8A the university daily kansan
sports
thursday, September 25, 2003
Kansas football
Charges can be filed for destroying goalposts
By John Domoney
jdomoney@kansan.com
Kansas staff writer
For those who have dreams of tearing down the goalposts at Memorial Stadium after a Kansas victory overrival Missouri, the reality could be a trip to the police station.
No arrests can be made of students who are simply running onto the field, said Schuyler Bailey of the KU Public Safety. But once a fan is involved in destroying a goalpost, a police officer can arrest them for criminal destruction to the property. A charge of this nature must include damaging property worth at least $500, Bailey said. In this case a new goaltop costs the University of Kansas $6,000 to replace.
It is not the money, but the safety of the fans that has the University and the athletics department concerned.
"It is fun," said Brad Nachtigal,
KU director of facilities and
events. "But it is not fun to see your buddy get a serious injury in the process."
The Big 12 Conference policy says no fan is allowed onto the playing field without permission, and that includes spirited students who want to celebrate their school's victory by hanging from the uprights of a goalpost.
"It can be a dangerous situation to be involved with," Nachti-gal said. "I know it is the trend, but we would hope that our fans would act better than that."
Although the Big 12' s rule concerning fans on the field has been in effect since 1997, the NCAA has recently taken a stronger stance on the issue. A report containing a 16-page booklet and a video has been sent out to universities across the nation about sportsmanship and fan behavior at collegiate sporting events.
The report is the result of a February summit meeting in Dallas where university and government
officials gathered to discuss ways to prevent or reduce unsportsmanlike behavior before, during or after athletic contests, according to the Sept. 15 issue of The NCAA News. The report goes over how athletics contests can best be managed, urging university officials and athletics department staff to outline how to handle certain games that might create an atmosphere for worsened behavior among fans.
The goalposts of Memorial Stadium have not been torn down and tossed into Potter Lake since an Oct. 23, 1999, 21-0 victory over the rival Tigers. In 2000, a group of students attempted to dismantle the goalposts after a 23-15 victory over Colorado, but then coach Terry Allen convinced the students to leave the yellow uprights intact because of Colorado's 1-6 record.
In last year's Kansas-Missouri football game, some Tiger fans decided a 36-12 victory for Missouri, dropping the Jayhawks'
record to 2-7, created a reason to head for the posts. With the assistance of and urging by the Tiger players, Missouri fans found out the hard way that the action is illegal. Several dozen fans were cuffed and hauled away by campus police leaving several thousand fans to claim the goalposts and carry them to Harpo's, a popular gameday bar in Columbia, Mo.
The problem is not preventing a few fans from running onto the field, Nachtigal said. It is stopping several thousand students that makes it impossible to prevent the goalposts from being ripped out of the ground.
"Am I telling you we'regoing to stop 6,000 people from running out onto the field?" Nachtigal said. "No. Obviously we can't stop that many people."
Although Nachtigal admitted that most students would probably not be aware of the rule prohibiting them from this type of postgame celebration, members of
the Athletics Department and KU Public Safety met during the week to discuss how they would handle the potential situation that could arise with a Jawhawk victory.
Bailey refused to comment on the police's strategy, but he did say it would involve protecting the safety of the fans. Without insight into the tactics used by the police, there remains only one known way that fans will be informed.
"Events staff people will tell fans to stay off the field and warn them of the consequences," Nachtigal said.
Kansas Athletics Director Lew Perkins wants Jawahk fans to get involved in the spirit of the game but in an appropriate manner that positively represents the University.
"I am a big proponent of sportsmanship," Perkins said. "I want people to have fun, but it's important to remember that at the end of the day, it's not life or death."
letter to the editor
- Edited by Abby Sidesinger
Mangino says thank you; calls for fan participation
Dear students,
Thank you for the loyal support of your Jayhawk football team during our home games. We can feel your enthusiasm and school spirit throughout Memorial Stadium.
On behalf of our players, coaches and support staff, I am asking you to crank it up to fever pitch this Saturday. Let's show our counterparts in the Big 12 Conference that our student body can "Rock the House" better than any student body on the planet!
And please, wear comfortable shoes, because you'll spend a lot of time on your feet ... waving the wheat!!!
Again, thanks for your support and continue to cheer responsibly!
Big 12 lagging in conference competition
The proudly held reputation of Big 12 Conference football is being challenged. When it comes to depth, former players in the NFL and the number of top teams in its respected conference, the Southeastern Conference is the best college football conference in the nation.
sports commentary
The Big 12's decline has been evident during the past two weeks. Some Kansas fans relished in Kansas State's loss at home to Marshall Saturday. Texas lost a game it should have won at home against Arkansas, faltering 38-28. Colorado gave up 47 points in its Sept. 14 loss at home versus Washington State and on the road last weekend against Florida State.
Jason Hwang jhwang@hansan.com
While the Big 12 looked strong last year, this year it is evident that some teams have slipped this season.
As far as teams in the Top 25, the SEC is the best. The SEC is tied for first with the Big 10 and Big 12 with five teams in the Top 25. Yes, the Big 12 boasts the number one team in the country, Oklahoma. But Tennessee, LSU and Arkansas
rank No. 7,8 and 9 in the Associated Press Top 25. Georgia is 12th and Florida rounds it up at 25.
Nebraska is 11th in the AP poll, but that ranking is way too high for a program that is still on the decline. Missouri just cracked the Top 25, but they barely won at home to unranked Middle Tennessee State squad at home in overtime, 41-40 who defeated Georgia by a bigger margin on Sept. 6. And we'll see if the Tigers hold the No. 23 ranking against the Jayhawks this Saturday.
Throughout the years, the SEC has always had an incredible amount of quality depth in its conference. Despite the bad start
after a No. 6 preseason ranking, Auburn will bounce back and contend for the SEC West. Mississippi returns a solid squad with Heisman candidate quarterback Eli Manning.
Look out for Alabama, as well as South Carolina, who beat Atlantic Coast Conference upstart Virginia at home 31-7. Big 12 teams did have a better bowl record in the last three seasons, but with the way they have been playing, this will change this year.
When it comes to pro players representing schools in their conferences, the SEC is on top. It is tied for first in the nation with the Big 10, which has five schools in the top 20 in former players on
the NFL opening-day roster. Like the Big 10, the SEC has five schools in the top 20. The Big 12 has six schools in the top 40 and four in the top 20.
The SEC has the most players with 263, while the Big 12 is fourth in the nation with 187, behind the Big 10 and Pac-10.
As much as some of you may hate to admit this, the SEC has shown this season that it stands tall above the rest in college football supremacy. I am objective enough to see that the Big 12 will have to earn its way in order to go back on top of college football.
Hwang is an Overland Park senior in communication studies.
Kansas athletics calendar
saturday
Tennis at Tulsa Invitational, all day,
Tulsa OKa.
Swimming vs. SIU, 6 p.m., Robinson Natatorium
Football vs. Missouri, 11:40 a.m.
Memorial Stadium
friday
Swimming vs. SIU (Lake Race), 8 a.m.
Clinton Lake
Soccer vs. Baylor, 5 p.m., SuperTarget Field
Volleyball vs. Baylor, 7 p.m., Horejsi
Families Athletic Center
rennis at Tulsa Invitational, all day,
Tulsa. Okla.
sunday
Tennis at Tulsa Invitational, all day,
Tulsa, Okla.
Soccer vs. Texas Tech, 1 p.m., Super Target Field
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