Allen Fieldhouse
Encyclopedia
Allen Fieldhouse is an indoor arena at the University of Kansas
(KU) in Lawrence, Kansas
. The arena
, named in honor of Dr. Forrest C. "Phog" Allen
, who coached the university's men's basketball
team for 39 years, is one of college basketball's most historically significant and prestigious buildings. The actual playing surface is the James Naismith
Court, honoring the inventor of basketball who established Kansas' basketball program and served as its first coach from 1898 to 1907.
Since the opening of Allen Fieldhouse in 1955, the Jayhawks have a home record of 666-107 . Since February 20, 1994, the Jayhawks have lost only 13 regular season games in Allen Fieldhouse, a 253-13 record through March 2, 2011. Current Jayhawks Head Coach Bill Self is 129-7 (.948) in the historic structure, keeping up the tradition of Allen being one of the hardest places for opponents to play in the country. On November 4, 2010, ESPN The Magazine named Allen Fieldhouse the loudest college basketball arena in the country.
Allen Fieldhouse was dedicated on March 1, 1955 when the Jayhawks defeated their in-state rival, the Kansas State Wildcats
, 77-67. Since then renovations have included minor seating expansions in 1986 and 1994, as well as accessibility
upgrades in 1999 to modernize concession stand
s and restroom
facilities, and to install an elevator
in the south end. Handicapped seating was moved courtside behind both baskets in 2001.
Renovations completed in 2005 include a thorough cleaning of the exterior, and the creation of a new Booth Family Hall of Athletics facility on the east side of the Fieldhouse. Interior renovations include a new hardwood court, new windows, and a multi-million dollar video board and sound system. After 2006, new banners for the retired jerseys and conference and national championships were installed.
Renovations completed in 2009 include an expansion of the Booth Family Hall of Athletics and the creation of a donor atrium, as well as improved concessions, wider concourses, and restroom upgrades. The building also received brand new locker rooms, training rooms, film rooms, and player lounges. A pedestrian bridge connecting the fieldhouse to the existing facility parking garage was also constructed. The improvements cost approximately $7.8 million.
In December of 2010, the Booth family announced that they had purchased the founding document of the game of basketball, Dr. Naismith's original 13 rules of basketball. It is expected that the document will be permanently housed inside Allen Fieldhouse.
Banners hang in the south rafters to honor such Jayhawk greats as Wilt Chamberlain
, Clyde Lovellette, Jo Jo White
, Danny Manning
, Paul Pierce
, Lynette Woodard, Drew Gooden
, Nick Collison
, and Kirk Hinrich
among others. There is also a banner to honor Max Falkenstien, the legendary Jayhawks radio announcer, who served the university for more than 60 years. To date he is the only non-athlete to be honored at Allen Fieldhouse in this way. The east and west sides are devoted to KU's conference championships (a total of 54 as of 2011) as members of the Missouri Valley Conference
, Big Six, Big Seven, Big Eight
, and Big 12 Conference
s, as well as the Jayhawks' trips to the Final Four
.
On the north wall hangs a banner reading "Pay Heed, All Who Enter: Beware of the Phog", in reference to the intimidating atmosphere and the team's home court dominance. The original "Pay Heed" banner was constructed out of dormitory shower curtains by a group of KU students before a late season game against the Duke Blue Devils in 1988 and is now on display in the Booth Family Hall of Athletics museum. The slogan was inspired in part by advertisements for the 1980s horror movie The Fog
. It hung on the north wall until 1999, by which time it had deteriorated to the point where it was about to fall. The university replaced the banner with a much more regular-looking design, which met with negative reaction from the public. The current banner was redesigned to be more faithful to the look of the original.
There are also banners for national championships in 1922, 1923 (Helms Foundation
championships), 1952
, 1988
, and 2008
that hang below the "Pay Heed" banner.
The concourse was originally an indoor track, and at times the Fieldhouse has been home to men's and women's basketball
, indoor track and field
, volleyball
, and practice facilities for the American football
and softball
teams. It has since specialized as facilities were constructed around campus to accommodate these needs, and now serves exclusively as the home for Jayhawk basketball.
