The Johnny Orr Project: first official letter to Jamie Pollard

I've posted the text of the letter I've drafted to Jamie Pollard regarding the Johnny Orr Project on our Facebook page: Login | Facebook

I'm also pleased that we now have 50 members in our CF social group, and 71 in our Facebook group! If everyone who loves and appreciates Johnny would join, we could be in the thousands. We would greatly appreciate any suggestions for improvement to this letter. Thanks!

Orr Floor

I was thinking today about this same subject and came up with another idea that may be more fitting. A year ago I read that the University has hopes to rename the "Iowa State Center" due to confusion regarding whether it is truly the 'Center' of Iowa State University. Regardless of these people's reasoning, it led me to think of other possible names for the Iowa State Center. It then occured to me that the Iowa State Center could be renamed the Johnny Orr Events Center at Iowa State University.

Why should the entire complex be named in honor of Johnny? One reason: Johnny was the man responsible for drawing crowds to this complex in the first place back when not many made the trip to Ames. It seems fitting that the man who put it on the map should be remembered in this fashion. In doing so, the court at Hilton can read "Hilton Coliseum at the Johnny Orr Events Center," or something to this effect.

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Originally Posted by Haverhill

I was thinking today about this same subject and came up with another idea that may be more fitting. A year ago I read that the University has hopes to rename the "Iowa State Center" due to confusion regarding whether it is truly the 'Center' of Iowa State University. Regardless of these people's reasoning, it led me to think of other possible names for the Iowa State Center. It then occured to me that the Iowa State Center could be renamed the Johnny Orr Events Center at Iowa State University.

Why should the entire complex be named in honor of Johnny? One reason: Johnny was the man responsible for drawing crowds to this complex in the first place back when not many made the trip to Ames. It seems fitting that the man who put it on the map should be remembered in this fashion. In doing so, the court at Hilton can read "Hilton Coliseum at the Johnny Orr Events Center," or something to this effect.

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I have a great deal of respect for Johnny Orr, and what he did for Iowa State basketball, but I think it is quite a stretch to say that he put the Iowa State Center on the map. Indeed, he was responsible for bringing the crowds back to Hilton for men's basketball, after a few years of relatively little success under Lynn Nance and Ken Trickey. For the first couple of years Hilton was open, under Maury John, the crowds were huge, even though the team was about the same quality as the teams we have today. In fact the first couple of years Hilton was open, ISU I believe was one of the top 5 in attendance nationally. Back then, Hilton was a real novelty, being one of the first "modern" arenas of its size to be built on a college campus, primarily for campus use. In other words, it was not a true public facility. But prior to Hilton, C.Y. Stephens had made quite a national name for itself with the concerts and events held there "in the middle of a cornfield", and with its design and acoustics. Then several years before Orr arrived, Scheman gained a great reputation as a major conference facility. Orr did a lot for basketball at Iowa State, but to rename the complex for him would be over-doing it quite a bit, IMO. Name the floor/court in his honor, and put a statue of him outside but let's not go crazy here.

Also, the confusion about the name Iowa State Center has been around since the complex was created. All they would need to do is insert one word........Iowa State Events Center, but then that might create confusion now with Iowa Events Center in DM. The Iowa State Center name goes all the way back to Dr. Hilton, when he first proposed the complex (along with many of the buildings on campus today) to the faculty and staff back in the 50's. I really don't see why the name would be causing so much confusion now. It has been around for 40 years.

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Originally Posted by Dryburn

The Iowa State Center name goes all the way back to Dr. Hilton, when he first proposed the complex (along with many of the buildings on campus today) to the faculty and staff back in the 50's. I really don't see why the name would be causing so much confusion now. It has been around for 40 years.

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Some people have a hard enough time with Elwood Drive vs. University Boulevard. I can't imagine what kind of havoc a name change to the ISC would bring.

Another option is adding the Eustachy Bar & Grill

I will be joining this group for one Johnny Orr was a great Cyclone coach. I had the opportunity to hear him speak last week, and he was hilarious. I also got his autograph in the process it was really neat to get to talk to him for a couple of minutes.

I just joined the group.

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Originally Posted by wiscocyclone

Another option is adding the Eustachy Bar & Grill

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and serve only Natural Light?

:cool:

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Originally Posted by LeBron

Orr Floor

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I've posted this before but I think of all basketball coaches ever at ISU that the naming of the floor is most deserving for Bill Fennelly. He made what was pretty much a dead sport at ISU into one of the more respected programs in the country and has had more success than any BB coach at ISU both mens and womens. When you take a program that on a good day had 50 fans in the stands to where we now consistently in the top 5 for attendance in the country and can put over 12k in the seats on a given night sometimes. To me Bill is much more deserving of having the floor named after him than Johnny. I still want us to honor coach Orr but naming the road near Hilton or a statue is probably a little more fitting.

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Originally Posted by TxCycloneFan

and serve only Natural Light?

:cool:

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With a sign on the door that reads: "NO CAMERAS ALLOWED."

What about something to remember the track & field team that was killed in a plane crash on the way back from NCAA's in the 1980's. I still think it is a tradegdy that not more has been done to remember them. We have a stadium named after one athlete that died 90 years ago while representing Iowa State, meanwhile we have a whole team that died 20 years ago and no body seems to remember them.

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Originally Posted by jaretac

What about something to remember the track & field team that was killed in a plane crash on the way back from NCAA's in the 1980's. I still think it is a tradegdy that not more has been done to remember them. We have a stadium named after one athlete that died 90 years ago while representing Iowa State, meanwhile we have a whole team that died 20 years ago and no body seems to remember them.

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Very different, but I think maybe something will come up about this once the Gateway Athletics Complex ever comes about.

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Originally Posted by travman23

I've posted this before but I think of all basketball coaches ever at ISU that the naming of the floor is most deserving for Bill Fennelly. He made what was pretty much a dead sport at ISU into one of the more respected programs in the country and has had more success than any BB coach at ISU both mens and womens. When you take a program that on a good day had 50 fans in the stands to where we now consistently in the top 5 for attendance in the country and can put over 12k in the seats on a given night sometimes. To me Bill is much more deserving of having the floor named after him than Johnny. I still want us to honor coach Orr but naming the road near Hilton or a statue is probably a little more fitting.

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Originally Posted by jaretac

What about something to remember the track & field team that was killed in a plane crash on the way back from NCAA's in the 1980's. I still think it is a tradegdy that not more has been done to remember them. We have a stadium named after one athlete that died 90 years ago while representing Iowa State, meanwhile we have a whole team that died 20 years ago and no body seems to remember them.

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These are reasons that make me personally favor the statue idea. There would be plenty of space to honor deserving people, and would be cool places to visit before or after a game.

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Originally Posted by TxCycloneFan

and serve only Natural Light?

:cool:

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You know there would be attractive females there because Eustachy knew what campus to go to find them.