For one night, the Big 5 goes retro
Thousands of people pass by the Jake Nevin Field House on any given day, yet it’s safe to say few understand the historical significance of the quaint building at the corner of Lancaster and Ithan Avenues.
For 54 years, the men’s and women’s basketball teams called the tiny gym home.
Hall of Famer Paul Arizin played there, as did Wali Jones, Howard Porter, Chris Ford and the 1985 national championship team led by Ed Pinckney. Hall of Famer Bob Lanier was one of the more notable visiting players to grace its f loors.
All that changed, of course, when the Pavilion opened on Feb. 1, 1986. The Jake, as it is affectionately known, was named after longtime Wildcats trainer Jake Nevin, and it soon took on a different role. The women’s basketball team played there for a while before moving to the Pavilion. Today, it’s the home of the women’s volleyball team and numerous athletic department offices.
The last men’s game to be played there was an 87-71 victory over Marist on Jan. 4, 1986. But that’s about to change.
Villanova announced Friday that it will play Big 5 rival Penn there on Wednesday, Nov. 29.
“We’re going to jam the Jake,” Villanova athletic director Mark Jackson said.
This is a great idea. In an age where colleges programs are building bigger arenas all the time to increase revenues, this is a chance to give the players and students at Villanova a personal perspective on the program’s storied past.
Sure, it’s small, seating 1,500 in the upper deck. And there are a lot of logistical issues that have to be worked out to host a game in such a tiny venue in this day and age.
Tickets will be the biggest problem. Villanova has roughly 5,000 season-ticket holders so it’s not possible to accommodate all of those loyal supporters, which is why the game will not be part of the team’s seasonticket package.
“I think it’s going to be student focused,” Jackson said. “Were still working out the details, but we’re going to maximize the capacity to its fullest and provide an opportunity to the students to really enjoy this unique experience.”
That’s the beauty of it. Jay Wright breaks out the 1985 throwback uniforms at least once every season to remind the players of the program’s history so why not, on a one-time basis, play a game in a throwback venue?
“The tradition of Villanova Basketball is one of our program’s greatest strengths,” Wright said. “Many of the players and coaches who built the foundation upon which we stand today called the Field House home. By returning to the Jake for one night, we hope to give today’s Nova Nation a great appreciation for our history.”
This is a one-time deal, made possible by the year-long, muchneeded $60 million upgrade of what will be known as the Finneran Pavilion once the project is finished next year. With the Pavilion unavailable, Villanova had to find venues to play its home games. The full schedule has not been released, but the Wildcats will play most of their home games at the Wells Fargo Center.
“It’s something that’s been in the back of my mind since I took the job,” Jackson said. “I get to walk into Jake Nevin every day (his office is in the building). I love the character of the building and I always wondered what it would be like to play a game in there.”
Why not? The women’s team will play its home games at the Jake and the university made improvements to the facility to make that possible. The Wells Fargo Center wasn’t available on Nov. 29 and Jackson did not want to take a Big 5 game outside of the Philadelphia area.
“We analyzed all of our options and we felt like this was the best one,” Jackson said. “We also thought it was a chance to turn back the clock a little bit . ... (Penn athletic director M.) Grace Calhoun and I had a really good conversation. She seemed really supportive of keeping the game here on our campus.”
It also gives the Wildcats a chance to honor Rollie Massimino on the floor where he spent more than 12 of his 19 seasons as the head coach at Villanova. That, too, is only fitting. Massimino, who died Wednesday after a battle with cancer, was an assistant coach at Penn before he took the Villanova job in 1973.
“I think there’s something we can do about bringing a bunch of former players back and bringing Rollie’s family back for that game,” Jackson said. “I think it’s appropriate to we do some kind of tribute beyond what we’re going to do as a university because of the natural tie-in around this game.”
Ironically, this will be the first time the Quakers play at the Jake. All the previous games between the Quakers and Wildcats were played at the Pavilion, the Palestra, the Spectrum or the Wells Fargo Center.
“I think it’s pretty cool,” Penn coach and Springfield resident Steve Donahue said. “It’s kind of a throwback, more for them than us. We play in small venues at Penn, but for a Big 5 game to be played there I think it’s going to be a great atmosphere and hopefully something our guys will enjoy and something they will remember for a long time.”