Vanderbilt University has racked up nearly $1 million in Southeastern Conference fines for rushing football fields and basketball courts this academic year, despite trying to curtail the temptation, but Alabama athletic director Greg Bryne said a steeper penalty could be imposed against schools to end rushing the field of play once and for all.
"I truly believe it — if we said that the home team, if they storm the field or the court, they're going to lose that game right then and there, that will stop it," Byrne said, as reported by Athlon Sports. "I don't think from a financial penalty standpoint you can really put anything into place that would curtail it. I think it has to be other steps, other actions."
The SEC has levied a combined $2.6 million in fines because of fans storming the courts and fields this year, according to Athlon Sports, citing a report by ESPN.
Related: Vanderbilt Introducing Court-Storming Countdown Clock Following Nearly $1M in Fines
But some observers don't think Byrne's proposal is the best solution. "Court storming remains a problem but one SEC athletic director’s awful idea would be to punish players for fans’ behavior," read a headline Wednesday at atozsports.com.
"The SEC’s procedures will be under the microscope again this weekend when No. 1 Auburn visits No. 2 Alabama in a huge rivalry matchup," wrote AtoZ's Brian Davis. "Would Crimson Tide fans storm the floor if they knew it would cost their team a victory?"
"I would hate to see that the efforts of the student-athletes could somehow be taken away because of the decisions made by the participants in the court storming," Pearl said, as reported by Athlon Sports. "I love the passion of court storming of college basketball — it's all about the students and these incredible environments. I think there's a better way of doing it, though."
For his part, SEC commissioner Greg Sankey can't say what the future will hold in terms of fines or forfeits, but he believes Byrne has some sympathizers within the conference. “I think that’s a tough proposition,” Sankey told ESPN. “I do think there's more than Greg in this league who feel that way, though.”
Sankey added that players, coaches and officials belong on the court, and fans belong in the stands. But, of course, chaos can easily break loose once a final buzzer sounds.
“A lot of people want to make their TikTok videos in that moment,” Sankey told ESPN. "We’ve had visiting players approached and insulted pretty aggressively, so somebody can make a video recording. Those aren’t healthy realities.”
