After moving off-campus following the 1999-2000 season, home games for the Wolfpack have been different. Since moving from the “Old Barn,” the Pack has won memorable games, most recently this past weekend against No. 1 Duke, but the atmosphere isn’t there. 

Maybe this past weekend’s events will mark the change in stability the program needs.

Can the team move back to Reynolds Coliseum? No, but fans and players alike would like to see more games played in “The house that Case built.”

In its annual Reynolds game, the Pack defeated Cleveland State 80-63 in front of a sold out arena filled with rabid fans. Honestly, it was louder than any game I’ve attended this year, minus this past weekend’s triumphant victory. 

The loudest point came when the walk-ons and players who get limited to play entered the game with under two minutes to play. Freshman guard Chase Cannon drilled a three-pointer and the crowd went wild.

“Reynolds is definitely a whole different experience then PNC entirely,” Cannon said. “It’s a much more personal environment with the crowd because it’s so small and everyone’s packed in so tightly. It’s just insane how loud it got.”

There’s something about playing on that court that brings the team to life—everything about Reynolds that fills fans, players and coaches with a fire for the game. The team plays with an unstoppable passion and fans scream louder. The sound bounces off the walls and feels as though the foundation and walls are shaking, ready to crumble when the Pack plays there. 

Following the win against Cleveland State, junior guard Lorenzo Brown and senior forward Richard Howell both said they would like to play more games at Reynolds.

Howell said he enjoys feeling the crowd “on top of you” and closer to the court, rather than the more spread out setting at PNC Arena.

With less than 10,000 seats, Reynolds Coliseum presented a challenge for fans. Over 30,000 students attend North Carolina State and an arena that size can’t hold the number of students who want to attend games. Thus, the Pack moved its games to the RBC Center, now PNC Arena. PNC has the capacity for luxury boxes and 19,722 seats for basketball games, an attractive option for the university.

Last season the Pack played Elon, North Carolina Central and Campbell at Reynolds—all three wins. Three games a season would be a great chance for fans to see what was used to be considered one of the toughest venues to play in the ACC, maybe the country, in the ‘70s and ‘80s.

Imagine this: three games a season at Reynolds. An ACC opponent, one in-state school and a team from the old ACC “Big Four” tournament, either Duke, UNC-Chapel Hill or Wake Forest. 

Yes, these are big games and PNC Arena would probably be filled for a solid ACC or “Big Four” opponent, but it would bring back memories for older fans and students would become acquainted with what it used to be like in Reynolds.

If nothing else, it would honor the coaches and players of the past who gave everything they had for the Pack.

According to the NCAA website, State ranked No. 20 in the nation in attendance in 2012, averaging 13,560 through 19 games.

There is something uncanny about Reynolds. Legends were made. NCAA and ACC championship teams assembled. It’s time we pay homage to the “old barn.” 

Head coach Mark Gottfried may want to create a “new history” with the team at PNC, which may come to fruition under his watch, but hopefully the university takes a strong look at revamping the game selection going into next season. 

Why not create a new tradition at the team’s old stomping grounds, while continuing to move forward with the program at PNC? The buzz surrounding the basketball program is not only being felt within the Triangle, but nationally, and Reynolds could be used to the Wolfpack’s advantage.

Wolfpack fans that have been in hiding are coming out of their slumber and are ready to rival any fans in the country. In order to move forward we must honor our past.

Students were giddy about the Cleveland State game, but imagine the thought of three games at Reynolds with the current squad, or the moving forward. 

It’s time—time to give the team the ultimate home court advantage. Opponents need to fear the Pack when they come to Reynolds. It’s time to turn Reynolds into a relevant place on campus again.