Allen Fieldhouse has also hosted several NCAA tournament
regionals, NBA exhibition games, and occasional concerts such as The Beach Boys
, Elton John
, James Taylor
, Sonny and Cher, Leon Russell
, Alice Cooper
, ZZ Top
, Tina Turner
, Harry Belafonte
, Henry Mancini
, The Doobie Brothers
, Kansas
and Bob Hope
as well as speakers, including former U.S. President Bill Clinton
in 2004, U.S. presidential candidate Senator Robert F. Kennedy
(which drew over 20,000) in 1968 and the anarchist Abbie Hoffman
in 1970.
Kansas won 69 consecutive games at the Fieldhouse between February 3, 2007 and January 17, 2011 until Texas ended the longest streak in NCAA Division I since 1992 with a 74-63 win against Kansas on January 22, 2011. This streak broke Kansas' previous school record, which lasted from February 26, 1994 through December 18, 1998 (during which time, the Big 8 Conference transformed into the Big XII). The Jayhawks also completed a 55-game streak between February 22, 1984 through January 30, 1988, which remains a record for the Big 8 era.
Throughout the era of the 12-team Big 12 (1997–2011), the Jayhawks compiled an amazing 43-2 (.955) record in Allen Fieldhouse vs. the teams from the south division (Baylor, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas, Texas A&M, and Texas Tech). A south team did not win in the Phog in the first 10 seasons of the Big 12 until Texas A&M broke through in 2007. And then it did not happen again until Texas was able to get it done in 2011. Following the end of the 2011 season, the Big 12 no longer has divisions. Of further note, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State can claim victories in Allen Fieldhouse prior to the Big 12 in Big 8 conference play. Baylor and Texas Tech have never won there.
Max Falkenstien was a stalwart figure in the radio booth, working every home game in Allen Fieldhouse from its construction to his retirement in 2006, 51 years later.
Prior to playing at Allen, the basketball team played at Hoch Auditorium
, their home from the beginning of the 1927 season to the end of the 1955 season. Before that, the Jayhawks played at Robinson Gymnasium, whose design was heavily influenced by the advice of Dr. Naismith. Robinson was razed in 1967 and is now the site of Wescoe Hall.
was the coach at the time), and since 1993, its official capacity has been 16,300. Of these seats, 4,000 are dedicated to current KU students, with most of the remainder taken by season-ticket-holding members of the Williams Educational Fund, the fundraising arm of KU Athletics, named after Lawrence banker Dick Williams and his sons, Skipper and Odd. The largest crowd in Allen Fieldhouse for a basketball game was 17,228 on March 1, 1955 when the building was dedicated. Barring another expansion of seating, it is unlikely that this record will ever be broken as fire codes have forced KU to strictly enforce the building's capacity since the mid-1980s.
. During the alma mater, the students throw their arms around their neighbors and sway back and forth, raising their arms above their heads for the end line, "Hail to old KU."
After singing The Star-Spangled Banner
, while the opposing team is being introduced, the members of the student section take out a copy of the student-run newspaper, The University Daily Kansan
, and wave the paper in front of their faces, pretending to be reading it in an effort to show disinterest in the opposing team. After the opponents are introduced, a short video, detailing the history and the accomplishments of Kansas basketball is shown, to get the crowd excited. As the Jayhawks are introduced, the students rip up their newspapers and throw the confetti pieces of paper in the air as celebration. Whatever confetti remains is typically thrown in the air after the first basket made by the Jayhawks.
If an opposing player fouls out of the game, the crowd will "wave the wheat," waving their arms back and forth, as a sarcastic good-bye to the disqualified player, to the tune of "You Didn't Have Your Wheaties", from a series of 1970s television commercials promoting Wheaties breakfast cereal.
The same motion is done to the tune of "A Hot Time in the Old Town" after a Jayhawk victory.
If the Jayhawks are leading comfortably near the end of the game (less than two minutes remaining), the crowd begins to do a slow version of the Rock Chalk Chant, which has become the signature tradition of Allen Fieldhouse.
Fans will also line up early for Late Night In The Phog, which is the first practice of the season. They make it viewable to the public and they also perform skits with past players as the host.
University of Kansas
The University of Kansas is a public research university and the largest university in the state of Kansas. KU campuses are located in Lawrence, Wichita, Overland Park, and Kansas City, Kansas with the main campus being located in Lawrence on Mount Oread, the highest point in Lawrence. The...
(KU) in Lawrence, Kansas
Lawrence, Kansas
Lawrence is the sixth largest city in the U.S. State of Kansas and the county seat of Douglas County. Located in northeastern Kansas, Lawrence is the anchor city of the Lawrence, Kansas, Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Douglas County...
