Jersey Mike's Arena

Jersey Mike's Arena
The RAC; House of Horrors; The Trapezoid of Terror
	Exterior view of the arena in 2010
Former names	Rutgers Athletic Center (1977–1986, 2019-21); Louis Brown Athletic Center (1986-2019)
Address	83 Rockafeller Road; Piscataway, New Jersey; United States
Coordinates	40°31′31″N 74°26′28″W / 40.52528°N 74.44111°W
Owner	Rutgers University
Operator	Rutgers University
Capacity	8,000
Surface	Hardwood
Scoreboard	Jumbotron
Construction
Broke ground	1975
Opened	November 30, 1977; 47 years ago
Construction cost	$8 million
Architect	Robert Hillier
Tenants
	Rutgers Scarlet Knights (NCAA) teams:; Men's basketball (1977–present); Women's basketball (1977–present); Professional teams; New Jersey Nets (NBA) (1977–1981);
Website
	Jersey Mike's Arena

Jersey Mike's Arena, commonly known as the Rutgers Athletic Center ("the RAC"), is an 8,000-seat multi-purpose arena in Piscataway, New Jersey on Rutgers University's Livingston Campus. The building is shaped like a truncated tent with trapezoidal sides on the north and south ends, and is home to the Rutgers Scarlet Knights men's and women's basketball teams, as well as the wrestling, volleyball, and gymnastics teams.

History

Development

New Jersey governor William T. Cahill announced support for a new arena for Rutgers basketball during a game against Princeton in 1971 at the badly outdated "Barn" on College Avenue. He set a goal of a 10,000 seat venue, and provided $250,000 for feasibility studies. A bond issue passed that November, and by July the following year, the Rutgers Board of Governors unveiled a request for proposals.^[1] There were plans for a 13,000 seat arena in downtown New Brunswick, which turned out to be unfeasible. Instead, the university made plans for an arena on Livingston Campus, which would host 11,000 seats for basketball, ice hockey, and aquatics. One administrator opposed larger plans, hoping the university would not become "a basketball or a football factory".^[2]

The Rutgers Athletic Center was ultimately designed by architect Robert Hillier. Originally, he proposed a larger structure with modern amenities, however, the budget was limited to $8 million. Working with the cheapest structural materials he could source, the arena would have four massive support columns, and provide for 8000 seats, yielding a trapezoidal design.^[2] The arena has an off-white concrete facade and thin metal roofing.^[3] Construction began in 1975.^[1]

Opening

The arena opened on with a 102-96 exhibition game win against the Soviet Union national team on November 21, 1977. This was followed up by the official home opener against rival Seton Hall nine days later, yielding an 81-76 win.^[4]^[5] The fans liked the then-new arena as an upgrade from "the Barn". It soon became apparent that the acoustics of the design made the venue very loud when it was full. Hillier credited the steep seating arrangement and materials used for amplifying the sound.^[2]

The National Basketball Association's New Jersey Nets played at the arena from 1977 to 1981, in between their time at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale, New York, and the Brendan Byrne Arena at the Meadowlands Sports Complex in East Rutherford, New Jersey.^[6]

Visions-Innervisions Productions, a local nonprofit, hosted a fundraiser for Head Start and other community services in 1983 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 a live performance from D Train.

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 this, it was usually referred to as "the RAC" by students, alumni, fans, and players.^{[citation needed]}

The arena hosted the 1985 and 1989 Atlantic 10 Conference men's basketball tournaments. The arena hosts Middlesex County boys and girls high school basketball tournament finals, and various boys and girls New Jersey high school basketball state playoff games. A Professional Bowlers Association tournament was broadcast live from the arena on ABC in 1996, the Johnny Petraglia Open.^{[citation needed]}

Renovations

The arena was upgraded with air conditioning for the first time in 2016, at the insistence of newly hired coach Steve Pikiell. He also had weight room and locker rooms updated.^[3] The Big Ten Gymnastics Championships were hosted at the venue in 2017.^[7] The venue hosted the Big Ten Wrestling Championships in 2020.^[7]

