Back in medieval times, the rack was a device of torture, a chamber of pain that instilled fear in trespassers and other wrongdoers.

Rutgers has its own version of the rack.

At Rutgers, even if you manage to escape with your life, chances are, you won’t escape with a win.

The 8,000-seat Louis Brown Athletic Center, commonly known as the RAC, will host tomorrow night’s 7:30 game between the Scarlet Knights and Syracuse.

The RAC, built in 1977, serves as a truly unique on-campus arena. This truncated pyramid of steel and concrete in Piscataway, N.J., is one of the nation’s loudest arenas.

Its bizarre shape only adds to the allure.

When plans for the RAC were made, they vaguely resembled what now stands as home to the 8-9 Scarlet Knights. That’s because at the time of construction, a nationwide steel strike was in effect. Rutgers was forced to make budget cuts, and the half-completed roof was capped off, giving the arena the look of a trapezoid.

‘It was a cost-saving way to build a building,’ said Bob Mulcahy, Rutgers’ director of athletics.

That cost-effective design makes the RAC a difficult place for road teams. Because the concrete and steel don’t absorb sound as much as other materials, the crowd noise continually bounces off the walls like a pinball.

‘The noise factor is a result of the construction,’ Mulcahy said. ‘The fact that the stands are very close to the floor has a confining effect on noise. It lends itself to a loud atmosphere.’

That’s something to which every Rutgers fan can attest.

The stands seem to hover above the court, making the RAC a tough environment for opposing schools. Rutgers went 15-2 last year at home and knocked off four ranked teams at the RAC: Connecticut, Miami, Georgetown and Syracuse. Rutgers is 241-100 all-time at the RAC.

In a recent Rutgers University test, the decibel level on the floor of the arena was measured at 113. In the lower level stands, it reached 125 decibels. In comparison, the average subway reaches 90 decibels while the average rock concert reaches 110.

The common threshold of pain is 140 decibels, just 15 more than what was measured at the RAC.

‘When playing well, it gives us the ultimate advantage,’ Rutgers head coach Gary Waters said.

Sometimes, the arena gets so loud that Waters can’t verbally communicate with his players. Instead, the Scarlet Knights use sign language to signal specific plays.

The inability to communicate is only part of the reason why SU head coach Jim Boeheim recently told Waters that the RAC is the hardest place to play in the Big East.

But it’s not just Big East teams that have fought for survival in the RAC. For a time, NBA teams did, too. The building served as home for both the New Jersey Nets and the Scarlet Knights for four seasons, starting in 1977. The Nets changed venues when the Meadowlands was built in nearby East Rutherford, N.J.

When the Nets moved down the road to a cavernous building, the cozy confines of the RAC belonged solely to the Knights.

And the 8,000-plus fans that turn out for each game couldn’t be happier.

‘It’s the quality of our fans (that makes the building so loud),” senior center Kareem Wright said. ‘We love playing here, and we love our fans. It’s like a little high school gym.’

So far this season, the Knights aren’t duplicating last year’s success. Rutgers is 0-5 in the conference and sits last in the Big East West Division. The Scarlet Knights take a six-game losing streak — including a few close home losses — into tomorrow’s game with the Orangemen.

Though the Scarlet Knights are struggling, they know that anything is possible when they play at home.

‘The RAC gives you a comfort zone,’ Waters said. ‘When everyone is there cheering for you, you know that’s going to get you going.’

Published on January 27, 2003 at 12:00 pm