UPDATE 8/8
(Listen to Athletic Director Keith Tribble talking tailgate times with the Beat of Sports with Marc Daniels and Mike Bianchi. Listen weekdays from 9 to 11 a.m. on ESPN 1080 AM.)
UPDATE 2:15 a.m. Thursday
After KnightNews.com published this article explaining new tailgating restrictions, we e-mailed SGA President Brian Peterson to get more information on why UCF’s administration cut tailgating nearly in half in many cases, by prohibiting tailgate parking and drinking before noon for games starting at 6 p.m. or later.
You can read our questions and President Peterson’s answers below. (Video of Coach O’Leary telling fans he is on their side in the tailgate time fight is located below Peterson’s answers.)
Did you support the ban on drinking before noon?
Allow me to address this question as I think there is still some confusion amongst fans. There is not a ban on drinking before noon, there is a new policy for when tailgating can begin for home football games.
The new tailgating policy sets in place a beginning tailgating time for day games and night games. For games that begin before 6pm, tailgating can begin at 8am. Alternatively, for games that begin after 6pm, tailgating can begin at 12pm.
Did SGA have representation on the committee that recommended the cuts?
Yes. SGA was approached and was part of the discussion on the new tailgating policy. There was a great deal of research that was conducted and discussed related to tailgating, focusing on trends in both collegiate and professional football.
Many other schools have much more restrictive measures on their tailgating rules than these new rules for UCF. Originally, UCFAA and many staff had proposed to have a blanket tailgating time of 5 or 6 hours prior to each game (i.e a MAXIMUM of 5-6 of tailgating no matter when the games began).
At the request of SGA however, there was an expansion on the hours and a new policy was explored with a MINIMUM of 6 hours of tailgating for each game with a potential for more hours (games tend to begin no earlier than 7-7:30pm if they begin after 6pm). SGA advocated for student interests while also preserving the tailgating experience for students and alumni and promoting tradition for UCF.
Was there a vote for this cut in tailgating time to happen? If so, how did SGA’s representatives vote on it (if they got a chance to vote)?
After the discussion on multiple options for tailgating, this new plan was chosen.
Of all the options that were discussed, this new plan was the least restrictive and allowed for the largest amount of tailgating hours. There was an informal gathering of view points and the SGA Reps took every opportunity to represent student views. An unofficial vote was taken and SGA did not “vote” in favor of the new policy, but we were also aware that this was the best choice of those presented.
Do you know why UCF did this? What was the reasoning behind it? Do you think it is fair?
Yes, there was a reason — Safety. The university believes that this is ample time for tailgating before a game (keeping in mind that this new policy is more hours than many had wanted in the first place). Many schools are moving toward much more restricted hours than UCF will be subject to. SGA is the reason that we have as many hours as we have.
All things considered, I think the hours are fair. Tailgating is not only about drinking, it is about supporting your school, the team, and being part of a tradition.
Not long after word leaked that UCF slashed tailgating hours nearly in half for 6 p.m. football games, Coach George O’Leary was caught on camera telling angry fans “I’m on your side” in the growing fight over tailgate times.
Check out the video reportedly shot by UCF alumnus Glenn Schneck at a recent season ticket-holder event:
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bYdH0dCjoas
See our original article for more details on the tailgate time cuts.
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