. The arena
Arena
An arena is an enclosed area, often circular or oval-shaped, designed to showcase theater, musical performances, or sporting events. It is composed of a large open space surrounded on most or all sides by tiered seating for spectators. The key feature of an arena is that the event space is the...
, named in honor of Dr. Forrest C. "Phog" Allen
Phog Allen
Forrest Clare "Phog" Allen was an American basketball and baseball player, coach of American football, basketball, and baseball, college athletics administrator, and osteopathic physician...
, who coached the university's men's basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
team for 39 years, is one of college basketball's most historically significant and prestigious buildings. The actual playing surface is the James Naismith
James Naismith
The first game of "Basket Ball" was played in December 1891. In a handwritten report, Naismith described the circumstances of the inaugural match; in contrast to modern basketball, the players played nine versus nine, handled a soccer ball, not a basketball, and instead of shooting at two hoops,...
Court, honoring the inventor of basketball who established Kansas' basketball program and served as its first coach from 1898 to 1907.
Since the opening of Allen Fieldhouse in 1955, the Jayhawks have a home record of 666-107 . Since February 20, 1994, the Jayhawks have lost only 13 regular season games in Allen Fieldhouse, a 253-13 record through March 2, 2011. Current Jayhawks Head Coach Bill Self is 129-7 (.948) in the historic structure, keeping up the tradition of Allen being one of the hardest places for opponents to play in the country. On November 4, 2010, ESPN The Magazine named Allen Fieldhouse the loudest college basketball arena in the country.
Facilities
Allen Fieldhouse was dedicated on March 1, 1955 when the Jayhawks defeated their in-state rival, the Kansas State Wildcats
Kansas State Wildcats men's basketball
The Kansas State Wildcats men's basketball team represents Kansas State University in college basketball competition. The program is classified in the NCAA's Division I, and is a member of the Big 12 Conference. The current head coach is Frank Martin....
, 77-67. Since then renovations have included minor seating expansions in 1986 and 1994, as well as accessibility
Accessibility
Accessibility is a general term used to describe the degree to which a product, device, service, or environment is available to as many people as possible. Accessibility can be viewed as the "ability to access" and benefit from some system or entity...
upgrades in 1999 to modernize concession stand
Concession stand
A concession stand , snack kiosk or snack bar is the term used to refer to a place where patrons can purchase snacks or food at a cinema, fair, stadium, or other entertainment venue. Some events or venues contract out the right to sell food to third parties...
s and restroom
Toilet
A toilet is a sanitation fixture used primarily for the disposal of human excrement, often found in a small room referred to as a toilet/bathroom/lavatory...
facilities, and to install an elevator
Elevator
An elevator is a type of vertical transport equipment that efficiently moves people or goods between floors of a building, vessel or other structures...
in the south end. Handicapped seating was moved courtside behind both baskets in 2001.
Renovations completed in 2005 include a thorough cleaning of the exterior, and the creation of a new Booth Family Hall of Athletics facility on the east side of the Fieldhouse. Interior renovations include a new hardwood court, new windows, and a multi-million dollar video board and sound system. After 2006, new banners for the retired jerseys and conference and national championships were installed.
Renovations completed in 2009 include an expansion of the Booth Family Hall of Athletics and the creation of a donor atrium, as well as improved concessions, wider concourses, and restroom upgrades. The building also received brand new locker rooms, training rooms, film rooms, and player lounges. A pedestrian bridge connecting the fieldhouse to the existing facility parking garage was also constructed. The improvements cost approximately $7.8 million.
In December of 2010, the Booth family announced that they had purchased the founding document of the game of basketball, Dr. Naismith's original 13 rules of basketball. It is expected that the document will be permanently housed inside Allen Fieldhouse.
Banners hang in the south rafters to honor such Jayhawk greats as Wilt Chamberlain
Wilt Chamberlain
Wilton Norman "Wilt" Chamberlain was an American professional NBA basketball player for the Philadelphia/San Francisco Warriors, the Philadelphia 76ers and the Los Angeles Lakers; he also played for the Harlem Globetrotters prior to playing in the NBA...
, Clyde Lovellette, Jo Jo White
Jo Jo White
Joseph Henry "Jo Jo" White is an American former professional basketball player.-Life and career:White was born in St. Louis, Missouri, the son of a minister...
, Danny Manning
Danny Manning
Daniel Ricardo "Danny" Manning is a retired American professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association. He is an assistant basketball coach at his alma mater, the University of Kansas Jayhawks. Manning won the National Championship with the Jayhawks in 1988 as a player, and...