The arena was renamed Jersey Mike's Arena in 2021, after the university sold its naming rights to the sandwich chain in a twenty-year $28 million deal.^[8]

The New Jersey State Legislature passed a budget in 2022, which provided $100 million to renovate the arena after few changes in 45 years. Plans included modernizing the bathrooms and concession stands, among other facilities, and adding luxury boxes.^[3]

Acoustics

Jersey Mike's Arena is renowned for being one of the loudest arenas in college basketball at maximum capacity. The trapezoidal design of the building resonates crowd noise onto the court, creating a deafening environment. The RAC has even been described as being "louder than a 757 at Newark Airport."^[9]^[2] A Syracuse Post-Standard writer also noted the court is in a sunken pit.^[10]

A Daily Orange writer referred to the arena as a "house of horrors" for Syracuse in 2005.^[11] A Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel writer reiterated the epithet in a 2011 article about Marquette playing there.^[12] A Syracuse Post-Standard writer in 2020 continued the tradition, musing whether it would still be a house of horrors without any fans in attendance. He said the arena is a "modern-day torture device", drawing a parallel to the medieval rack. The journalist also noted that Rutgers had a 43.2% win rate at home, while only earning 15.4% away. Former Syracuse player Ryan Blackwell concurred that Rutgers does much better at home.^[10]

ESPN's Jay Bilas has lauded the arena, saying, "The Scarlet Knights play great there, and the crowd is right on top of you and intimidating." Many visiting players have also extolled the RAC's atmosphere. Former UConn shooting guard Ben Gordon said that "it is very difficult at the RAC...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."^[9] Former Syracuse power forward Hakim Warrick noted that "the way the gym is made, it's just made to keep the noise in. It's loud and crazy down there."^[9]

Current men's head coach Pikiell told Sports Illustrated in 2022 that longtime UConn coach Jim Calhoun said the arena is "as tough of a place as I've ever had to coach", and emphasized that Calhoun has been to every arena in the country. The SI writer agreed that it "might just be the toughest place to play in the nation" and is terrifying for opponents. He noted the team has a 32–4 home record contrasted by a 6–21 away record from November 2019 to October 2022. Rutgers player Caleb McConnell found it weird, unimpressive, and not ideal for a big school at first. After playing, he said the atmosphere was electric with the floor shaking and an inability to hear other players on the court. The noise was recorded at 115.3 decibels in February 2020. Illinois coach Brad Underwood said most Big Ten coaches will say the arena is the loudest.^[3]

Non-sporting events

Concerts

Styx played at the RAC during their "Grand Illusion" tour on October 24, 1979. Linda Ronstadt also played the venue on her "Living in the USA" tour, despite a sore throat. She returned again on April 11, 1980, for her "Mad Love" tour. Frank Zappa played a show at the venue on April 25, 1980. The Grateful Dead played a show on May 15, 1981. R.E.M. played with 10,000 Maniacs as opening set on October 22, 1987. The Allman Brothers, Cheap Trick, Supertramp, and Steve Winwood have also played the venue.^[7]^{[citation needed]}

Rutgersfest, an annual concert, was held in the arena in 2007 due to rain, and featured The Roots, Hawthorne Heights, and Everclear. Due to limited seating, only 5,000 tickets were given out, angering the approximately 15,000 other students who were then unable to attend.^[13] The venue hosted SpringBlaze 2008, a concert featuring Christian rock bands, with a special appearance by Rutgers Football head coach Greg Schiano.

Other events

Rutgers University Dance Marathon has been held at the RAC since 2014, having moved from the College Avenue Gym.^[14]

The arena is used every June as a graduation hall for J. P. Stevens High School, Edison High School, Piscataway Township High School, North Brunswick Township High School, and other area high schools.

