Wisconsin's home football game against Michigan Saturday saw an increase in game ejections, ambulance calls and arrests across the season. A high of 50 people were ejected from the game, but only 33 were University of Wisconsin-Madison students.
Twenty-three individuals were arrested, 18 of whom were UW students. One individual was cited and ejected for entering the field and one for having a fake ID. Twenty-five total citations were issued, 18 of which were issued to UW-Madison students.
“Our overall gameday approach is behavior-based,” said UWPD Director of Communications, Marc Lovicott. “That means our officers will get involved when we're made aware of an individual's behavior — whether an officer personally witnessed something unlawful or unsafe, or if the action/incident is reported to us.”
A season high five ambulance transits took place at Saturday's game. There were also 18 paramedic calls and 33 first aid calls.
“Our main goal is the safety of everyone at the game — fans, players and staff. We're also there to ensure our guests have a great experience at Camp Randall,” Lovicott stated.
The prior two home games showed a relatively low number of ejections. In this game, 12 were ejected for possession of alcohol and five ejected for tobacco use.
The first Wisconsin home football game of the year on Sept. 4 vs. Penn State showed a relatively low number of citations, ejections and arrests compared to other gamedays. There were 10 underage alcohol citations and ejections, one citation and ejection due to possession of alcohol on UW property, and one citation and ejection due to obstructing an officer.
On this gameday, out of the 12 citations issued, all 12 were given to UW students. Similarly, 11 total individuals were arrested, and all 11 were UW students. 22 ejections occurred with 18 being UW students. There were 30 first aid calls, 21 paramedic calls and only one ambulance transport.
“We coordinate our game day operational plans with UWPD, including elements pertaining to the safety and security of our guests,” said Director of Football Communications, Brian Lucas.
The second Wisconsin home football game on Sept. 11 vs. Eastern Michigan resulted in an increase in citations, ejections and arrests with a decrease of medical calls. Out of the 12 citations issued, all 12 were given to UW-Madison students. 32 individuals were arrested and 30 of those individuals were UW-Madison students. Also out of the 45 total ejections, 39 were UW students.
In this game, only 19 paramedic calls and 22 first aid calls were made, which is a decrease from Penn State. There were 4 ambulance transits, which was an increase from the previous game.
The general trend of these statistics shows that the majority of individuals who are cited, ejected or arrested are UW students. This may be due to an increase in staff that are placed in student sections that are able to report behavior to UWPD.
“Where possible, we have increased the number of entry points and staffing at stadium gates in hopes of expediting entry,” said Lucas. “Specific to the student section we have dedicated more individuals to assisting with the seating process.”
