Was BYU punished for storming the field after beating Utah? Here’s who will pay the Cougars’ fine

BYU fans rushing the field Saturday night after the Cougars’ 24-21 win over Utah was tons of fun — but expensive.

The Big 12 typically fines schools for their fans running onto the field to attempt to prevent such a scene from taking place, with concerns of safety, security and sportsmanship cited as reasons for such a punishment.

Despite this, BYU fans stormed the field anyway, with a sea of royal blue joyfully flooding the LaVell Edwards Stadium field to celebrate a third-straight victory over the Utes.

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“I don’t know that we were going to keep them off the field tonight,” BYU safety Tanner Wall said after the game. “We already got someone ready to pay the fine, so we’re good; don’t worry about that.”

That someone was Jason McGowan, co-founder and CEO of famed cookie company Crumbl.

In a video from BYU’s locker room posted to X by McGowan, Cougars head coach Kalani Sitake told his players McGowan would be covering the fine himself, which incited cheers from the team.

“Was happy to do it,” McGowan wrote in an X post. “Got to celebrate them wins. Go Cougs!”

The field rush was BYU’s first since defeating No. 9 Baylor in 2022. When the Cougars snapped a nine-game losing streak to Utah back in 2021, fans stormed the field in perhaps the most emotionally-charged fashion yet.

Because BYU was an independent program during its past field rush occurrences, there was no fine associated with fans on the field.

When Arizona State fans poured onto the field last year after beating BYU, the Big 12 fined the school $25,000.

Just a few weeks ago, the conference fined Colorado $50,000 for a field storm, only to rescind the fine after it became clear Colorado had “executed its field storm management procedures,” according to a statement from a school spokesperson.

As for BYU, the public address announcer did tell fans to stay off the Edwards Stadium field, but Cougar Nation prevailed in breaking through to create a memorable scene.

Even BYU President Shane Reese got into the fun, as students lifted him into the air to crowd surf — something Reese appeared to enjoy a great deal.

“During the BYU game, our CEO, Jason McGowan, was on the field watching the game and saw how excited the fans were. When he learned that no one would be allowed to go onto the field, he offered to personally pay the fine so everyone could celebrate together,” Crumbl said in a statement provided to KSL Sports. “Jason has built his career around creating meaningful moments and he didn’t want to miss the chance to help his fellow Cougar fans enjoy one.”