Oklahoma State University Athletics
Relive GIA's Opening Night With The O'Colly
January 17, 2017 | Cowboy Basketball
See the full issue of the O'Colly from the first game played in what is now Gallagher-Iba Arena
By Patrick Osborne, Oklahoma State Athletics
December 9, 1938 was a night to remember, as there was a new gym opening at Oklahoma A&M College. The 4-H Club And Student Activities Building, later named Gallagher Hall and today known as Gallagher-Iba Arena, was hosting its first contest.
Excitement filled the air that night. Thousands of screaming fans packed the new rowdy arena to watch Henry Iba's Aggies take on Phog Allen's Kansas Jayhawks.
"Five hundred thousand dollars of steel and stone will pulsate with life tonight when an expected crowd wildly cheering fans gather in the new Oklahoma A&M College gym to witness the inaugural event in the arena," student writer Joe Mayfield wrote in the O'Colly that day.
The O'Colly, Oklahoma State's student paper, played an interesting roll in the first game. Not only were they there to cover the first game, they were actually one of the first to suggest the name of the new gym.
Early February of that same year, people were wondering what the university would call the brilliantly built arena. The Aggies had plenty of options, with a rich athletic history already to its name. O'Colly Sports Editor Joe Synar had an idea.
"An opportune time has come when we can do something to honor a man who has dedicated his life to bring honor to this institution," he wrote. "We partially can repay a moral debt and do something by which his greatness will be symbolized in a material structure. Name the new activity building the 'Gallagher Fieldhouse'!"
As history tells, Synar wasn't far off as the gym was soon named Gallagher Hall after the famed OSU wrestling coach, Ed Gallagher.
So there in the 4-H Club And Student Activities Building, the Aggies were looking to open the new arena with a bang. An upset of the powerful Jayhawks would be the perfect beginning for the rowdiest arena in the land. The game was dubbed the "$500,000 Game," by the student paper. The name was a reference to the cost of the beautiful new facility.
It was a powerhouse matchup between the 1937 Missouri Valley and Big Six Conference champions. Deeper than that, it was young vs. old between the two teams. The young Aggies knew they would need to bring their best against the veteran Jayhawks. Fortunately for Oklahoma A&M, they would. The Aggies led from start to finish in a thrilling 21-15 upset win over Kansas.
"It was the crucial test of the season for the green Aggie Men-of-Iba team and clicked together to prove to doubtful spectators that they wre the equal of the great Cowboy team of last season that set a Cowboy record of twenty-fvie games won in twenty-eight contests played," the O'Colly wrote the next day.
The man of the game for the Aggies was no other than Dannie Doyle. Dripping with blood from a cut above his left eye that eventually smear his white Aggie jersey red, Doyle pulled the young Aggie team together on defense down the stretch to secure the victory.
Oklahoma A&M's Aruthur "Gube" Johnson led all scorers with six, and the Aggies were 1-0 in what today is known as Gallagher-Iba Arena.
Fast-forward to 2017. 999 games later, much has changed. The 4-H Club and Student Activities Building is now Gallagher-Iba Arena. The Aggies are now the Cowboys, and 21 points probably won't win too many basketball games.
But some things still remain the same. The arena is still rowdy, and the home team can never be counted out.
It's fitting the 1,000th men's contest in the historic arena would be played against a team from Kansas on the same court that hosted a Kansas team its first night open. If only the walls could talk. The stories they'd tell.
Wednesday, Historic Gallagher-Iba Arena writes a new chapter in its long legacy. One thousand men's basketball games is no easy challenge to defeat. In a time of new is better, this historic arena still stands tall. Still proud as the first day it opened.
This game, No. 1,000, is bound to be another special night in a special building, just as it was Dec. 9, 1938.
By Patrick Osborne, Oklahoma State Athletics
December 9, 1938 was a night to remember, as there was a new gym opening at Oklahoma A&M College. The 4-H Club And Student Activities Building, later named Gallagher Hall and today known as Gallagher-Iba Arena, was hosting its first contest.
Excitement filled the air that night. Thousands of screaming fans packed the new rowdy arena to watch Henry Iba's Aggies take on Phog Allen's Kansas Jayhawks.
"Five hundred thousand dollars of steel and stone will pulsate with life tonight when an expected crowd wildly cheering fans gather in the new Oklahoma A&M College gym to witness the inaugural event in the arena," student writer Joe Mayfield wrote in the O'Colly that day.
The O'Colly, Oklahoma State's student paper, played an interesting roll in the first game. Not only were they there to cover the first game, they were actually one of the first to suggest the name of the new gym.
Early February of that same year, people were wondering what the university would call the brilliantly built arena. The Aggies had plenty of options, with a rich athletic history already to its name. O'Colly Sports Editor Joe Synar had an idea.
"An opportune time has come when we can do something to honor a man who has dedicated his life to bring honor to this institution," he wrote. "We partially can repay a moral debt and do something by which his greatness will be symbolized in a material structure. Name the new activity building the 'Gallagher Fieldhouse'!"
As history tells, Synar wasn't far off as the gym was soon named Gallagher Hall after the famed OSU wrestling coach, Ed Gallagher.
So there in the 4-H Club And Student Activities Building, the Aggies were looking to open the new arena with a bang. An upset of the powerful Jayhawks would be the perfect beginning for the rowdiest arena in the land. The game was dubbed the "$500,000 Game," by the student paper. The name was a reference to the cost of the beautiful new facility.
It was a powerhouse matchup between the 1937 Missouri Valley and Big Six Conference champions. Deeper than that, it was young vs. old between the two teams. The young Aggies knew they would need to bring their best against the veteran Jayhawks. Fortunately for Oklahoma A&M, they would. The Aggies led from start to finish in a thrilling 21-15 upset win over Kansas.
"It was the crucial test of the season for the green Aggie Men-of-Iba team and clicked together to prove to doubtful spectators that they wre the equal of the great Cowboy team of last season that set a Cowboy record of twenty-fvie games won in twenty-eight contests played," the O'Colly wrote the next day.
The man of the game for the Aggies was no other than Dannie Doyle. Dripping with blood from a cut above his left eye that eventually smear his white Aggie jersey red, Doyle pulled the young Aggie team together on defense down the stretch to secure the victory.
Oklahoma A&M's Aruthur "Gube" Johnson led all scorers with six, and the Aggies were 1-0 in what today is known as Gallagher-Iba Arena.
Fast-forward to 2017. 999 games later, much has changed. The 4-H Club and Student Activities Building is now Gallagher-Iba Arena. The Aggies are now the Cowboys, and 21 points probably won't win too many basketball games.
But some things still remain the same. The arena is still rowdy, and the home team can never be counted out.
It's fitting the 1,000th men's contest in the historic arena would be played against a team from Kansas on the same court that hosted a Kansas team its first night open. If only the walls could talk. The stories they'd tell.
Wednesday, Historic Gallagher-Iba Arena writes a new chapter in its long legacy. One thousand men's basketball games is no easy challenge to defeat. In a time of new is better, this historic arena still stands tall. Still proud as the first day it opened.
This game, No. 1,000, is bound to be another special night in a special building, just as it was Dec. 9, 1938.
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