There are arenas, and then there are arenas that carry the unmistakable weight of a community’s pride. First National Bank Arena, nestled right on the Arkansas State University campus in Jonesboro, is very much the latter. I walked through those doors on a Tuesday afternoon with no game on the schedule, and I still felt the electricity humming in the rafters. That alone told me everything I needed to know about what this place means to the people of the Arkansas Delta.
Completed in 1987 and renovated over the years to keep pace with modern expectations, the arena seats more than 10,000 fans and serves as the beating heart of ASU Red Wolves basketball. But calling it just a basketball arena would be like calling the Delta just flat land. There is so much more going on here. The concourse wraps around the bowl in a wide, welcoming loop lined with decades of Red Wolves history — championship banners, retired jersey tributes, and larger-than-life photographs of athletes who went on to remarkable careers. If you have any appreciation at all for the way sports weave themselves into the fabric of a place, this walk alone is worth the stop.
What genuinely surprised me was how accessible the venue feels on non-game days. The arena hosts concerts, graduation ceremonies, family shows, and community events throughout the year, which means there is almost always a reason to come. I happened to visit on a day when a regional high school basketball tournament was wrapping up, and the building was alive with parents, coaches, teenagers in warm-up gear, and concession workers who moved with the practiced confidence of people who have fed a crowd before. The smell of fresh popcorn drifting down from the upper concourse was entirely convincing.
For visitors traveling to Jonesboro with family in tow, the arena offers an easy, affordable evening out. Check the schedule ahead of time — Red Wolves home games during the November through March season are a genuine treat. The student section brings an energy that is infectious without being overwhelming, and sitting courtside at an ASU game feels surprisingly intimate for a Division I venue of this size. Parking is plentiful around the campus perimeter, and the surrounding area along South Caraway Road has plenty of dining options for a pre-game meal.
Even beyond athletics, the arena represents something important: a gathering place that belongs to the entire region. Towns throughout northeastern Arkansas and the Missouri Bootheel send their families here for milestone events. Generations of ASU graduates received their diplomas under these lights. Rock acts and country headliners have filled this floor. First National Bank Arena earns its place as a true civic anchor, and any visit to Jonesboro that skips it is leaving out a chapter of the story.
So whether you catch a game, a concert, or simply walk the concourse before a campus tour, make time for this place. It is Jonesboro at full volume.
