The No. 6 Alabama Crimson Tide is looking to bounce back against No. 14 Tennessee this Saturday after falling at home to Georgia last week. However, the program is still dealing with the impact of the loss to the Bulldogs.
Video showed Georgia linebacker Raylen Wilson heading toward the stands after the game, and a Crimson Tide fan pushed him and shoved his head.
And Alabama ensured that the fan would be held responsible.
“Alabama has identified and taken appropriate action against the individual involved in videos circulating on social media following Saturday night’s football game,” Alabama athletics said in the statement to AL.com, via Nick Kelly. “We take matters of this nature seriously and will not tolerate this behavior.”
Kirby Smart Spoke on the Incident
Fans and college football players often get into it, usually because fans storm the field after a game, but this case was different. No one stormed the field because Alabama lost. But the fan still made sure to cause harm to a Georgia player.
Georgia head coach Kirby Smart spoke about the incident on Wednesday.
“You want people to make good decisions and do things the right way, and Raylen certainly did there,” Smart said, via Georgia on SI’s Ryan Kerley. “But there’s so much that goes into that. He thought it was a Georgia fan, probably helped him react the way he did initially, you know? It’s disappointing behavior by any fan and certainly nothing we condone, and I’m sure Alabama doesn’t condone it either.”
Alabama Had a Player Strike a Fan in 2022
In 2022, Alabama experienced an incident involving a player and a fan. After the Crimson Tide lost to Tennessee on the road, fans stormed the field, creating chaos as Alabama players attempted to return to the locker room while Volunteers fans rushed toward them. During this uproar, Crimson Tide receiver Jermaine Burton hit a female Tennessee fan in the face while walking back to the locker room.
The school and the SEC imposed no penalty on Burton, and former head coach Nick Saban said he never suspended him.
“I didn’t think it was necessary to suspend the guy,” Saban said in 2022, via ESPN’s Alex Scarborough. “If you knew the whole story, maybe you wouldn’t either. But I’m not going to divulge that.”
Alabama will head back to play Tennessee this weekend, and hopefully there will be no incidents between fans and players, and everyone can leave the game safely.
Alabama Releases Official Statement After Viral Fan Incident vs. Georgia