When Reynolds Coliseum went under renovation, one of the things I was most excited about was the fact that they’d have a little museum to commemorate the history of the storied stadium where I grew up watching the Wolfpack. Now that it’s nearly complete we are starting to learn more and more about what made it into that museum.

Yesterday, news broke that the Wolfpack would be bringing the ever famous ‘noise meter’ to the museum. If you remember a few years back Tim Peeler found the noise meter in the basement of the coliseum. After that it was brought out for a few home games until the nostalgia wore off, then it went away again.

If you are too young or simply don’t remember, the noise meter hung high above the coliseum floor and lit up light bulbs to signify how loud the crowd was getting. When it was full tilt, the red bulb at the top would light up and send the crowd into an even more frantic frenzy.

Now it will be used to teach young state fans about the past, and drum up nostalgia for the older ones…

“It was a priority from the beginning from the university to get (the noise meter) in, and have it functional,” said Emily Furman, an N.C. State graduate and museum exhibit designer for HealyKohler Design in Washington, D.C.

Visitors can hand-operate the noise meter, running the lights up the 10-foot tall board as crowd noise ascends through speakers throughout the museum and the voice of longtime public address announcer, C.A. Dillon, welcomes fans to Reynolds Coliseum. The mechanics to the renovated noise meter are high tech, in direct contrast to the original primitive operation. – From the News & Observer

There’s only one thing. The noise meter never really measured noise by itself. It was operated by a student manager at first and then by others later on. They would flick switches to send the lights higher when the crowd got louder.

“It was a con job from the word go,” Waters said. “We’d be warming up, and he’d have that thing one light down (from the top) and the building would be shaking. We’d tell him, ‘Give it to them, they’re going crazy out here.’ That was part of the gimmick.” – From the News & Observer

The newly renovated Reynolds opens this Friday.

NC State Basketball

Louisville Transfer Guard Mike James Commits to NC State!

Published

29 mins ago

April 23, 2024

Matthew Bradham

Louisville Transfer Guard Mike James (6’5″/200) has announced his commitment to NC State!

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This past year, James averaged 12.6 points per game (3rd on the team) and 5 rebounds. He’s extremely physical and aggressive, taking 47% of his field goal attempts at the rim (making 46%). As a result, he draws a lot of fouls, ranking 10th in the ACC in Fouls Drawn, and 4th in Free Throw Rate. James made opponents pay this year when they put him on the line, making 81.8% from the charity stripe, which ranked 15th in the ACC.

James shot the ball better as a Redshirt Freshman, than he did this past season. His Effective Field Goal Percentage in 2022-23 was 55.8%, which ranked 19th in the ACC, and his True Shooting Percentage of 59.6% ranked 14th.

News broke about James entering the Transfer Portal back on March 25th, and NC State was quick to reach out. Kevin Keatts and his staff recruited the former 4-star prospect out of high school heavily, but he ultimately chose the Cardinals.

After redshirting his first year in Louisville due to torn achilles, James has been a starter for the Cardinals the past two years.

He does have the ability to knock down a three, making 34.8% for his career.

James has 2 years of eligibility remaining. With James’ commitment, NC State currently has 1 scholarship available for next season.

NC State Basketball

Bowling Green Transfer Guard Marcus Hill is on a Visit to NC State

Published

17 hours ago

April 22, 2024

Matthew Bradham

Bowling Green Transfer Guard Marcus Hill (6’4″/185) confirmed with me that he is currently on a visit at NC State.

Hill averaged 20.5 points and 5.0 rebounds per game for the Falcons this season. He earned 1st Team All-MAC honors. Even though he was only at Bowling Green one season, he had one of the best seasons in school history, scoring 698 points, which ranks 5th all-time in program history for a single season.

For his first two years of collegiate ball, Hill played for Southern Union State College (JUCO) in Alabama. In 2022-23, Hill earned 3rd Team NJCAA All-American honors, and ranked as the #32 overall Junior College prospect.

247Sports ranks Hill as a 4-Star Transfer Prospect, and the #78 overall player in the Transfer Portal, and the #11 Shooting Guard.

According to a source, the NC State Coaching Staff is extremely high on Hill, and they are recruiting him as a Point Guard.

NC State Basketball

What did an ACC Title & Final Four Mean to NC State Legend Dennis Smith Jr.?

Published

1 day ago

April 22, 2024

Matthew Bradham

What did an ACC Title & Final Four mean to NC State Legend Dennis Smith Jr.? The man who won the ACC Rookie of the Year Award in 2017 gave me a statement.

It means a lot. It means a lot to the university, the state of North Carolina and a lot more to my dad, grandma, and myself. They have been NC State fans since forever, so their excitement level was though the roof when they saw BOTH of our basketball teams shining like that. It was a great feeling!

2017 was Smith Jr.’s only year of College ball, averaging 18.1 points, 6.2 assists, 4.6 rebounds and 1.9 steals. He earned 2nd Team All-ACC honors, and obviously, he earned a spot on the ACC All-Freshman Team.

DSJ was drafted by the Dallas Mavericks with the 9th overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft.

Smith Jr. just wrapped up his 7th season in the NBA. This was his 1st season with Brooklyn, playing in 56 games for the Nets. He averaged 6.6 points, 3.6 assists, 2.9 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game, averaging 18.9 minutes per contest.