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UNC Faithful Grab Seats As Dean Dome Upgrades

Nov 10, 2006

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — As workers install 10,000 news seats in the Dean Smith Center, University of North Carolina students and alumni are scrambling for the old ones.

The original seats, installed when the "Dean Dome" was built in 1986, have supported about 6 million fans over the past 20 years, including crowds that witnessed two national championship seasons.

People have been snatching the old seats as souvenirs.

"They were grabbing up groups of twos and threes, and out the door they would go with them," said Rita Price, who is helping install the new seats.

While some may want to cushion the loss of an original part of the arena, others are trying to make a quick buck. Some chairs have already popped up on eBay with an asking price of about $50 each.

The new seats are expected to be in place by mid-October, weeks before UNC opens its regular season.

• Reporter: Scott Mason
• Photographer: Nathan Monroe
• Web Editor: Matthew Burns