Proposed expansions

The Star-Ledger and The Daily Targum reported in 2010 that Rutgers then-athletic director Tim Pernetti planned to expand the arena 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.^[15]

When the Scarlet Knights joined the Big Ten Conference in 2014, the RAC was the smallest arena in conference, with slightly smaller capacity than Northwestern's 8,117-seat Welsh–Ryan Arena provided at the time. However, after renovations of Welsh-Ryan Arena during the 2017–18 season, which decreased its capacity, the RAC became the second-smallest arena in the conference.^[16] The other 16 Big Ten schools' arenas all seat at least 10,000.

Rutgers athletic director Patrick E. Hobbs wanted to upgrade the RAC during his tenure, replacing office space with a lounge, and converting the media center into a bar.^[2]

References

^ ^a ^b "The Rutgers Athletic Center". Retrieved September 24, 2025.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Politi, Steve (February 11, 2020). "Why is the Rutgers Athletic Center shaped like a trapezoid? An investigation". nj.com. Retrieved November 21, 2022.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Walsh, Declan (October 26, 2022). "How Rutgers Reemerged as Having One of College Basketball's Greatest Venues". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved September 24, 2025.
^ O'Brien, Ken (November 30, 1977). "Rutgers hosts Seton Hall tonight". Daily Home News. Retrieved September 24, 2025.
^ O'Brien, Ken (December 1, 1977). "Bailey a one-man show". Daily Home News. Retrieved September 24, 2025.
^ "NETS: New Jersey Nets History". New Jersey Nets. Archived from the original on August 19, 2010. Retrieved May 11, 2009.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Jersey Mike's Arena". Rutgers University. 2021-11-01. Retrieved September 24, 2025.
^ "Jersey Mike's Subs signs multi-million dollar contract for naming rights to Rutgers Athletic Center".
^ ^a ^b ^c "Louis Brown Athletic Center". The Official Site of Rutgers Athletics. Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. Archived from the original on January 2, 2010. Retrieved May 11, 2009.
^ ^a ^b Waters, Mike (December 8, 2020). "The RAC: Will Rutgers' house of horrors still plague opponents without any fans?". Syracuse Post-Standard. Retrieved September 24, 2025.
^ Licker, Michael (January 24, 2005). "Knight & Day: Miserable Syracuse 1st half leads to 2nd half recovery". The Daily Orange. Retrieved September 24, 2025.
^ Rosiak, Todd (January 4, 2011). "Rutgers' RAC has been a house of horrors for MU". Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. Retrieved September 24, 2025.
^ Huang, Michael (April 26, 2007). "Rutgersfest held indoors due to rain". The Daily Targum. New Brunswick, NJ. Archived from the original on June 10, 2011. Retrieved May 11, 2009.
^ "Rutgers Dance Marathon". www.facebook.com. Archived from the original on 2022-02-26.
^ Luicci, Tom (January 4, 2010). "Rutgers athletic director Tim Pernetti reveals plans for major overhaul of Rutgers Athletic Center". The Star-Ledger. Newark. Retrieved May 11, 2009.
^ Greenstein, Teddy (13 June 2016). "Northwestern's Welsh-Ryan Arena to receive long-overdue overhaul". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 20 May 2017.

External links

Official website

Preceded by Nassau Coliseum	Home of the New Jersey Nets 1977 – 1981	Succeeded by Meadowlands Arena

[therac-1] "The Rutgers Athletic Center". Retrieved September 24, 2025.

[politi-2] Politi, Steve (February 11, 2020). "Why is the Rutgers Athletic Center shaped like a trapezoid? An investigation". nj.com. Retrieved November 21, 2022.

[walsh-3] Walsh, Declan (October 26, 2022). "How Rutgers Reemerged as Having One of College Basketball's Greatest Venues". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved September 24, 2025.

[obrien-4] O'Brien, Ken (November 30, 1977). "Rutgers hosts Seton Hall tonight". Daily Home News. Retrieved September 24, 2025.

[obrien2-5] O'Brien, Ken (December 1, 1977). "Bailey a one-man show". Daily Home News. Retrieved September 24, 2025.

