Discussions of crowd control will occur in the off-season.
Football fans caused about $5,900 in damage to Faurot Field when they stormed it after Missouri beat Nebraska last month, said Chad Moller, athletic department spokesman.
The heisted goal posts were replaced with a spare set last week at a cost of $5,500. The athletic department keeps several sets of goal posts on hand in case malfunctions occur during games. A new set will be ordered once the season is complete.
Additional damage to a water hydrant and fence cost about $400.
A special committee designed to discourage similar incidents was created in the days following the game. The committee has not yet met and has no scheduled meetings. Moller said he would not name the committee members until they started meeting.
But all six members who will make up the special committee already participate in regular weekly meetings to plan for upcoming home football games, said Moller.
The events following the Nebraska game will be a big topic in today’s meeting in preparation for MU’s final home game against Baylor on Nov. 12, he said. But, Moller said the larger issue of crowd management will be addressed by the committee once the season is finished.
“It’s still in the infancy stages,” Moller said. “We’ll get through the Baylor game, and the bulk of the decisions will be made in the off-season.”
Minutes after Missouri beat Nebraska on Oct. 23, fans rushed the field, and MU police arrested 21 people there. The case was sent to city prosecutors last Friday; no charges have been filed so far.
Moller noted the difficulty of the committee’s task. For some fans, this type of celebration has become a tradition after beating rivals or pulling off dramatic upsets. Last weekend, for example, Kansas fans rushed their field and ripped down the goal posts following a win over MU.
“It’s a culture and mindset issue just as much as a physical issue of what kind of goal posts and security you utilize,” said Moller.