Bramlage Facelift

Thanks to the Topeka Capitol-Journal, I now have an idea of what the premium seating at Bramlage Coliseum is going to look like (above, courtesy K-Statesports.com). After hearing about the idea of putting suites into Bramlage for more than a year, I was trying to decide whether I was for or against it. Obviously, it would bring in more money. But on the other hand, if you know anything about Bramlage, you know traditional glassed-in suites would have kind of a "Boy-in-the-bubble" look.

With the loge seats, Bramlage will finally begin to take on the look and feel of a real basketball arena. When I first encountered it I liked it, but it just had the feeling it wasn't quite there yet. I've heard some in Manhattan say Bramlage actually is an unfinished project, that they ran out of money when it was being built and had to forgo some things that were supposed to be included. I don't know if that's true or not, I can't find a source for it, and we all know how rumors can get started. Regardless, with the addition of the courtside seating, the much improved atmosphere from last year, and the addition of the loge seating (behind the students...which should be interesting), we're going to see significant improvements to Bramlage in the fall.

Another thing I must commend AD Tim Weiser on is the idea of building a K-State sports hall of fame. Weiser told me last year he wanted Bramlage's west side to be an inviting "front-door" to the sports complex. He repeated that in the CJ story today. This is a great idea. Having a Wildcat hall-of-fame will allow for young Wildcat fans to learn about the history and traditions of Wildcat athletics, making for a better future fanbase. When I came to K-State (and granted, I was a transplant), I knew nothing of K-State history, except that they used to suck in football. I had no idea they had once had a good basketball program, with legendary coaches and players.

Learning all of that took a long time. With a hall-of-fame, maybe future transplants will catch the Purple Fever a little quicker than I did.