Tortillas Are Not a Crime

Since the early 1990s, Texas Tech students and fans have celebrated kickoffs by tossing tortillas onto the field at Jones AT&T Stadium. What started as a spontaneous act of school spirit has evolved into one of college football's most unique and cherished traditions.

The tortilla toss represents more than just celebration—it embodies the creativity, humor, and community spirit that define the Red Raider experience. For three decades, generations of students, alumni, and fans have participated in this harmless tradition that sets Texas Tech apart.

The tradition has been featured in national media, celebrated by sports commentators, and has become synonymous with Texas Tech football culture. It's a point of pride that distinguishes our fanbase and creates memorable moments for visitors and opponents alike.

In August 2025, the Big 12 Conference voted 15-1 to adopt a new sportsmanship policy that broadly prohibits throwing any objects onto the field during games. Texas Tech Athletic Director Kirby Hocutt cast the lone dissenting vote. While the rule was intended to address safety concerns across member institutions, it made no exceptions for longstanding, harmless traditions like Texas Tech's tortilla toss.

The policy states that any fan-based throwing of objects will result in institutional fines and potential game consequences. This one-size-fits-all approach fails to distinguish between dangerous projectiles and soft tortillas that pose minimal risk to players or officials.

• The rule does not differentiate between hard objects (bottles, coins) and soft items (tortillas)
• No consultation with Texas Tech community occurred before implementation
• The policy provides no mechanism for grandfathered traditions or institutional exemptions
• Other conference schools with similar traditions received no advance notice

Following Texas Tech's October 11, 2025 game against Kansas, the Big 12 Conference issued a $25,000 fine to the university after fans repeatedly threw tortillas during the contest, resulting in two 15-yard penalties during the game. Days later, Commissioner Brett Yormark escalated the policy, threatening $100,000 fines for any future violations. This unprecedented escalation sent shockwaves through the Red Raider community and raised questions about proportionality and fairness.

The threatened $100,000 fine represents one of the largest penalties ever assessed for fan behavior in college athletics. To put this in perspective:

• The fine equals the cost of multiple academic scholarships
• It exceeds penalties for some safety violations in other sports
• The amount creates financial pressure on athletic departments to suppress fan expression
• The policy went from a two-warning system to essentially zero tolerance

This punitive approach threatens to criminalize a tradition that has never resulted in player injury, game delays, or serious safety incidents in over 30 years of practice.

On October 20, 2025, Texas Tech Athletic Director Kirby Hocutt and Head Coach Joey McGuire held a press conference acknowledging the escalated policy and formally asking fans to stop throwing tortillas. Hocutt, who had initially supported the tradition earlier in the season (posting "the rules can change, but our tradition will not"), reversed course under the threat of $100,000 fines.

"This situation is on me. I leaned into throwing tortillas at the beginning of the football season. Now I must ask everyone to stop," Hocutt said, taking personal responsibility for the predicament. He emphasized that while Red Raiders don't like being told what to do, the severe financial penalties and on-field consequences could harm the team's championship aspirations.

Hocutt also noted the 15-1 vote that passed the original policy, saying "It's us against the world in this Big 12 conference." Despite his compliance, Hocutt's remarks suggested ongoing frustration with the conference's hard-line stance against a harmless tradition.

We believe the Big 12 Conference should create a specific exception for Texas Tech's tortilla toss tradition. This carve-out would protect a harmless cultural practice while maintaining the conference's broader safety objectives.

Safety Record

In 30+ years of the tortilla toss tradition, there has never been a documented case of:

• Player injury from a tortilla
• Official injury or interference with officiating
• Significant game delay beyond normal cleanup
• Escalation to more dangerous objects

Cultural Significance

The tortilla toss is integral to Texas Tech identity and represents:

• 30 years of continuous tradition spanning multiple generations
• A unique expression of West Texas culture and community
• National recognition and media coverage that benefits the conference
• A harmless, joyful expression of school spirit

Precedent for Exemptions

Other conferences and leagues have successfully managed similar situations:

• NHL allows octopus throwing in Detroit (Red Wings tradition)
• Some conferences distinguish between dangerous and harmless objects
• Safety policies can be written to permit low-risk, established traditions
• Institutional context matters in rule application

Reasonable Accommodation

A carve-out could include reasonable parameters such as:

• Limiting tortilla toss to specific game moments (kickoffs only)
• Designating cleanup protocols that don't delay play
• Maintaining prohibition on hard or dangerous objects
• Annual review to ensure continued safety

We are calling on the Big 12 Conference to amend its sportsmanship policy to include a specific exception for Texas Tech's tortilla toss tradition. Specifically, we request:

1. Recognition of the tradition: Formal acknowledgment that the tortilla toss is a longstanding, harmless tradition with significant cultural value.
2. Policy amendment: Addition of language to the sportsmanship policy that allows for institutional exemptions for safe, established traditions.
3. Fine reversal: Rescinding of the $25,000 fine imposed on Texas Tech University and withdrawal of the $100,000 fine threat for future violations.
4. Collaborative approach: Creation of a framework for universities and the conference to work together on tradition management.

This is not about defying rules—it's about asking the Big 12 to recognize that not all traditions pose equal risk and that cultural significance deserves consideration in policy-making.