, Paul Pierce
Paul Pierce
Paul Anthony Pierce , nicknamed The Truth, is an American professional basketball player for the Boston Celtics of the NBA. He earned First Team All-America honors in his junior year at Kansas, and has been a starter every season since being selected by the Celtics with the 10th overall pick in the...
, Lynette Woodard, Drew Gooden
Drew Gooden
Andrew Melvin "Drew" Gooden is an American professional basketball player in the NBA who plays for the Milwaukee Bucks. Gooden is a 6'10", 250 lbs...
, Nick Collison
Nick Collison
Nicholas John Collison is an American professional basketball player, currently a power forward for the Oklahoma City Thunder of the NBA, and well known in basketball circles for his accomplishments at the University of Kansas.- Early life and high school career :Nick Collison was born in Orange...
, and Kirk Hinrich
Kirk Hinrich
Kirk James Hinrich is an American professional basketball player, currently a guard for the NBA's Atlanta Hawks. He has also been a member of the USA National Team....
among others. There is also a banner to honor Max Falkenstien, the legendary Jayhawks radio announcer, who served the university for more than 60 years. To date he is the only non-athlete to be honored at Allen Fieldhouse in this way. The east and west sides are devoted to KU's conference championships (a total of 54 as of 2011) as members of the Missouri Valley Conference
Missouri Valley Conference
The Missouri Valley Conference is a college athletic conference whose members are located in the midwestern United States...
, Big Six, Big Seven, Big Eight
Big Eight Conference
The Big Eight Conference, a former NCAA-affiliated Division I-A college athletic association that sponsored football, was formed in January 1907 as the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association by its charter member schools: the University of Kansas, University of Missouri, University...
, and Big 12 Conference
Big 12 Conference
The Big 12 Conference is a college athletic conference of ten schools located in the Central United States, with its headquarters located in Las Colinas, a community in the Dallas, Texas suburb of Irving...
s, as well as the Jayhawks' trips to the Final Four
Final four
Final Four isa sports term that is commonly applied to the last four teams remaining in a playoff tournament, most notably NCAA Division I college basketball tournaments. The term usually refers to the four teams who compete in the two games of a single-elimination tournament's semi-final round...
.
On the north wall hangs a banner reading "Pay Heed, All Who Enter: Beware of the Phog", in reference to the intimidating atmosphere and the team's home court dominance. The original "Pay Heed" banner was constructed out of dormitory shower curtains by a group of KU students before a late season game against the Duke Blue Devils in 1988 and is now on display in the Booth Family Hall of Athletics museum. The slogan was inspired in part by advertisements for the 1980s horror movie The Fog
The Fog
The Fog is a 1980 horror film directed by John Carpenter, who also co-wrote the screenplay and composed the music for the film. It stars Adrienne Barbeau, Jamie Lee Curtis, Tom Atkins and Janet Leigh...
. It hung on the north wall until 1999, by which time it had deteriorated to the point where it was about to fall. The university replaced the banner with a much more regular-looking design, which met with negative reaction from the public. The current banner was redesigned to be more faithful to the look of the original.
There are also banners for national championships in 1922, 1923 (Helms Foundation
Helms Athletic Foundation
The Helms Athletic Foundation was an athletic foundation based in Los Angeles, founded in 1936 by Bill Schroeder and Paul Helms. It put together a panel of experts to select National Champion teams and make All-America team selections in a number of college sports including football and basketball...
championships), 1952
1952 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament
-External links:* on Shrp Sports * , source for much of the information on this page....
, 1988
1988 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament
The 1988 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament involved 64 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 17, 1988, and ended with the championship game on April 4 returning to Kansas City, Missouri...
, and 2008
2008 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament
The 2008 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament involved 65 schools playing in a single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball as a culmination of the 2007–08 basketball season...
that hang below the "Pay Heed" banner.
History
Building of Allen Fieldhouse began in 1952, but quickly slowed to a halt because of a federal mandate restricting steel consumption following the Second World War and during the Korean War. However, university officials were able to find a loophole: by adding some rooms for gun and weapons storage, construction of the building was able to continue under the guise of an "armory."The concourse was originally an indoor track, and at times the Fieldhouse has been home to men's and women's basketball
Women's basketball
Women's basketball is one of the few women's sports that developed in tandem with its men's counterpart. It became popular, spreading from the east coast of the United States to the west coast , in large part via women's colleges...
