The ACC will Fine Schools for Storming the Field or Court Beginning in 2025-26

ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips announced at the 2025 ACC Kickoff that schools will now be fined when fans storm the field or court when the officials and opposing players are still present, beginning in the 2025–26 season. The first offense will cost the school $50,000, the second $100,000, and the third will come with a painful $200,000 penalty.

In the sports of football and men’s and women’s basketball, our conference has elevated its expectations around court and field safety. Members are required to continue developing event security plans, which will now include a review by a third-party independently, and to ensure that only participants, coaches, officials, and authorized personnel are allowed in the competition area before, during, and at the conclusion of any competition.

The plan may allow spectators to access the competition area following a contest, but only after the visiting team and officials have safely exited the area.

With the elevated safety expectations, there’s critical importance to ensure that adequate time for all members of the visiting team to safely lead the field of play.

In addition to these elevated expectations, there’s a corresponding fine structure in place should a school have a breach in this new policy.

It’s $50,000, $100,000, and $200,000. Those will accumulate through two seasons in football and
basketball. Maybe there’s another sport that has an issue. Those will be compiled and will go to the Postgraduate Scholarship fund, and that’s where those dollars will be deposited.

I think paying closer attention, there is something that we’ve done privately. We haven’t been as publicly about it. It’s time. We’re seeing more and more of that happen. I’m seeing it more and more. We’re seeing it more and more in basketball. It seems to happen a lot to Duke and North Carolina. We have to protect those student-athletes across all of our 18 programs.

That, along with an independent third party that reviews our safety protocols, I think is an important step for the league.

I would start first with you’re not only noticing yours only, but you’re noticing other leagues, and I was not only noticing men’s basketball, I was noticing women’s basketball. I remember an incident with Caitlin Clark at lowa State, Filipowski at Wake Forest. I’m not picking on Wake Forest, but you’re asking me about moments where student-athletes really are getting pushed and bumped and tripped and then the rest.

This past year, when I saw it early on in the year, especially a couple of the league games, but then noticing across the country some of the activity that were going on. So that really spurred this idea of safety.

(Link)

The most recent times NC State fans stormed the football field were back in 2021, when Wolfpack fans flooded the field at Carter–Finley Stadium twice in one season.

After the Wolfpack defeated #9 Clemson 27–21 in double overtime, fans rushed the field in celebration.

One month later, NC State fans again jumped out of the stands at Carter–Finley after beating rival UNC 34–30 in one of the wildest endings ever to take place in Raleigh.