Editor's Note: The Claims Coach rejoins the PropertyCasualty360.com family with freshinsights and strategies for claims and risk managementprofessionals. Be sure to check back for his blog posts, as well asQuinley's thought-provoking monthly column, which resumes with theforthcoming January 2012 issue of ClaimsMagazine.

Many moons ago, while I was an undergraduate at Wake ForestUniversity, notable sports victories were celebrated by students by“rolling the Quad.” Dorms would empty as undergrads sprintedtoward the tree-lined Quadrangle, armed with rolls of toiletpaper. Crowds would then proceed to “TP”–“toilet paper” thebranches of the stately magnolia trees. (Sometimes theystreaked, but that's another story entirely.) Athleticvictories for the Demon Deacons were rare in those days, so thisquaint custom was an irregular event.

Celebrating college sports victories has, in the words of TVchef Emeril, “kicked up a notch.”

At the close of the December 3, 2011 football gamebetween Oklahoma and Oklahoma State (OSU), delirious celebratoryOSU fans swarmed the field. The in-state rivalry is an annualmatch-up known as “Bedlam.” That label is well-earned.

The game had national college football implications, but theafter-game stampede also has clear risk managementimplications. About a dozen people were injured in theprocess. Some were trampled, while others jumped down a15-foot drop to get to the field.

Rushing the field—or, in the case of basketball, the court—hasbecome a bit of a tradition in college sports after a signature ormilestone victory. That milestone may become a liability andrisk millstone, however, for the college or university that allowsit to happen.

Doubtlessly, there will be the wave of inevitable lawsuitsagainst Oklahoma State University, alleging negligence in securityand crowd control. Plaintiffs may argue that such a swarm wasreasonably foreseeable, and that the university either could or should have taken moresteps to prevent this. The university will try to show that ittook reasonable precautions. It may argue that there isvirtually nothing that a college can do to absolutelythwart the determination of thousands ofenthusiastic students to rush the field.

This episode has a number of risk management implications, notjust for colleges but for all of those who organize and managespecial events. These events can be football games,rock concerts, or Black Friday retailspecials. Implications may include:

• What are reasonable precautions for colleges and universitiesto take in preparation for such eventualities?
• Is such a fan stampede reasonably forseeable by theschool?
• What responsibility do the fans play in assuming risk of injurywhen they swarm the field or take a leap off the stands?

Unfortunately, in many cases, the rush to the field may only besurpassed by the rush to the courthouse.

Have you ever attended a sporting event or concert that got outof hand or made you feel at risk of harm? Do you think theresponsibility lies with the organizer or with theparticipants? E-mail me at [email protected] and be sure toread my monthly column in Claims Magazine.