#KnowTheO: Fieldhouse of Dreams

While Baxter Arena may be the 'Home of the Mavericks,' it is still the new kid on the block for Omaha Athletics.

The true O.G. - Original Gameday - location is actually snuggly nestled in the center of Dodge Campus: Sapp Fieldhouse.

As just the second building on UNO's current campus, the Sapp Fieldhouse (so named in the 1990s) opened in 1949 as a long-planned companion to what eventually became Caniglia Field. The fieldhouse originally included a dirt floor, a portable basketball court and indoor track. Improved seating for football games was also part of the construction, as was a swimming pool, administrative offices, locker rooms and equipment rooms.

After a series of renovations in the 1970s, including a permanent hardwood floor, the fieldhouse became an events center as much as an athletic facility. Graduations, concerts, class registrations and numerous other campus events were held in the fieldhouse.

Following another set of renovations in the 1990s, including updates to the press box overlooking Caniglia Field, a new three-story entrance and improvements to the scoreboard system, the fieldhouse was formally named in honor of Lee Sapp, president and CEO of Sapp Enterprises, an auto dealership, who was one of the major fundraisers for the project.

Even though Baxter Arena has become home for the basketball and volleyball teams, those teams still use their old home as a practice facility, as does the track and field team. But with no more competitions, fans rarely see the inside of the fieldhouse; instead, it largely home to Omaha Athletics' administration offices, training rooms, and equipment rooms.

However, one standout location inside the Sapp Fieldhouse is the Hamilton Academic Excellence Room, a private facility built in 2013 for student athletes to receive help with their studies. It includes computer and printer stations; study areas; group study and tutoring rooms; and access to full-time academic and compliance staff. Not surprisingly, UNO student-athletes have excelled in the classroom as much as they have on the field since it was completed.

Though not as iconic as Arts and Sciences Hall or the Milo Bail Student Center, at just over 70 years old, the Sapp Fieldhouse has been as important to UNO's history as any other building - if not more so. While Omaha Athletics looks ahead to the next 70 years just south of Center Street, don't forget to acknowledge all that the Sapp Fieldhouse has had to offer generations of student-athletes, coaches, and fans.