The next person who jumps from the bleachers and runs around on the field during a football game at Rice-Eccles Stadium will get a $500 fine.
The University of Utah Police Department, stadium officials and the Office of the Dean of Students decided more needs to be done to protect the players and coaches during a game and stop others from attracting attention by running on to the field.
“This has been a problem for a number of years,” said Mark Burk, stadium manager.
The Office of the Dean of Students oversees the greeks. Burksaid nearly all of those who storm the stadium are members of U fraternities.
During the Homecoming Game, the pledges of a fraternity carried their flag across the field. Because the $500 fine had not yet been implemented, the pledges were assigned to help clean the stadium after the next home game.
U Police Chief Ben Lemmon contacted Associate Dean of Students Lori McDonald and asked her to tell greek leaders about the new fine. McDonald then passed the word on to each fraternity president, and they discussed the fine during their weekly chapter meetings.
Since the new fine was implemented, no one has stormed the grass. Before that, “at pretty much every home game” they run on the field.
“We have got to stop this,” Burk said.
Other universities, including Brigham Young University, prosecute those who go on to the field.
“We are not going to do that yet, but if the $500 fine is not enough to discourage others from doing this, we might have to,” he said.