An incident occurred Feb. 13 at the Bird Ice Arena during a LUG Sports hockey game, an organization that helps arrange recreational sports for colleges, involving alcohol, fan behavior and language used toward the referees, according to a LUG Disciplinary Committee.
The organization received reports of “vile language,” including derogatory terms, being used against the officials. Bird Ice Arena also emailed LUG Sports after finding beers being left in the facility.
“The bottom line - those ‘fans’ are representatives of you and the league and by leaving alcohol in the facility and showing up drunk, they put your ice at risk,” the LUG Disciplinary Committee wrote in a warning it issued.
Samantha Pelham, OU’s communications and public relations strategist, said Bird Ice Arena does not sell alcohol on its premises and consumption is not allowed inside it.
The LUG Disciplinary Committee said no fans are allowed at games during the week starting Feb. 16. If any players bring friends to the facility during the games, their team will lose automatically. In addition, punishments were issued to individuals involved via email.
“We have a great thing going in partnership with (Ohio University) and let’s be smart about how we approach the next few weeks as this is going to help reset the tone for LUG playing at Bird,” the LUG Disciplinary Committee wrote.
LUG Sports’ Code of Conduct states using or being under the influence of tobacco products, drugs and alcohol is prohibited, and all garbage must be picked up in the facility LUG Sports is using. All hockey players, coaches, fans and LUG affiliates are expected to respect these rules.
A player who is a part of the High Rollers LUG team at Ohio University was also suspended for six games for “offensive language” during the night. The suspension ends March 25, which is more than 50% of the season.
The day after the incident, Feb. 14, every team in the league received the same formal warning that any players or fans engaging in similar conduct would experience a similar suspension, LUG sports employee relations and customer service coordinator Kaylee Ledger said in an email. Additionally, the individuals involved, along with their teams, could risk being removed from the league.
“LUG Sports does not condone or allow fighting or the use of abusive or offensive language in games,“ Ledger wrote in an email. “We also hold players accountable for the actions of their fans meaning that if your fans violate our rules, we hold the team on the ice accountable for their actions, as ultimately, this is a community and we're all a part of it.”
Luke Risko, a freshman studying mechanical engineering and a player for the LUG Sports team the Outlaws said it is important for players to respect the officials. Risko said referees work to keep the game safe for the players and are needed to play a game.
“You can take whatever the people are saying, but at a certain point, it gets too far to where it obstructs from the game,” Risko said. “It can definitely impact the game for sure.”
Risko said it would be unfortunate if any games were canceled. He said he would be disappointed in his fans if they were responsible and especially disappointed if it was from the other team or their fans.
“It's a buzz kill for everyone involved, all the players, and we shouldn't have to deal with that,” Risko said.
Risko said having fans at the game is important. Their support provides the players with much-needed energy to get through the game; however, sometimes fans may trash-talk the players and referees.
“It can definitely be a lot for a referee to have to deal with that,” Risko said. “It's always going through the back of their minds. They don't want to make a bunch of calls because then the fans might get really mad, so they might start going a little softer. They might start throwing people out to kind of make sure that their voice is heard.”
Risko said he understands how tough being a referee for a game is, and it can be imperfect at times.
“It's kind of a deterrent for people to become referees because you're kind of asking to get yelled at, which is really unfortunate,” Risko said. “It’s not like we're in a situation where it's very, very difficult to get referees, but it is one of those things that keeps people away from it, especially the younger kids getting into refereeing.”
