SEC fines Tennessee over its access-to-competition-area policy

The Southeastern Conference has fined the University of Tennessee for violating the league's access to competition area policy. The conference announced the penalty itself, citing the rule that governs who is permitted to enter the field of play.

Fines under this policy are the SEC's standard response when fans come onto the competition area, and they have become a familiar cost of doing business after marquee home wins around the league. For Tennessee, the penalty adds a financial footnote to a celebratory stretch of the season, the kind of bill a school pays when its fans decide the field is where the party is.