|
By Beth Roberts
beth@uga.edu
At his regular media briefing on Oct. 12, President Michael F. Adams read a statement about fan misbehavior at the preceding Saturday’s football game against the University of Tennessee and  reported on his meeting with the presidents of other Southeastern Conference colleges the following Monday.
Adams said the “dangerous and inexcusable” behavior had “tainted” what had otherwise been a “great win,” and reported that he had written a letter of apology to the president of the University of Tennessee for putting the Tennessee players and athletic staff in jeopardy.
Before the final whistle had blown in the football game at Sanford Stadium, several hundred UGA fans--presumed to be mostly students--had forced their way onto the field to tear down the goal posts in celebration of Georgia’s win, the first against Tennessee after nine consecutive losses. A great deal of damage was done to the legendary hedges which ring the field, as well as to some stadium seating and railings. One student was trampled in the rush and was hospitalized in serious condition for several days; she has now been released from the hospital and is recovering. Goal posts were replaced and the turf and seating repaired, at a cost of approximately $75,000, in time for the Homecoming game the following Saturday. The damaged branches were pruned from the hedges, leaving some plants no more than a foot tall. They are expected to recover by next year.
The SEC presidents discussed several aspects of the broad security problem, Adams said. The need for emergency access and for protection for players is being looked at across the conference. Some institutions are becoming more aggressive about searching entering patrons and confiscating alcohol, he said.
In addition, some schools have moved student seating to the upper deck to reduce access to the field. “I like having students close to the field, in good seats,” Adams said, but such a reconfiguration could be considered at UGA if necessary.
In general, Adams said, the university is taking an educational rather than a punitive approach to the incident, which he does not expect to be repeated. “Our students are pretty smart,” he said, “and there’s a general sense that what happened was over the line.”
SEC Commissioner Roy Kramer has sent a letter to presidents and athletic directors at conference schools expressing his concern about security and safety at football games.
Moving on to a different example of unacceptable student behavior, Adams also discussed the recent apparent fraternity hazing incident in which two blindfolded students were discovered by police in the back of a sports-utility vehicle during a traffic stop, a reminder of the incident last year in which a blindfolded and handcuffed student was killed in a car wreck.
“I share the disappointment of Dr. Mullendore [vice president for student affairs],” he said. “These were errors of judgment by some very good students--some very nice, decent people. What it indicates to me is a lack of forethought--and that the transition into adulthood is not yet complete. These were rather juvenile actions.” |
|
|
