Volume 126 Issue 26
kansan.com
Monday. October 7,2013
LATE NIGHT AT THE PHOG
FMILY BREMER/KANSAN
Student fans cheer as Bill Self enters Late Night at the Phog at Allen Fieldhouse on Friday, Oct. 4. The Fieldhouse was filled to the brim as officials were forced to turn away thousands of fans from the event
IMAX GOODWIN
mgoodwin@kansan.com
Fourteen-year-old Troop Holden stood at the northeast doors of Allen Fieldhouse. A hoard of Jayhawk fans crowded the entrance around him, disappointment on their faces.
It was 6:30 p.m., time for the event to begin, and these were the unlucky souls who were left out in the unseasonably warm Lawrence air. Troop's father, mother and younger brother were left standing outside the doors.
Troop was the only one who had made it in when the doors were opened and the crowd rushed forward.
But the Holden family had caught the attention of one of the workers at the door.
Now he was beginning to get emotional as he realized that the only way for him to watch the event was without his family members.
"I think whoever was working here at KU kind of felt sorry for us," Steven Holden, Troop's father, said.
Many of the fans outside had waited all day to enter those doors, but by now the hope had faded to defeat. Thousands of people waiting would not get in.
The Holden family had driven from Edmund, Okla., the home-town of Bill Self. It was the fourth time the family had made the trip to see Late Night in the Phog. The first was in 2008, following Mario's Miracle.
Steven's father, and Troop's grandfather, Duke Holden, played football at Kansas from 1958 to 1960.
Steven was born at an on-campus
Allen Fieldhouse
So, of course, the family would be in Lawrence for Late Night this year. But the time had come when Steven had realized he made the drive just to be turned away at the doors. At least Troop had made it, he thought.
University officials estimated that as many as 3,000 to 5,000 people in line had not made it in.
"We knew that it was going to be
"How many places in America do 25,000 people wait to get into a building that holds 16,000?"
BILL SELF
Kansas basketball coach
mirmary, while his parents lived at Jayhawker Towers. The family has remained loyal to the Jayhawks ever since.
Now it seemed Steven had made the four and a half hour drive up I-35 with his family just to stand outside in the rain.
the family made it to Allen Fieldhouse at noon, looked at the line in front of them and thought they had a good chance to make it inside. Troop was determined to be in the seats to see Andrew Wiggins in his first appearance at
a packed house," said Jim Marchiony, associate athletics director for public affairs. "And we knew there were going to be some people that would not get in. It's good news, bad news. It's great to know that Kansas basketball and Kansas athletics are so popular, and it's great to have a full house. The bad news is some people couldn't get in."
The crowd that had waited for most of the day to be in the Phog gave a roar as Bill Self took the court.
When Self arrived at Allen
Fieldhouse at 9:30 that morning he could already see the line of fans growing.
"How many places in America do 25,000 people wait to get into a building that holds 16,000," Self said to the fans.
The crowd responded with a wild cheer.
About an hour or so earlier, as the crowd at the doors began to head home, the Holden family had been directed toward an open door, one that few people would even know leads into Allen Fieldhouse.
Troop, wearing a backward Kansas basketball hat and a Late Night T-shirt from a few years ago, hurried eagerly to meet his family. His younger brother, wearing a Paul Pierce retro jersey, peered through the darkened glass of the window, jumping back excitedly as he saw Troop appear alongside a man wearring an all-access pass.
The three of them entered the student athlete center reuniting with Troop as Steven looked around in disbelief. Troop's mother snapped pictures with the camera that hung around her neck, as they walked down a hallway, past some offices, into a room and down another hallway while Steven pointed
SEE PHOG PAGE 2
When doors opened at Late Night, roaring crowds started pushing and cutting in line. Most Kansas basketball fans were flooded with relief once they stepped inside the Fieldhouse doors. But for others, doors were slammed shut, forcing them to stand outside or head
Alissa Corbet, a senior from Wheaton, Ill. left the frustration of being left behind.
Corbet's group camped outside for eight hours and wasn't able to get in after being scrousted like sandwiches for 40 minutes.
Her group finally left at 6:35 p.m. and headed to The Wheel to watch Late Night on TV.
"Alen Fieldhouse failed its fans by not having an efficient way of letting people in," Corbett said. "If this is going to be an open event, it still needs to be an organized event. We all felt screwed."
Associate Athletics Director for Public Affairs Jim Marchiway said KU athletics will decide after event review and discussion whether we need to change how we handle Late Night.
- Plans to seat the overflow of fans in Hogland Ballpark next to Alen Fieldhouse were canceled due to thunderstorms in the area.
Edited by Casey Hutchins and Paige Lytle
LAWRENCE
Vote to fund recreation center at Rock Chalk Park delayed
ITOM QUINLAN
CITY OF LAWRENCE
The city shows their rendering of the recreation center, which is not yet funded.
touinlan@kansan.com
The Lawrence City Commission made the decision to delay a vote on millions of dollars of funding for public recreation at Rock Chalk Park. According to the city of Lawrence's website, the new recreation center at Rock Chalk Park is set to include eight full size basketball courts, 16 volleyball courts, an indoor sports area and a 1/8 mile indoor walking and jogging track. The center will also include a wellness area, meeting rooms and areas for gymnastics and cardio. The Lawrence Recreation Center will be located near the northeast corner of 6th Street and the K-10 intersection.
The city is expected to spend approximately $22.5 million on the project. Fritzel Construction is tasked with building the recreation center at Rock Chalk Park, after submitting a winning bid
to the city of Lawrence for $10.5 million. The commissioners are examining the issuing of industrial revenue bonds for the project. The proposed industrial revenue bonds would provide up to $40 million of funding for Rock Chalk Park. Gary Anderson, an attorney with Gilmore & Bell law firm which advises public institutions on financing issues, made the purpose of these particular bonds clear at
According to Commissioner Bob Schumm, the decision to delay the
the city commission's meeting on Oct. 1. The bonds would allow for a sales tax exemption with the purchase of construction materials and provide a property tax exemption on the project. The city would not carry any financial liability with the issuing of the bonds.
SEE PARK PAGE 2
181.000 square feet
CRYPTOQUIPS 5A
OPINION 4A
16 Full Size Volleyball Courts
8 Full Size Basketball Courts
16 Ft Full Size Volleyball Balls
Indoor Soccer/Sports Arena
1/8 Mile, Indoor Walking/Jogging Track
Gymnastics Area, Cardio/Weight, Aerobic/Fitness area
Meeting Rooms
Administration Office & Support Areas
Meeting Rooms
Index CLASSIFIEDS 2B
CROSSWORD 5A
Future Wellness Area
○ Shared Infrastructure Expense capped at $10,290,950 after a donation of up to $2 million from the Assists Foundation
Shared infrastructure includes: Parking (Approx, 1500 spaces), 8 lighted tennis courts, landscaping, irrigation, 5 linear miles of walking trails, sanitary sewer, water, stormwater, stormwater detention, public/public streets and sidewalks
SPORTS 1B
SUDOKU 5A
Arch Fees
$784,050 (26 Acres, includes 5 Acre pad-ready site)
All contents, unless stated otherwise, © 2013 The University Daily Kansan
$925,000
Today is the deadline to elect for credit/ no-credit grading for fall classes
City of Lawrence
Mainly sunny. West winds at 5 to 10 mph