Cole Field House was the home of the University of Maryland basketball teams from 1955 to 2002. The building was originally constructed in 1955 as the Student Activities Building at a cost of $3.3 million. Although the building's original capacity was 12,000, additional seats were installed throughout the years to bring the final capacity to 14,596 (in 1993). The first basketball game was played on December 2, 1955, when Maryland beat Virginia 67-55. The center was renamed the William P. Cole, Jr. Student Activities Building in 1956 after Judge William P. Cole Jr., who was chairman of the university's Board of Regents from 1944 to 1956.
Cole Field House held its first East Regional finals in 1962, when NYU defeated St. John's in the final, 94-85. The Final Four was first held here in 1966 between Duke, Kentucky, Texas Western (now UTEP), and Utah. Texas Western (which started all black players) upset Kentucky's all white team 72-65 in front of a crowd of 14,253. Cole also hosted the Final Four in 1970.
In 1991, Cole was the site of the first ever upset of a 2-seed at the hands of a 15-seed, as Richmond defeated heavily-favored Syracuse, 73-69.
The last Maryland men's basketball game to be played at Cole Field House was on March 3, 2002, when Maryland defeated Virginia 112-92. The team now plays at the Comcast Center. Overall, 13 men's All-Americans and 4 women's All-Americans have played at Cole.
Other Notable Events at Cole Field House:
1965: DeMatha Catholic High School defeated a Power Memorial team led by Lew Alcindor 46-43, ending its 71-game winning streak in front of over 14,000.
Early 1970s: The NBA's Capital Bullets (now the Washington Wizards) played home games at Cole while the team transitions from Baltimore to Landover.
1972: A ping-pong match between the United States and the People's Republic of China is played at Cole, the first sporting event between the two countries.
1972: An exhibition of the Soviet gymnastics team, including gold medalist Olga Korbut, sells out the arena and is televised locally in the Washington, D.C. area.
1974: Elvis Presley sings at Cole.
January 26, 1975: The first televised women's basketball game is played at Cole. Maryland loses to the defending national champions Immaculata 80-48.
Future of Cole Student Activities Building:
Currently the facility is known as the Cole Student Activities Building. An intramural indoor soccer practice field has replaced the basketball court, and spaces along the perimeter have been reconfigured into classrooms and temporary office spaces. There is also a poolhouse adjacent to the Field House, which is now defunct. It should be noted that Cole is situated in the heart of the College Park Campus, just across a street from Stamp Student Union and McKeldin Library on the McKeldin Mall.
Because of the grand space enclosed by the structure and its situation on campus, it has been the subject of much speculation for renewal and reuse. Several proposals include its transformation into a transportation hub akin to Union Station (as a College Park stop on the conjectural Purple Line serving Prince George's and Montgomery Counties) and a College of Design, which would unite the current School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation with other landscape and environmental design programs in the University under one roof.
There is a running/walking path on the ground level of Cole Field House. (The seats were sunken). 5 1/2 laps is one mile.
