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| Location | 730 Olsen Boulevard College Station, Texas 77843 |
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| Coordinates | 30°36′21″N96°20′46″W / 30.60578°N 96.34619°W /30.60578; -96.34619 |
| Owner | Texas A&M University |
| Operator | Texas A&M University |
| Capacity | 12,989 |
| Surface | Hardwood |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | September 16, 1995[1] |
| Opened | November 22, 1998 |
| Construction cost | $36.7 Million ($70.8 million in 2024 dollars[2]) |
| Architect | Lockwood, Andrews & Newnam, Inc.[3] |
| Structural engineer | Walter P Moore D.Y. Davis Associates, Inc.[3] |
| Services engineer | Kalmans Marshall Engineering, Inc.[4] |
| General contractor | Huber, Hunt & Nichols, Inc.[3] |
| Tenants | |
| Texas A&M Aggies men's basketball (NCAA) (1998–present) Texas A&M Aggies women's basketball (NCAA) (1998–present) Texas A&M Aggies volleyball (NCAA) (2009–present) | |
Reed Arena is a sportsarena and entertainment venue located at the corner of Olsen Boulevard and Kimbrough Boulevard inCollege Station, Texas. This facility is used forTexas A&M University basketball games and commencement ceremonies, concerts, trade shows, family entertainment, and Texas A&M student programs, including the on-campusAggie Muster. The building replaced theG. Rollie White Coliseum, and is named for Dr. & Mrs. Chester J. Reed, a 1947 A&M graduate whose donations made the new arena possible.[5]
In 2005, Reed Arena served as the site of men's and women's first roundNIT games, as the men playedClemson and the women playedTulsa.[6]
In recent years, Reed Arena has gained a reputation as one of the most hostile arenas in the nation, coinciding with the men's and women's Aggie basketball teams' rise to national prominence. This is partly due to a group of students calling themselves the Reed Rowdies, which have been instrumental in helping to create an energetic fan atmosphere during basketball games similar to that of football games atKyle Field.
Reed Arena first opened its doors in 1998 as a member of Texas A&M Special Event Facilities. The arena was named after its primary donorChester J. Reed, Texas A&M Class of 1947. The building hosts many official functions for Texas A&M University. With enough indoorseating capacity for 12,500 guests, the arena makes an ideal location for the university's graduation ceremonies, freshmen convocation, and Aggie Muster ceremonies. The main purpose behind building the arena was to house the Texas A&M's men's and women's basketball teams. However, unlike all the other athletic facilities on campus, Reed Arena operates under the Department of Finance, not the Athletic Department.[7]
While in the planning stages, Chester Reed donated an operations endowment to help run the building during its first five years. However, due to initial over-estimating of revenue and budget shortfalls during construction, this endowment was unable to make the arena become self-sufficient.[7] For all of these reasons mentioned above, Reed Arena cannot just focus on basketball and other university events. As a necessary function, the Arena has developed pipelines of support from a multitude of different stakeholders and events that operate both within the local community and internationally.[citation needed] In its many years of operation, Reed Arena has hosted a wide variety of famous performers includingBill Cosby,Garth Brooks,The Dixie Chicks, as well as the performers ofWWE,Cirque du Soleil, andRingling Brothers andBarnum & Bailey Circus.[7]
The $36 million Reed Arena was designed by theHouston firmLockwood, Andrews, and Newman, Inc. and built in 1998 byDallas-basedHuber, Hunt and Nichols, Inc.[7] The arena has seats for 12,989 fans, while an additional 2,000 people can be accommodated on the main floor for concerts.
Reed Arena is able to provide group accommodations on many different levels. Events can greatly vary in size; the Arena can accommodate an event involving thousands of patrons or a small meeting that contains only 15 participants on any given day. The arena floor contains 25,000 square feet (2,300 m2) of column-free space, large enough to accommodate 150 exhibit booths or a 1,800 seat banquet. This figure almost doubles the space any other building in the Bryan/College Station area. The second floor contains four 1,200 square feet (110 m2) rooms, which can be used to accommodate smaller events. The lower level of the arena also contains a 7,500 square feet (700 m2) multi-purpose room, a full-service commercial kitchen, and numerous types of dressing rooms.
In February 2006, the 12th Man Foundation, a fund raising organization associated with Texas A&M Athletics, announced plans for an effort to build the Cox-McFerrin Center, a 40,000-square-foot (3,700 m2) addition to Reed Arena, providing new men's and women's basketball locker rooms, practice gyms, and player lounges. On February 2, 2007, theA&M System Board of Regents approved a revised plan, increasing the size of the facility to 69,400 square feet (6,450 m2) and a total cost of $21.5 million.[8]
13 largest men's basketball crowds:
| Attendance | Opponent | Date | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 14,036 | Kentucky | January 19, 2022 |
| 2 | 13,888 | LSU | January 19, 2016 |
| 3 | 13,717 | Texas | February 27, 2010 |
| 4 | 13,657 | Kansas | February 15, 2010 |
| 5 | 13,648 | Texas Tech | January 30, 2010 |
| 6 | 13,584 | Oklahoma State | February 16, 2008 |
| 7 | 13,555 | Texas | January 30, 2008 |
| 8 | 13,300 | Texas | January 31, 2011 |
| 9 | 13,263 | Kentucky | February 10, 2018 |
| 10 | 13,203 | Missouri | March 3, 2007 |
| 11 | 13,196 | Texas | February 5, 2007 |
| 12 | 13,187 | Oklahoma State | January 20, 2007 |
| 13 | 13,176 | Texas | March 1, 2006 |
