

In 2010, the Newark, New Jersey-based '' Star-Ledger'' and the Rutgers University newspaper, ''
The Daily Targum ''The Daily Targum'' is the official student newspaper of Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey. Founded in 1869, it is the second-oldest collegiate newspaper in the United States. The ''Daily Targum'' is student written and managed, and ...
'' have reported that former Rutgers Athletic Director Tim Pernetti planned to expand the Louis Brown Athletic Center to include more practice facilities, more concourse space, and a seating expansion to accommodate 12,500 fans, including club seating and premium restaurants. Pernetti also stated that he wanted to book more concerts at the arena and at nearby
Rutgers Stadium SHI Stadium is the football stadium at Rutgers University in Piscataway, New Jersey. Rutgers Scarlet Knights football, Rutgers Scarlet Knights men's lacrosse, and women's lacrosse use the venue for home games. It is located on the Busch Campus at ...
. When the Scarlet Knights joined the
Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...
in 2014, the RAC was the smallest arena in conference, with slightly fewer seats than the 8,117 that Northwestern's
Welsh–Ryan Arena Welsh–Ryan Arena is a 7,039-seat multi-purpose arena in Evanston, Illinois, United States, near the campus of Northwestern University. It is home to four Northwestern Wildcats athletic teams: men's basketball, women's basketball, women's volle ...
sat at the time. However, after the renovations of Welsh-Ryan during the 2017–18 season, in which the listed capacity was decreased, Welsh-Ryan Arena is now smaller, making the RAC the second-smallest arena in the conference. The other twelve Big Ten schools' arenas all seat at least 12,500.


See also

*
List of NCAA Division I basketball arenas A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to: People * List (surname) Organizations * List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America * SC Germania List, German rugby union ...


References

{{Former NBA arenas Sports venues completed in 1977 College basketball venues in the United States Basketball venues in New Jersey New Jersey Nets arenas Rutgers Scarlet Knights basketball venues Former National Basketball Association venues 1977 establishments in New Jersey Piscataway, New Jersey