The Bull Penn: Terps on a roll, say goodbye to Cole

Recently, I attended a University of Maryland men's basketball game at Cole Field House, my favorite sports venue. The Terps were playing catch-up for most of the game, and when they finally took a one-point lead with under two minutes to go, I attempted to jump into the air with joy.

But something other than my lack of ups thwarted my leap. A sticky, dried-up liquid had glued my shoes to the concrete floor. I refused to allow this minor imperfection to take away from the glory and glamour of seeing the second ranked Terps defeat Wake Forest, 90-89 in the second-to-last Terps game ever played at the 47-year-old stadium.

Next season marks the Terps' move across campus to the $101 million, state-of-the-art Comcast Center. But Cole Field House, which takes its name not from a local cable company but from a former University board member, will always be unsurpassable in my eyes. What it lacks in legroom and skyboxes it makes up for in spunk. Every time I see thousands of students chanting, "We're gonna beat the hell out of YOU and YOU and YOU and YOU!" in unison, pointing triumphantly at each member of the opposing team, chills travel down my spine.

I first started to appreciate Cole Field House when I was 11 years old and had the privilege to shoot hoops on Cole's ancient hardwood at a basketball camp. I found myself constantly staring in awe at the 14-thousand-plus empty red seats and the jerseys hanging from the rafters.

And I'll give that building credit for being consistent; in the summer it is just as swelteringly hot inside Cole as it is during winter basketball games.

Cole is a building with a history ranging from the famous (the all-black Texas Western's National Championship victory over the all-white powerhouse Kentucky in 1966 in one of the most important basketball games ever played) to the infamous (students throwing bottles at the families of Duke players in 2001).

But I'll remember the facility more for the little things, like the electrifying feeling I would get upon entering Cole after I had spent the previous hour in the parking lot, looking for a good deal on tickets from the scalpers. In fact, in my 20-plus trips to Cole, I left my home with tickets in my hand for maybe two of them. When I watch a Maryland basketball game after buying from scalpers, it's as if I'm a hunter savoring every bite of the deer that I spent hours of my time tracking. And on my final trip to Cole, I was treated to a seven-course meal that culminated with Juan Dixon nailing a free throw with 1.3 seconds remaining to win the game.

The Terps will be making a run at their first National Championship in school history over the next few weeks. How fitting it would be if Maryland could save its best season ever for the final year at Cole.

Don't get me wrong; I plan on giving the Comcast Center a try. But if you happen to know any maintenance workers at the new stadium, ask them to leave the floors in the stands extra sticky.