Background
The extremely low temperatures of last week motivated a deviation from our traditional and tested method of admission to Neville Arena where students queue for admission. As such, students were asked to begin lining up at 6:30 a.m., on Saturday, Jan. 25, for the College Game Day event. The doors opened at 7 a.m. for students and fans to enter Neville Arena.
When the arena doors opened, security officials led the line of students to the door of the arena. It was at this time that a small group of people leapt over the barricades or knocked over the barricades in an effort to beat the main line of students who were lined up appropriately and in an orderly fashion. It was during this commotion that students, who were following the correct procedures for admittance, were impacted by the rush of students behind them. The entire incident was brief but resulted in a few minor injuries and considerable alarm.
What Happened:
There were six minor injuries reported by on-site medical staff and the injuries were addressed locally by EMS. No student was transported from campus by ambulance to the hospital.
At this time, we have no verifiable reports of any broken bones resulting from Saturday’s incident at Neville Arena.
What’s Next:
Auburn is reviewing our game day policies and procedures and, with ample student input, will assess the best method for how students should gain admission to future men’s basketball games. The safety of our students, personnel and community memb
ers is of utmost importance.
The extremely low temperatures of last week motivated a deviation from our traditional and tested method of admission to Neville Arena where students queue for admission. As such, students were asked to begin lining up at 6:30 a.m., on Saturday, Jan. 25, for the College Game Day event. The doors opened at 7 a.m. for students and fans to enter Neville Arena.
When the arena doors opened, security officials led the line of students to the door of the arena. It was at this time that a small group of people leapt over the barricades or knocked over the barricades in an effort to beat the main line of students who were lined up appropriately and in an orderly fashion. It was during this commotion that students, who were following the correct procedures for admittance, were impacted by the rush of students behind them. The entire incident was brief but resulted in a few minor injuries and considerable alarm.
What Happened:
There were six minor injuries reported by on-site medical staff and the injuries were addressed locally by EMS. No student was transported from campus by ambulance to the hospital.
At this time, we have no verifiable reports of any broken bones resulting from Saturday’s incident at Neville Arena.
What’s Next:
Auburn is reviewing our game day policies and procedures and, with ample student input, will assess the best method for how students should gain admission to future men’s basketball games. The safety of our students, personnel and community memb
ers is of utmost importance.
