Student Issue, 1992—LSU Basketball Coach’s Behavior

Students were incensed at the conduct of Louisiana State University basketball coach in the SEC title game. At the 10:05 mark of the second half, with the Vols down 22, junior Carlus Groves intentionally fouled LSU’s Shaquille O’Neal, grabbing him around the waist as O’Neal was elevating for the slam. O’Neal let fly with an elbow aimed at Groves’s head, which missed. Groves shoved O’Neal, and O’Neal followed with an overhand right, which also missed. LSU coach Dale Brown ran onto the court and roughly shoved Groves away from O’Neal. Brown’s shove ignited both benches, and a 16-minute melee ensued, resulting in the ejection of ten players—five from each team. O’Neal and Groves were among those ejected, each also garnering a one-game suspension for fighting. Brown complained that O’Neal should not have been ejected and that LSU had been treated wrongly—that he had only been trying to restrain Groves. The tape, however, showed that officials separated the coach and Groves after the coach’s first shove and Brown then went around a group of people in pursuit of Groves until the melee participants blocked his way. The SEC only reprimanded Brown, but UT students thought the penalty for a coach going after a player on the opposing team should have been more severe. LSU won the game 99-89.