Nutter Center facts for kids
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| Full name | Wright State University Nutter Center |
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| Former names | Ervin J. Nutter Center (1990–2011) |
| Address | 3640 Colonel Glenn Hwy Fairborn, Ohio 45435-0001 |
| Location | Greater Dayton |
| Owner | Wright State University |
| Capacity | 10,400
Configurations
Concerts: 11,200
Half house: up to 7,500 Basketball: 9,500 |
| Field size | Ice surface: 200 x 85 ft (61 x 26 m) |
| Surface | Hardwood/Ice |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | 1988 |
| Opened | December 1, 1990 |
| Construction cost | US$34.5 million ($85.4 million in 2022 dollars ) |
| Architect | HOK Sport |
| Structural engineer | KZF Design |
| Tenants | |
| Wright State Raiders (NCAA) (1990–present) Dayton Wings (WBL) (1991–92) Dayton Bombers (ECHL) (1996–2009) Dayton Warbirds (NIFL) (2005) Dayton Bulldogs (NIFL) (2006) |
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The Nutter Center is a large, multi-purpose building located at Wright State University in Fairborn, Ohio. It's a busy place where many different events happen. The Nutter Center is the home court for the Wright State Raiders men's basketball team. It also hosts exciting concerts and other live shows. Many local high schools even use the arena for their graduation ceremonies.
Contents
History of the Nutter Center
The idea for the Nutter Center began in 1986. A local inventor and businessman named Ervin J. Nutter gave $1.5 million to Wright State University. This generous gift helped start the project. The state of Ohio and the university also added about $8 million.
Building work started in 1988. It took about 20 months to finish the arena. The Nutter Center officially opened its doors on December 1, 1990. Its first event was a big moment for the university and the community.
Exciting Events at the Nutter Center
The Nutter Center is known for hosting a wide variety of events. From sports to concerts, there's always something happening!
Sports Tournaments and Games
The Nutter Center has been the site of many important basketball games.
- It hosted the Midwestern Collegiate Conference men's basketball tournament several times in the 1990s and 2000s. This tournament is now called the Horizon League tournament.
- In 2014, the arena held the Horizon League championship game.
- The famous Harlem Globetrotters basketball team has performed at the Nutter Center almost every New Year's Eve since 2005.
Professional Wrestling Shows
Fans of professional wrestling have enjoyed many thrilling events at the Nutter Center.
- In 1993, the arena hosted the WWE's King of the Ring tournament.
- A special WWE vs. ECW Head to Head show took place here in 2006.
- The Nutter Center has welcomed WWE Raw and WWE Friday Night SmackDown shows many times. These live TV tapings bring big wrestling stars to Fairborn.
- One memorable WWE Raw event in 2010 featured the return of wrestling legend Bret Hart.
- In 2014, "The Animal" Batista made his return to WWE at the Nutter Center.
Concerts, Rallies, and More
Beyond sports and wrestling, the Nutter Center is a popular spot for other major events.
- The famous band Phish played a concert here in 1997. This show was later released as a live album.
- In 2008, then-Senator Barack Obama held a rally at the Nutter Center.
- Later that year, a "Road to the Convention Rally" took place. At this event, Sarah Palin was announced as a vice-presidential candidate.
- The Nutter Center has hosted the opening and closing ceremonies for the Science Olympiad National Tournament in 2013 and 2017. This is a big competition for young scientists.
- The legendary band Eagles performed one of their last shows on their "History of the Eagles Tour" here in 2015.
- The Nutter Center is often used for the Winter Guard International championships. These events feature amazing indoor performances by percussion, color guard, and winds groups.
- The arena was once planned to host a 2016 United States presidential debate. However, the location was changed due to security and money concerns.
