The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/743343
132 ■ THE WOLFPACKER BY TIM PEELER M ark Moeller knew all about the his‑ tory of Reynolds Coliseum. He helped make some of it. That's why it was so important for Moeller, a member of NC State's 1973‑74 NCAA and ACC championship team, to get the company he has worked for since 2009, Danis Construction LLC, involved in preserving the old barn with the $35 mil‑ lion renovation project that was completed in August. Moeller is the director of business de‑ velopment for the Raleigh office of the Dayton, Ohio‑based construction com‑ pany. Part of his job is to dig up new busi‑ ness, and when bids were sought on giving Reynolds its first major overhaul since it opened in 1949, Moeller was eager to get his company involved in the project. Working in conjunction with Holt Broth‑ ers Construction, owned by former Wolf‑ pack football players Torry and Terrence Holt, Danis labored for more than four years in developing the project, hiring con‑ tractors and working with the campus de‑ signers and architects to produce the lavish new hall of fame and arena. "Obviously, it was a special project for me," Moeller said. "There is a lot of his‑ tory in that building, and I wanted to see it preserved. "I didn't want to see it torn down. The idea that it could be transformed into some‑ thing new and different really appealed to me." Beginning in 2013, Moeller, his Danis co‑workers and senior project engineer Jim Estep spent nearly two years planning the project, working with the campus designers and recruiting qualified contractors. Once construction started in March 2015, the native of Canfield, Ohio, went by Reyn‑ olds at least once a week to make sure the project continued to be on time and at budget, as contractors ripped out the seats in the northern end, reconfigured the play‑ ing arena and built a permanent home for the NC State Athletic Hall of Fame and the Walk of Fame and History. "I wanted to keep my finger on the pulse of the project as much as I could and make sure things were progressing nicely," Moeller said. "It turned out better than I could have ever imagined." Moeller originally came to Raleigh to play basketball for head coach Norm Sloan. He arrived at the same time as David Thompson, Monte Towe, Tim Stoddard and Craig Kuszmaul to play for the Wolf‑ pack's 1971‑72 freshman team, perhaps the most‑watched and most‑anticipated squad in school history. He was a junior guard who averaged 3.0 points and 1.3 rebounds a game for the championship team that ended UCLA's college basketball dynasty and won the first team NCAA title in school history. Moeller was primarily a reserve during his playing career with the Wolfpack, but it was an exceptionally close team, in which every component was equally important. Perhaps the highlight of his career was as a sophomore against North Carolina in Reynolds during the Wolfpack's unde‑ feated 27‑0 season. With 51 seconds to play, Moeller hit a critical jumper from the free throw line that gave the Wolfpack the deciding points in the 76‑73 victory. More than anything, though, what Moeller remembers from his playing days was the home‑court advantage Reynolds provided. "It was so loud you could not distinguish sounds," Moeller said. "It was almost like you couldn't hear anything, couldn't com‑ municate with teammates or coaches or anyone. It was motivating, though." Moeller agrees with what others have ■ PACK PAST Mark Moeller Helped Make History In Reynolds Coliseum And Then Was Part Of Renovating It Moeller was a member of the 1973‑74 Wolfpack men's basketball team that won the ACC and NCAA championships. PHOTO COURTESY NC STATE MEDIA RELATIONS