Let 'em have their fun!

After Stanford's glorious triumph over Cal tonight, the 6th Man Club rushed the court to celebrate their season-ending win over their cross-bay rivals. But this season, many in the media (including ESPN and SI) have criticized college fans for charging courts, arguing that's unruly and that fans do it too frequently.

I say, let the students go for it. Rushing the court is unbelievably fun and people rarely if ever get hurt (no crashing goal posts like in football). There's no better way to release yourself after standing through an intense game- even the players join in on the fun. What difference does it make to some sports journalist sitting in front of a TV thousands of miles away? But one should not rush the court arbitrarliy. You see, there is a hierarchy of factors that determine whether or not to rush:

1. Upset over team ranked at least 20 spots higher than you
2. Conference championship
3. Senior Day (last home game of season)
4. Win over rival or powerhouse program
5. Close score or come-from-behind victory

If two or more of the above criteria are met, court-rushing is definitely warranted. But you've got to do it based on heat-of-the-moment emotion. You can sense it in the crowd- you rush when the spirit moves you.