For Immediate Release – August 14, 2003
Contact: Sue Lister, Associate Commissioner
BIG TEN CONFERENCE ENACTS CROWD CONTROL
INITIATIVES
PARK RIDGE, IL – After growing concerns over the environment
surrounding intercollegiate football and basketball games during
the 2002-03 athletic seasons, the Big Ten Conference recently passed
a set of initiatives to address fan behavior and improve security
for visiting teams and game officials.
Crowd control became a nation-wide issue last season following
post-game incidents of fans rushing the playing fields, rioting
and other destructive behavior. The Big Ten Conference and others
nationally were involved in a Sportsmanship and Fan Behavior Summit
held in Dallas in February.
Out of that summit, Conference leaders formulated the following
initiatives which were presented to the Big Ten Council of Presidents
/ Chancellors and unanimously approved by the Conference's
Administrators Council in June.
Big Ten Crowd Control and Protection of Visiting Teams
/ Officials:
- Protection of Visiting Team and Officials: Host institutions
must provide adequate security and protection for the visiting
team and game officials and their vehicles immediately upon arrival
on campus / at the competition venue continuing through their
departure.
- Home Team Student Sections / Bands: Institutions will be held
responsible for school sponsored student sections that attack
or single out student-athletes. In basketball venues, home team
bands will be moved away from the visiting bench area.
- In-Game Video Replay Policy: Institutions shall refrain from
showing replays on video boards where an officiating call could
be considered a substantial part of the play. Also, all noise
emanating from a video or message board must stop prior to game
action.
- Implement Comprehensive Communications Plan: “Respect
the game” -- The Conference office has developed a broad
plan to communicate the message of sportsmanship to students,
administrators, alumni and fans.
“The Big Ten Conference is taking a very serious step forward
to monitor crowd control and fan behavior in and around our venues,”
Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany said. “Sporting events should
be fun and enthusiastic environments for the participants and those
in attendance. However in some cases, unruly behavior has over-shadowed
the games and, at times, threatened the welfare of student-athletes,
coaches, officials and fans.
“For more than 100 years, the Big Ten Conference has focused
on fairness and sportsmanship and we want everyone involved with
our competitions to uphold these values. Our message is simple,
‘Respect the game',” Delany added.
Along with these initiatives, Big Ten football and men's
and women's basketball head coaches are participating in public
service announcements for the Conference addressing this topic.
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