The Southeastern Conference fined Vanderbilt University $500,000 for storming the court Saturday after the Commodores upset No. 9 Kentucky, 74-69 — an amount reflective of Vanderbilt's third storming event of this academic year and one athletic director Candice Storey Lee says could be put to better use.
As reported by Max Weisman of The Big Lead, "Knowing the fine was going to be huge, Lee came over to the Vanderbilt student section and begged the students not to storm the court, telling them the school could use the $500,000 for NIL to build an even better team. It didn't work."
The second incident in the string of three came just one week earlier, when the Commodores toppled No. 6 Tennessee, 76-75. The fine for the post-game court-storming was $250,000. The first occurred during football season, as Vandy beat Alabama at FirstBank Stadium, which saw its goalposts removed, launched into a river and then retrieved to be auctioned off as means to help the school cover the SEC's initial $100,000 fine against the school.
"This isn't the last opportunity for Commodore fans to storm the court at Memorial Gymnasium," Weisman wrote. "Vanderbilt hosts No. 1 Auburn on Feb. 11. Another court storming would raise Vanderbilt's total fined to $1.35 million."
Athletic Business and AB Today have covered court-storming for decades. In fact, a 2006 article about potential safety risks addressed the very tactic employed by Vanderbilt's Lee.
From AB: School Strategize Against Dangers of Court-Storming
"How does one convince would-be court rushers to show the same concerns? Talk to them, says Nina Simmons, assistant director and events services manager of the University of North Carolina at Charlotte's Halton Arena/Barnhardt Student Activity Center. Simmons, who has written on the topic for the International Association of Assembly Managers, has seen several communication approaches prove effective," according to an AB article. "Some schools host preseason pizza parties, during which safety videos are shown. Others allow students early entry to the facility, then conduct pregame safety briefings.
"For her part, Simmons first reads signals that a court rush may be imminent — a bitter rival comes to town or particularly long lines form at the ticket office — and staffs up accordingly. Then Simmons gauges the vibe created by the game itself (nail-biters, not blowouts, represent greater potential powder kegs) and takes to the stands during late timeouts, reasoning with all students within earshot to exhibit patience and order during their descent to the floor."
"We walk right in front of them and say, `Listen, guys. Here's the rule. Here's the plan.' It works," Simmons told AB. "They're much more cooperative than they were before we started this. We try to speak to them like we would like to be spoken to."
As evidenced by the latest Vanderbilt violation, not even the modern-day leverage of NIL implications is enough to convince some students to resist the temptation to storm.
