By: Will Harper, Staff Writer

(Continuation from the Oct. 3 edition) The Richardson Indoor Stadium is officially open and boasts 3,400 seats and is considered state-of-the-art and modern. The basketball arena features four massive Jumbotron screens that are the same size as the screens at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Ga., the new home of the Atlanta Falcons. The stadium also includes a student section, lovingly nicknamed “The Boneyard.” It is the only part of the stadium to not have box seats, but it isn’t really intended to be sat on, as the designers were sure that we students would be standing for much of the game. The stadium also includes a 400 seat volleyball stadium that students have already had the chance to watch games in.

The men’s basketball team has to wait until next month before they play their first game against Univ. of South Carolina on Nov. 10. The team may only have one senior, Derrick Brooks, but they do not lack experience. The team also has four juniors, as well as a few sophomores who played significant minutes last year. Brooks thinks highly of his teammates, saying “They’ll build their own legacy.”

The first basketball game will have Mr. Jerry Richardson ‘59 in attendance. Brooks feels that having Richardson in the crowd, or possibly on the bench, will be a major factor. “I think it will be a special night, as far as Mr. Richardson being there at the game. It will be by far one of the best atmospheres in Wofford history. I think it’ll be fun and a really special night.”

The stadium comes with a multitude of cool features. The basketball arena is wired with a concert-quality speaker system, and the locker rooms come with biometric security. The facilities also house industrial-sized washing machines, and locker rooms for the referees, something that very few other schools have. Brooks weighed in on his favorite amenity, saying “With the biometrics on the doors, we can get in there whenever we want to. I’m the type of guy that likes to workout at 2 a.m., and now I have that opportunity.”

After over a year of construction, the stadium is open and has gained approval from students, alumni and faculty and staff. Students are waiting for the Nov. 10 game to break in the new hardwood, but the facilities will be an asset and an attraction to the college for years to come.