USATSI

The SEC plans to increase fines for fans rushing the field or court following a game according to new guidelines announced Thursday. The first offense will cost the home school $100,000, the second $250,000 and $500,000 for subsequent violations. The league also announced all institutions will start with a clean slate in 2023.

Field or court storming is defined by the SEC as, "when the visiting team and/or game officials are still on the playing surface." It also makes room for SEC schools to adopt a policy that allows fans on the field or playing surface once all members of the opposing team and officials have safely made their exit. 

The new policy requires each school to create a security contingency to prevent field or court rushing. Every institution must also come up with a communication plan that discourages fans to rush the field and details the individual penalties issued by the school for the violation of that rule.

LSU was fined $250,000 twice last fall after fans stormed the field following the Tigers' victory vs. Ole Miss and a month later in LSU's 32-31 overtime win over Alabama for the school's fourth violation of the policy.   

The changes are based on the findings of a working group comprised of athletic directors, event management directors and campus security personnel last fall. 

"Current conference policies need to be reviewed and improved with a focus on addressing field and court incursions by spectators after contests," SEC commissioner Greg Sankey said in a statement last fall. "The SEC's Working Group on Event Security will focus its efforts on reviewing existing policies, developing new strategies and identifying best practices to enhance crowd management and more effectively address field and court incursions at future SEC athletics events."