Barnhill Arena

Barnhill Arena is a 10,000-seat multipurpose

arena An arena is a large enclosed platform, often circular or oval-shaped, designed to showcase theatre, musical performances, or sporting events. It is composed of a large open space surrounded on most or all sides by tiered seating for spectators ...

in Fayetteville, Arkansas, now used primarily for

volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Sum ...

. The arena opened in 1954 and was home to the

University of Arkansas The University of Arkansas (U of A, UArk, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Fayetteville, Arkansas. It is the flagship campus of the University of Arkansas System and the largest university in the state. Founded as Arkansas ...

Razorbacks (men's) and Ladybacks (women's)

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

teams before they moved to

Bud Walton Arena Bud Walton Arena (also known as the Basketball Palace of Mid-America) is the home to the men's and women's basketball teams of the University of Arkansas, known as the Razorbacks. It is located on the campus of the University of Arkansas in Fa ...

in 1993. Prior to that, the arena had been considered to be one of the toughest to play in, first in the

Southwest Conference The Southwest Conference (SWC) was an NCAA Division I college athletic conference in the United States that existed from 1914 to 1996. Composed primarily of schools from Texas, at various times the conference included schools from Oklahoma ...

and then in the

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities o ...

, especially when

Nolan Richardson Nolan Richardson Jr. (born December 27, 1941) is a former American basketball head coach best known for his tenure at the University of Arkansas, where he won the 1994 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament and led the Razorbacks to three F ...

was coach; it earned the nickname "Barnhell Arena" because of its rabid student section. After the opening of the new arena, the university converted Barnhill Arena into a volleyball and gymnastics-specific facility, and the Ladybacks' volleyball and

gymnastics Gymnastics is a type of sport that includes physical exercises requiring balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, dedication and endurance. The movements involved in gymnastics contribute to the development of the arms, legs, s ...

teams have played there ever since. The arena is also occasionally used for special events, such as concerts, graduations, and speakers. It was originally built as the Arkansas Fieldhouse and renamed in 1973 in honor of John Barnhill, the school's former head football coach and

athletic director An athletic director (commonly "athletics director" or "AD") is an administrator at many American clubs or institutions, such as colleges and universities, as well as in larger high schools and middle schools, who oversees the work of coaches an ...

. Arkansas Razorbacks basketball venues College gymnastics venues in the United States College volleyball venues in the United States Defunct college basketball venues in the United States Sports venues in Arkansas Indoor arenas in Arkansas University of Arkansas buildings Arkansas Razorbacks gymnastics University and college buildings completed in 1954 1954 establishments in Arkansas Sports venues completed in 1954 {{Arkansas-stadium-stub