LSU’s $100,000 fine burden just got a bit lighter.
U.S. Rep. Garret Graves (R., La.) started a GoFundMe account Monday to help pay the costs imposed by the SEC on the university for students rushing the field following LSU’s 36-16 win over No. 2 Georgia Saturday.
Graves spoke about the GoFundMe after a Re-Envisioning Louisiana event presented by the LSU Manship School of Mass Communication.
“The bottom line is whenever you do something that’s wrong, you get a speeding ticket or whatever else, you have to pay that fine and somebody else doesn’t pay it,” Graves said. “We set up a GoFundMe site, kind of out of fun, to give an opportunity for those folks who had a good time on the field to throw a few bucks in to help cover that fine.”
The account has raised more than $12,000, and it has been shared almost 6,000 times on social media.
The $100,000 offense was LSU’s second since storming the field in 2014 after a win against Ole Miss. A third violation would result in a $250,000 fine.
The post on the GoFundMe account reads:
“LSU is an inclusive community. And we love our D1 sports! When 102,000 of us get together, we celebrate – and when we do, we leave nothing on the field. But sometimes, the field calls us back. On October 13th, LSU fans shared our gregarious exuberance with the Univ. of Georgia by returning to our field of dreams after 60 minutes of elite football to share joy with Tigers, Bulldogs and each other. This kind of joy is priceless, but to the SEC it is worth $100,000. To show our appreciation of this recognition, we’re calling on all Tiger fans to spread the love by contributing $36.16 to the Tiger Athletic Foundation so all of the SEC can share in our bliss. If every Tiger fan at the game or watching on TV gives this amount, we’ll be able to share similar delight with Alabama on November 3.”
Graves said students should realize that a fine on LSU essentially takes money away from academics. However, LSU officials stated that the fine will be paid by the athletic department and not the university.
Officials said the money from the fines is placed in the SEC Post-Graduate Scholarship Fund.
“This is a way to have those responsible parties chip in a little bit of fun,” Graves said.