When it comes to the outlook on fans storming the football field or basketball court, the Southeastern Conference membership can be divided into three groups: those who do the storming after an upset win, those who aspire to do the storming but haven’t pulled off a sufficiently huge upset and those who are stormed upon.
If your school is in either of the first two camps, you’re probably not in love with the rule revisions that could include taking away a home game from any school that violates the SEC sportsmanship policy by storming the field or court. If your school is in the third camp, the idea doesn’t sound quite so radical.
Enter Greg Byrne, Alabama athletic director. The Crimson Tide has been on the wrong end of field stormings the past seven times they’ve lost on the road, dating back to the Kick Six game at Auburn in 2013. Last year, after losses at Tennessee and LSU, an Alabama player and staffer were involved in confrontations with fans who came on the field: Tide receiver Jermaine Burton struck a Tennessee fan in Knoxville, and staffer Evan Van Nostrand needed security to get off the field in Baton Rouge after being accosted by an LSU fan.
