MURFREESBORO, Tenn. - John Fleischman remembers the exact day Cassell Coliseum opened: January 3, 1962.
It's hard to forget the date when you're part of the first team that ever played in the arena.
The promise of playing in a 12,000 seat arena before he graduated was one of the major selling points for the wing from Fort Wayne, Ind., when he decided to play for the Hokies. And after playing varsity games in War Memorial Hall, which he estimates could have maybe had 300 people watch their games on its best day, getting a chance to take on a big school like Alabama in a full arena was the culmination of the vision he bought into.