Tennessee fans storm field as Vols beat Alabama. Will program be fined?

The cigars are smoking on Rocky Top for the home team in 2026.

For the second time in three years, No. 14 Tennessee knocked off No. 7 Alabama at Neyland Stadium, securing a 26-10 victory over the Crimson Tide on Saturday, Oct. 17.

The signature win was fueled by a relentless defensive performance from first-year defensive coordinator Jim Knowles' unit. Tennessee's defense harassed Alabama quarterback Keelon Russell from the opening snap, setting the tone with a strip-sack on the Crimson Tide's first possession and continuing to generate pressure throughout the afternoon.

Toppmeyer: Tennessee stuns Alabama. A 24-team playoff threatens everything that made it matter

Alabama vs Tennessee final score: Highlights from SEC showdown

At first, Tennessee fans seemed to not know what to do. To rush the field, or not to rush?

So, after a bit of indecision, thousands of fans stormed the fields, many of them smoking cigars, as is tradition for the victorious side after the Third Saturday in October.

Tennessee’s field rush will come with a fine from the SEC.

If Tennessee hadn’t stormed the field, it would have marked the first time since 2010 that Alabama lost on the road and the home fans didn’t storm the field.

That year, LSU beat Alabama in Baton Rouge and didn’t the storm.

The Vols could’ve refreshed that history.

Instead, Vols fans stormed and smoked and celebrated a win that points Tennessee in the direction of the playoff. Any goodwill Kalen DeBoer amassed the first several weeks of Alabama’s season went up in smoke.

Here’s a look at the field storming, which was slightly delayed following the final whistle:

Tennessee fans storm the field after a 26–10 victory over Alabama at Neyland Stadium. pic.twitter.com/cFfPB4Cyj4

— Jimmy Hyams (@JimmyHyams) October 17, 2026

The Volunteers' defense held the high-powered Crimson Tide's offense, which entered the day as the SEC's No. 2-ranked scoring offense, to just 149 total yards of offense while forcing four sacks and three turnovers. Tennessee held Alabama quarterback Keelon Russell to under 100 passing yards and his second no-touchdown game of the season.

But since the Volunteers violated the conference's "access to competition area" policy, Tennessee will have to pay Alabama for the field storming.

Here’s what to know:

Will Tennessee owe Alabama after field storming?

Depending on whether the SEC determines Tennessee violated the "access to competition area" policy, the Vols will owe Alabama $500,000 for storming the field.

The SEC updated policy during the SEC Spring Meetings in May to denote that any field storming will bring a $500,000 fine instead of escalating fees — $100,000 for a first offense, $250,000 for a second offense and $500,000 for three or more offenses — that were set in 2023 by the conference.

However, should a field storm happen after visiting teams and officials exit the field of play, a fine will not be given.

"If you are the one rushed, no matter how problematic the situation is, if it's only the first time on campus, it's $100,000," Sankey said at the SEC Spring Meetings. "It may be a lot more. So the motivation was field rushing is field rushing, the first time or the 18th time. We'll offer an outlet of a delayed field rush where they let the visitors exit, let the officials exit. Then you go. That goes to zero."

Be sure to check out USA TODAY Sports' new College Football Unfiltered podcast, hosted by USA TODAY Sports columnist Blake Toppmeyer. You can stream on YouTube or download via Apple podcasts and Spotify.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Tennessee fans storm field as Vols beat Alabama. Will program be fined?