, indoor track and field
Track and field
Track and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...
, volleyball
Volleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
, and practice facilities for the American football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
and softball
Softball
Softball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of 10 to 14 players. It is a direct descendant of baseball although there are some key differences: softballs are larger than baseballs, and the pitches are thrown underhand rather than overhand...
teams. It has since specialized as facilities were constructed around campus to accommodate these needs, and now serves exclusively as the home for Jayhawk basketball.
Allen Fieldhouse has also hosted several NCAA tournament
NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship
The NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship is a single-elimination tournament held each spring in the United States, featuring 68 college basketball teams, to determine the national championship in the top tier of college basketball...
regionals, NBA exhibition games, and occasional concerts such as The Beach Boys
The Beach Boys
The Beach Boys are an American rock band, formed in 1961 in Hawthorne, California. The group was initially composed of brothers Brian, Dennis and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and friend Al Jardine. Managed by the Wilsons' father Murry, The Beach Boys signed to Capitol Records in 1962...
, Elton John
Elton John
Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...
, James Taylor
James Taylor
James Vernon Taylor is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A five-time Grammy Award winner, Taylor was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2000....
, Sonny and Cher, Leon Russell
Leon Russell
Claude Russell Bridges , known professionally as Leon Russell, is an American musician and songwriter, who has recorded as a session musician, sideman, and maintained a solo career in music....
, Alice Cooper
Alice Cooper
Alice Cooper is an American rock singer, songwriter and musician whose career spans more than four decades...
, ZZ Top
ZZ Top
ZZ Top is an American rock band, sometimes referred to as "That Little Ol' Band from Texas". Their style, which is rooted in blues-based boogie rock, has come to incorporate elements of arena, southern, and boogie rock. The band, from Houston Texas, formed in 1969...
, Tina Turner
Tina Turner
Tina Turner is an American singer and actress whose career has spanned more than 50 years. She has won numerous awards and her achievements in the rock music genre have led many to call her the "Queen of Rock 'n' Roll".Turner started out her music career with husband Ike Turner as a member of the...
, Harry Belafonte
Harry Belafonte
Harold George "Harry" Belafonte, Jr. is an American singer, songwriter, actor and social activist. He was dubbed the "King of Calypso" for popularizing the Caribbean musical style with an international audience in the 1950s...
, Henry Mancini
Henry Mancini
Henry Mancini was an American composer, conductor and arranger, best remembered for his film and television scores. He won a record number of Grammy Awards , plus a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award posthumously in 1995...
, The Doobie Brothers
The Doobie Brothers
The Doobie Brothers are an American rock band. The group has sold over 40 million units worldwide throughout their career. The Doobie Brothers were inducted into The Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 2004.-Original incarnation:...
, Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
and Bob Hope
Bob Hope
Bob Hope, KBE, KCSG, KSS was a British-born American comedian and actor who appeared in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in radio, television and movies. He was also noted for his work with the US Armed Forces and his numerous USO shows entertaining American military personnel...
as well as speakers, including former U.S. President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
in 2004, U.S. presidential candidate Senator Robert F. Kennedy
Robert F. Kennedy
Robert Francis "Bobby" Kennedy , also referred to by his initials RFK, was an American politician, a Democratic senator from New York, and a noted civil rights activist. An icon of modern American liberalism and member of the Kennedy family, he was a younger brother of President John F...
(which drew over 20,000) in 1968 and the anarchist Abbie Hoffman
Abbie Hoffman
Abbot Howard "Abbie" Hoffman was a political and social activist who co-founded the Youth International Party ....
in 1970.
Kansas won 69 consecutive games at the Fieldhouse between February 3, 2007 and January 17, 2011 until Texas ended the longest streak in NCAA Division I since 1992 with a 74-63 win against Kansas on January 22, 2011. This streak broke Kansas' previous school record, which lasted from February 26, 1994 through December 18, 1998 (during which time, the Big 8 Conference transformed into the Big XII). The Jayhawks also completed a 55-game streak between February 22, 1984 through January 30, 1988, which remains a record for the Big 8 era.
