March Madness is finally here. The mid-major tournaments are wrapping up while the major conferences are about to kick their conference tournaments into high-gear.
As of late, it seems that every time a small school clinches a berth into the NCAA Tournament, the student body of that school feels it's necessary to rush the court. It's become cliche, and something needs to be done.
It was made evident after students from Gonzaga rushed the court after beating Santa Clara on Monday.
The No. 3 team in the entire country had to come back to beat the No. 5 seed in the West Coast Conference tournament. Was there really a reason to rush the court?
In fact, the Zags weren't even at home. The conference tournament was at Santa Clara. It takes some audacity to rush the opponent's court to celebrate a comeback win when your team was expected to win by a double-digit figure.
Act like you've been there before because you have done this before. The Zags have won five of the last six WCC tournaments and are the perennial sleeper pick in the early rounds of the NCAA tournament. No one is sleeping on the Zags this year. They are expected to win the WCC every year, and a Sweet 16 run won't be considered a success this season.
Break out the paper and pencil and take some notes. Here are some guidelines to follow when considering rushing the court.
1. Rushing the court should be reserved for momentous occasions.
Making the NCAA tournament for the first time, beating a team your school has never knocked off, winning your school's first outright conference title or beating the No. 1 team in the country when your school wasn't supposed to score half the No. 1 team's point total are all acceptable momentous occasions.
2. When two ranked teams are playing, the court should be student-free at game's end.
After the Wake Forest/ Texas game a handful of students ran onto the court while "security" looked on. Texas was ranked No. 18 prior to that game while the Demon Deacons held the No. 4 ranking. It seemed most of the students realized that a ranked team at home beating a higher-ranked squad isn't really a rarity.
3. Likewise, when two unranked teams play, the court should be empty after the final whistle.
Alumni and current students are the only people who really care when two unranked schools go head-to-head, so don't make your way onto the playing surface after the game. If there is no national significance to the game, stay in your seat.
4. Never rush the court at an away game.
Show some respect and some sense. Would you want them to rush your court? Wouldn't you want to throw something at them if they rushed your court? Aren't there more of them than you?
5. Never, never rush the court when your team is supposed to win.
There is a total "So, what?" factor to this. Your school beat someone it's supposed to beat. A huge celebration is not in order. Calm yourself. Go to a bar and get a beer. Tell the players good game when you see them on campus. Do not under any circumstance step foot on the court.
6. Make sure the entire student body is coming on the court with you.
If there are only 20 or 30 of you who think that the victory is worthy of running on the court, you are wrong. A couple hundred students filling the entire court makes more sense and looks a lot better on TV, too.
Rushing the court shouldn't be stopped, but something has to be done to keep the tradition from becoming too common. Use some common sense after a win, and when the time comes to rush the court and celebrate, it will mean a whole lot more to the team and you, the fan.
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