Mizzou arena may bear name of anonymous donor

COLUMBIA, Mo. -- Norm Stewart Court won't be making the move to Missouri's new arena, and the legendary coach doesn't seem to mind too much.

When Stewart resigned after 32 seasons and 634 victories in 1999, the Hearnes Center floor was named in his honor and Stewart got a signed agreement from school chancellor Richard Wallace that he'd be honored in the new facility, slated for completion in 2004.

That changed when Bill Laurie, a longtime Missouri supporter and the owner of the St. Louis Blues, stepped forward as the previously anonymous donor of $25 million for the arena. Among Laurie's stipulations are that the arena and related facilities may not be named after a "current or former athlete, administrator, coach or athletic director at the university."

Wallace said he talked with Stewart before agreeing to Laurie's conditions, and said the former coach told him to go forward with the plan. The new arena likely will be named for Laurie.

"He graciously encouraged me to pursue the opportunity for the new arena," Wallace said in a statement. "Given his longstanding commitment to the best interests of the basketball program, this did in no way surprise me.

"Our intention then and now is to honor Norm's legacy in a manner befitting his legendary status in the history of our university and in college athletics in this country."

Missouri athletic director Mike Alden said Stewart told Wallace: "Look, don't worry about my name on the court. That's a great thing for Mizzou to do."

Stewart, in an interview with WHB-AM in Kansas City on Thursday, for the most part avoided controversy. The coach's wife, Virginia, has been ill.

"Hopefully, everything that is done and will be done will be in the best interest of the people and the players," Stewart said.

But he added, "I am a bit concerned about it."

The relationship between Laurie and Stewart reportedly became strained in Stewart's final years at the school.

"Even a guy that didn't fall off a turnip truck would be suspicious if they didn't want (the name) on there," Stewart said. "I've had a lot of things happen over the last 32 years and they've all worked out, and hopefully we'll work something out."

Laurie told the radio station he was on good terms with Stewart at the end. He noted he had a party at his house for Stewart's daughter's wedding, and a party at his house for Stewart's first Big Eight championship team.

"I think if you check your records, toward the end of Norm's career, there was nobody in the state of Missouri that supported him any more than I did," Laurie said. "So the relationship with Norm -- total respect.

"I wouldn't say he would normally have done things exactly the way I would have done things, but nobody could ever, ever dispute his record."

Groundbreaking for the new arena, about 200 yards south of the Hearnes Center, is scheduled for next September. Laurie gives present coach Quin Snyder a lot of the credit for lobbying the Legislature for the new arena.

"He appeared in Jefferson City and made every effort he could to make the people, the legislators, feel good about what they were doing," Laurie said. "To go forth and do anything beyond what we were talking about would be somewhat unfair to the new coach."