Carver–Hawkeye Arena

Mediacom Court at Carver–Hawkeye Arena
"Carver"
Former names	Hawkeye Sports Arena (planning)
Location	1 Elliot Drive; Iowa City, Iowa 52242
Owner	University of Iowa
Operator	University of Iowa
Capacity	15,400 (2011–present); 15,500 (1983–2011)
Surface	Parquet
Construction
Broke ground	July 15, 1980
Opened	January 3, 1983
Renovated	2009–2011
Construction cost	$18.4 million; ($56.3 million in 2023 dollars)
Architect	Caudill Rowlett Scott; Durant Group
Structural engineer	Geiger Berger Associates
General contractor	CRS/Knutson
Tenants
	Iowa Hawkeyes men's and women's basketball, gymnastics, volleyball, and wrestling

Carver–Hawkeye Arena is a 15,400-seat multi-purpose indoor arena located in Iowa City, Iowa. Opened in 1983, it is the home court for The University of Iowa Hawkeyes men's and women's basketball teams, as well as the university's wrestling, gymnastics, and volleyball teams. It was named for the late industrialist Roy J. Carver of Muscatine, Iowa, a prominent statewide booster, who donated $9.2 million to The University of Iowa before his death in 1981.^[4] Prior to the arena's opening, Iowa's athletic teams played at the Iowa Field House.

Entirely funded by private contributions, the arena was expected to be open for the 1982–83 school year, but weather slowed construction to the point where the first event was held on January 3, 1983. Iowa's wrestling team defeated Oklahoma and two days later, the men's basketball team played their first game – a loss to Michigan State – in the new arena.^[4]

Notable athletic events in the arena include the Big Ten and NCAA wrestling championships, the National Duals, the U.S. Olympic wrestling trials in 1984 and 2012, the UWW World Cup in 2018, and the NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Tournament.

The arena also serves as the site of commencement exercises for several of the university's colleges, and has hosted concerts by artists such as U2, Whitney Houston, Stevie Nicks, *NSYNC, Metallica, Guns N' Roses, Old Dominion (band), and Red Hot Chili Peppers, and speeches by Former Presidents Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton as well as Desmond Tutu and Jane Goodall. Carver-Hawkeye has also hosted many of Hancher Auditorium's performances since that building sustained damage in the Iowa flood of 2008. It also hosted World Wrestling Entertainment while its primary Eastern Iowa venue, the U.S. Cellular Center in Cedar Rapids, underwent renovations from 2011 to 2013.

History

Predecessors

Iowa basketball and wrestling teams initially competed at a building named the "Armory", which was located on the east bank of the Iowa River. With a capacity of 3,000, the Armory was easily large enough, considering that the fan support Iowa's teams received in that era was much less than it is today. Later, in 1927, the Iowa Field House was opened during Paul Belding's tenure as athletic director. Considered as a "magnificent structure for its day", the Field House was home to Iowa's basketball and wrestling teams, and included an indoor track and a swimming pool.^[4]

The Field House, however, was known for its steel balconies and sub-par acoustics, along with columns that obstructed views. When demand was high for Hawkeye basketball, bleachers were placed behind the baskets, allowing some 15,000 to attend games. Season ticket sales skyrocketed during the highly successful tenures of head coaches Ralph Miller and Lute Olson, and support for a new arena gradually increased. Following approval from the Iowa Board of Regents, construction of Carver–Hawkeye Arena began.^[4]

On December 6, 2008, Iowa set the national collegiate wrestling dual meet attendance record as 15,955 fans packed the arena for Iowa-Iowa State match. The previous record of 15,646 was set Feb. 1, 2002, when Minnesota hosted Iowa at the Target Center in Minneapolis. Tom Brands, Brent Metcalf, and Tony Ramos are the only Hawkeye wrestlers to never lose a match during their college career in Carver–Hawkeye Arena.

