Tennessee-Ole Miss Debris Incident Results in 18 Arrests, SEC Fines Vols

Tennessee Chancellor Donde Plowman said that any students found responsible could lose attendance privileges.

According to a University of Tennessee Police Department spokesperson, 18 arrests and 47 ejections resulted from a contentious call at the end of Saturday's match between SEC foes Tennessee and Ole Miss. The spokesperson did not mention how many of the arrests or ejections were students.

After Tennessee's fourth down attempt was reviewed to be a yard short, fans hurled beverages, pizza boxes, golf balls, and other garbage onto the Neyland Stadium field which caused a 20 minute delay. Most of the items were tossed from the student section. 

The SEC announced on Monday that Tennessee would face a slew of consequences, including a $250,000 fine. In addition, the university would "be required to use all available resources" to identify those who threw items and ban them from any athletic events for the remainder of the year.

NEWS | The @SEC announced Monday that Tennessee will be assessed a financial penalty and must meet requirements set forth by the Commissioner following interruption of its Oct. 16 football game with Ole Miss due to fans throwing debris on to the field.https://t.co/Cgqj7PSpOW

— Southeastern Conference (@SEC) October 18, 2021

Chancellor Donde Plowman said on Sunday that the UTPD were investigating who threw the projectiles and any students found responsible could face lengthier bans from future games.

"I want our fans to be passionate in support of our student-athletes," Plowman said. "That cannot mean resorting to bad behavior when things don’t go our way."

Plowman also noted that the university is awaiting recommendations from UTPD and the Division of Student Life to prevent similar behavior in the future.

I am astonished and sickened by the behavior of some Vol fans at the end of tonight’s game. Good sportsmanship must be part of who we are as Volunteers. Behavior that puts student-athletes, visitors and other fans at risk is not something we will tolerate. 1/2

— Donde Plowman (@DondePlowman) October 17, 2021

UTPD will work with the university to install additional preventative measures. Vice Chancellor of Communications and Marketing Tisha Benton suggested that an increased number of surveillance cameras aimed at the student section could be used as well.

With all three timeouts remaining, Tennessee was able to regain possession once play resumed with just under a minute to go. However, the Volunteers were unable to score on the final possession and fell to No. 13 Mississippi, 31-26.

"We had an opportunity at the end," Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel said. "The first part of it was just about player safety."