Welcome to Campus Connection, the only place where you'll see coverage of the Ohio State pottery club or chess team throughout the interwebs.
With Ohio State men's basketball coach Chris Holtmann mentioning today that the BasketBucks may make their return to St. John Arena at some point, there is no better time to learn the long and illustrious history of the building.
Opened in 1956 and named after former Ohio State athletic direction Lynn St. John, the arena has been used for various purposes in the 61 years of its existence.
Formerly home of the Ohio State men's and women's basketball team from 1956-1998, and concerts from 1971-1980, the arena now hosts the Ohio State men's and women's volleyball teams, the wrestling team, and the gymnastics teams.
The main event hosted by the arena, however, is the Skull Session, put on by the Ohio State University Marching Band two hours before every home game.
This event, which features a "warm-up" of sorts for the band, leaves the arena at its full 13,276 capacity, with fans and spectators alike sometimes arriving hours early in order to find a good seat.
"I like going to the Skull Session, it's fun to see the band warm up especially since it's hard to hear them from the stands. This way you can enjoy most of the routine," freshman James Fields said.
Outside of the Skull Session, the arena has hosted some high-profile events in recent years. The Ohio State men's basketball team played an NIT Tournament game there in 2008, defeating Cal before winning the whole tournament. The team also played there in 2004 due to a scheduling conflict at the Schottenstein Center.
While the arena was scheduled to be demolished in 2016 and replaced shortly after by the Covelli Multi-Sport Arena, Ohio State officials said that the arena would remain standing for the forseeable future.
With the idea of an all-Ohio college basketball tournament taking place in the not-so-distant future, it would be interesting to see if Ohio State would host games at both the Schottenstein Center as well as St. John Arena. Here's hoping one of Ohio State's greatest landmarks can live a little while longer.
If you have a club, activity, or group that would like to be profiled for Campus Connection, send an email to david@elevenwarriors.com.