In 2016, a new scoreboard was added to the arena. It measures at 14.5 feet high by 26 feet wide.^[5]

On the 7th-8th April, 2018 Carver–Hawkeye Arena took senior freestyle wrestling international tournament World Cup 2018.

References

^ ^a ^b McNeil, Heidi (July 16, 1980). "Arena Ground Broken, Bagged" (PDF). The Daily Iowan. University of Iowa. p. 8. Retrieved November 11, 2013.
^ 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved February 29, 2024.
^ ^a ^b ^c Architecture: the AIA journal, Volume 73, Issues 4-6. New York: American Institute of Architects. 1984. p. 384. {{cite book}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Carver–Hawkeye Arena: Celebrating 25 Years. University of Iowa, 2008.
^ https://www.daktronics.com/news/Pages/University-of-Iowa-Turns-to-Daktronics.aspx

External links

Carver–Hawkeye Arena: The Home of the Hawkeyes webpage (HawkeyeSports.com: Facilities)

41°39′49″N 91°33′16″W / 41.66361°N 91.55444°W / 41.66361; -91.55444

[groundbreaking-1] McNeil, Heidi (July 16, 1980). "Arena Ground Broken, Bagged" (PDF). The Daily Iowan. University of Iowa. p. 8. Retrieved November 11, 2013.

[inflation-US-2] 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved February 29, 2024.

[AIA-3] Architecture: the AIA journal, Volume 73, Issues 4-6. New York: American Institute of Architects. 1984. p. 384. {{cite book}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)

[UI_informational_booklet-4] Carver–Hawkeye Arena: Celebrating 25 Years. University of Iowa, 2008.

[5] ttps://www.daktronics.com/news/Pages/University-of-Iowa-Turns-to-Daktronics.aspx

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v t e Iowa Hawkeyes men's basketball
Venues	Close Hall (1901–1904) First Iowa Armory (1905–1922) Second Iowa Armory (1922–1926) Iowa Field House (1927–1983) Carver–Hawkeye Arena (1983–present)
Rivalries	Iowa "Big Four" Iowa State (Iowa Corn Cy-Hawk Series) Illinois
Culture & lore	"Iowa Fight Song" Herky the Hawk Gambling scandal First 5-on-5 college basketball game
People	Head coaches NBA players Statistical leaders
Seasons	List of seasons 1892–93 1893–95 1895–96 1896–97 1897–98 1898–1901 1901–02 1902–03 1903–04 1904–05 1905–06 1906–07 1907–08 1908–09 1909–10 1910–11 1911–12 1912–13 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 appearances in italics

v t e Iowa Hawkeyes women's basketball
Venues	Iowa Field House (1974–1983) Carver–Hawkeye Arena (1983–present)
Rivalries	Iowa State (Iowa Corn Cy-Hawk Series)
Culture & lore	Crossover at Kinnick Herky the Hawk "Iowa Fight Song" Full Court Press The Law Firm
People	Head coaches Statistical leaders
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
NCAA Final Four appearances in italics

v t e Music venues of Iowa
Outdoor venues	East Park Band Shell Estes Park Band Shell Grandview Park Music Pavilion Harrah's Council Bluffs Karl King Bandshell Mid-America Motorplex LeClaire Park Bandshell Oskaloosa City Park Band Stand
Theaters and clubs	Center for Faith and Life Des Moines Civic Center Adler Theatre River Music Experience Orpheum Theatre Paramount Theatre
Arenas	Alliant Energy PowerHouse Carver–Hawkeye Arena Five Flags Center Hilton Coliseum McElroy Auditorium McLeod Center Mid-America Center Tyson Events Center UNI-Dome Wells Fargo Arena
Festivals	515 Alive 80/35 Music Festival Bix Beiderbecke Memorial Jazz Festival
Historic venues	The Col Ballroom Lakeside Ballroom Surf Ballroom

History

Predecessors

See also

References

External links