Throughout the era of the 12-team Big 12 (1997–2011), the Jayhawks compiled an amazing 43-2 (.955) record in Allen Fieldhouse vs. the teams from the south division (Baylor, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas, Texas A&M, and Texas Tech). A south team did not win in the Phog in the first 10 seasons of the Big 12 until Texas A&M broke through in 2007. And then it did not happen again until Texas was able to get it done in 2011. Following the end of the 2011 season, the Big 12 no longer has divisions. Of further note, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State can claim victories in Allen Fieldhouse prior to the Big 12 in Big 8 conference play. Baylor and Texas Tech have never won there.
Max Falkenstien was a stalwart figure in the radio booth, working every home game in Allen Fieldhouse from its construction to his retirement in 2006, 51 years later.
Prior to playing at Allen, the basketball team played at Hoch Auditorium
Hoch Auditorium
Hoch Auditorium was a 3,500-seat multi-purpose arena in Lawrence, Kansas. It opened in 1927. It was home to the University of Kansas Jayhawks basketball teams until Allen Fieldhouse opened in 1955....
, their home from the beginning of the 1927 season to the end of the 1955 season. Before that, the Jayhawks played at Robinson Gymnasium, whose design was heavily influenced by the advice of Dr. Naismith. Robinson was razed in 1967 and is now the site of Wescoe Hall.
Capacity
Allen Fieldhouse was originally built with a capacity of 17,000. During Ted Owens' coaching period (1964–83), the capacity was reduced to 15,200. It was raised to 15,800 in the 1986 offseason (Larry BrownLarry Brown (basketball)
Lawrence Harvey "Larry" Brown is an American basketball coach and former player. He most recently served as head coach of the National Basketball Association's Charlotte Bobcats....
was the coach at the time), and since 1993, its official capacity has been 16,300. Of these seats, 4,000 are dedicated to current KU students, with most of the remainder taken by season-ticket-holding members of the Williams Educational Fund, the fundraising arm of KU Athletics, named after Lawrence banker Dick Williams and his sons, Skipper and Odd. The largest crowd in Allen Fieldhouse for a basketball game was 17,228 on March 1, 1955 when the building was dedicated. Barring another expansion of seating, it is unlikely that this record will ever be broken as fire codes have forced KU to strictly enforce the building's capacity since the mid-1980s.
Traditions
Before the start of every home game, it is tradition to sing the alma mater, "Crimson and the Blue"; which is concluded by the famous Rock Chalk ChantRock Chalk, Jayhawk
"Rock Chalk, Jayhawk" is a chant used at University of Kansas Jayhawks sporting events. The chant is made up of the phrase "Rock chalk, Jayhawk, KU".-History:...
. During the alma mater, the students throw their arms around their neighbors and sway back and forth, raising their arms above their heads for the end line, "Hail to old KU."
After singing The Star-Spangled Banner
The Star-Spangled Banner
"The Star-Spangled Banner" is the national anthem of the United States of America. The lyrics come from "Defence of Fort McHenry", a poem written in 1814 by the 35-year-old lawyer and amateur poet, Francis Scott Key, after witnessing the bombardment of Fort McHenry by the British Royal Navy ships...
, while the opposing team is being introduced, the members of the student section take out a copy of the student-run newspaper, The University Daily Kansan
University Daily Kansan
The University Daily Kansan is an editorially and financially independent student newspaper serving the University of Kansas. It was founded in 1904....
, and wave the paper in front of their faces, pretending to be reading it in an effort to show disinterest in the opposing team. After the opponents are introduced, a short video, detailing the history and the accomplishments of Kansas basketball is shown, to get the crowd excited. As the Jayhawks are introduced, the students rip up their newspapers and throw the confetti pieces of paper in the air as celebration. Whatever confetti remains is typically thrown in the air after the first basket made by the Jayhawks.
If an opposing player fouls out of the game, the crowd will "wave the wheat," waving their arms back and forth, as a sarcastic good-bye to the disqualified player, to the tune of "You Didn't Have Your Wheaties", from a series of 1970s television commercials promoting Wheaties breakfast cereal.
Wheaties
Wheaties is a brand of General Mills breakfast cereal. It is well known for featuring prominent athletes on the exterior of the package, and has become a major cultural icon...
The same motion is done to the tune of "A Hot Time in the Old Town" after a Jayhawk victory.
If the Jayhawks are leading comfortably near the end of the game (less than two minutes remaining), the crowd begins to do a slow version of the Rock Chalk Chant, which has become the signature tradition of Allen Fieldhouse.
Fans will also line up early for Late Night In The Phog, which is the first practice of the season. They make it viewable to the public and they also perform skits with past players as the host.