[nets-6] "NETS: New Jersey Nets History". New Jersey Nets. Archived from the original on August 19, 2010. Retrieved May 11, 2009.

[sk2111-7] "Jersey Mike's Arena". Rutgers University. 2021-11-01. Retrieved September 24, 2025.

[8] "Jersey Mike's Subs signs multi-million dollar contract for naming rights to Rutgers Athletic Center".

[rac-9] "Louis Brown Athletic Center". The Official Site of Rutgers Athletics. Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. Archived from the original on January 2, 2010. Retrieved May 11, 2009.

[waters-10] Waters, Mike (December 8, 2020). "The RAC: Will Rutgers' house of horrors still plague opponents without any fans?". Syracuse Post-Standard. Retrieved September 24, 2025.

[licker-11] Licker, Michael (January 24, 2005). "Knight & Day: Miserable Syracuse 1st half leads to 2nd half recovery". The Daily Orange. Retrieved September 24, 2025.

[rosiak-12] Rosiak, Todd (January 4, 2011). "Rutgers' RAC has been a house of horrors for MU". Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. Retrieved September 24, 2025.

[rutgersfest-13] Huang, Michael (April 26, 2007). "Rutgersfest held indoors due to rain". The Daily Targum. New Brunswick, NJ. Archived from the original on June 10, 2011. Retrieved May 11, 2009.

[14] "Rutgers Dance Marathon". www.facebook.com. Archived from the original on 2022-02-26.

[expansion-15] Luicci, Tom (January 4, 2010). "Rutgers athletic director Tim Pernetti reveals plans for major overhaul of Rutgers Athletic Center". The Star-Ledger. Newark. Retrieved May 11, 2009.

[16] Greenstein, Teddy (13 June 2016). "Northwestern's Welsh-Ryan Arena to receive long-overdue overhaul". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 20 May 2017.

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v t e Rutgers Scarlet Knights men's basketball
Venues	Original College Avenue Gymnasium (1906–1931) College Avenue Gymnasium (1931–1977) Jersey Mike's Arena (1977–present)
Rivalries	Princeton Seton Hall
People	Head coaches NBA players Statistical leaders
Seasons	List of seasons 1906–07 1907–08 1908–09 1909–13 1913–14 1914–15 1915–16 1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25
NCAA Final Four appearance in italics

v t e Rutgers Scarlet Knights women's basketball
Venues	College Avenue Gymnasium (1974–1977) Jersey Mike's Arena (1977–present)
Rivalries	Princeton UConn
Culture & lore	History
People	Head coaches
Seasons	1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25 2025–26
AIAW and NCAA national championships in bold; AIAW and NCAA Final Four appearances in italics

v t e NCAA Division I college basketball venues in New Jersey
America East	Wellness and Events Center (NJIT)
Big East	Prudential Center (Seton Hall men) Walsh Gymnasium (Seton Hall women)
Big Ten	Jersey Mike's Arena (Rutgers)
CAA	OceanFirst Bank Center (Monmouth)
Ivy	Jadwin Gymnasium (Princeton)
MAAC	Alumni Gymnasium (Rider) Run Baby Run Arena (Saint Peter's)
NEC	Rothman Center (Fairleigh Dickinson)

v t e Brooklyn Nets
Founded in 1967 Formerly the New Jersey Americans (1967–1968); played in New York (1968–1977) and New Jersey (1977–2012) Based in Brooklyn, New York
Franchise	History ABA–NBA merger All-time roster Draft history Records Head coaches Seasons Current season
Arenas	Teaneck Armory Long Island Arena Island Garden Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum Rutgers Athletic Center Meadowlands Arena Prudential Center Barclays Center
Personnel	Owner(s) Joseph Tsai General manager Sean Marks Head coach Jordi Fernández
G League affiliate	Long Island Nets
Retired numbers	3 5 15 23 25 32 52
ABA championships	1974 1976
Rivalries	New York Knicks
Culture and lore	Broadcasters Just Wright BrooklyKnight Marv Albert Erving for $6 million Forest City Enterprises
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