One byproduct of Nick Saban’s retirement: Alabama has already lost 3 road games in 2024 that resulted in field storms by the delirious home locals. Last night’s field storm in Norman, Oklahoma was understandable given that the Sooners had entered the game with an ugly 1-5 SEC record.
The Odyssey has been well aware of the conference’s field storming policy. The school with the field stormers is assessed $100,000 for the first transgression, $250,000 for the second and $500,000 for subsequent field storms. To whom such monies would go was a mystery to us until last week. We had mistakenly assumed that such fines went to the conference office. WRONG! Monies go to the visiting team, strangely or not. Who said there is no upside to losing?
We had felt a touch said Alabama players have had to wade through throngs of fans at Vanderbilt, Tennessee and Oklahoma. However, we no longer feel sad as the folks in Tuscaloosa are getting all kinds of unexpected cash!
For those who wonder why such fines exist, the Odyssey’s strongly held theory is that the SEC office does not want to be party to an injury lawsuit caused by a field storming. The existence of a fine structure is an excellent legal, lobbying point. Deep down, we suspect that league offices do not mind the field storms as it provides even more evidence of fan passion in the “it just means more” conference.