The Virginia Cavaliers upset the undefeated Florida State Seminoles in a thrilling double overtime game on ESPN Friday night. And immediately after the final play, Virginia students rushed the field with superhuman speed.
Students were already lined up on the hill behind the endzone that the teams were playing towards. So when Florida State’s fourth down attempt was intercepted, they were on the field in an instant.
And somewhere in the middle of the mass of humanity was ESPN sideline reporter Kris Budden. During her postgame interview with Virginia coach Tony Elliott and quarterback Chandler Morris, the ESPN cameras couldn’t even find her – all viewers heard was the sound of the interview.
After Virginia’s upset of Florida State, ESPN’s Kris Budden interviewed coach Tony Elliott and quarterback Chandler Morris while surrounded by Virginia fans on the field.
Most of the interview was essentially audio only, with the overhead camera being the only shot. pic.twitter.com/zKuJdgUHqq
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) September 27, 2025
The field storming was so fast and so intense, that there was some concern about the players and coaches for both teams. It didn’t help matters that Florida State quarterback Tommy Castellanos was shown being flipped off by one Virginia student that had way too much courage and self-confidence. Seminoles wide receiver Squirrel White was still on the ground when hundreds of fans came stampeding over him. Someone could have been seriously injured.
But thankfully, Budden said in a social media post on Saturday morning that after checking in with both teams, all players and school personnel emerged unscathed. She also added that being in the middle of thousands of celebrating college students “looks scarier on a high camera angle than it feels down there.”
A lot of talk this morning on how the fast field storming at Virginia happened. As someone in the thick of it, it looks scarier on a high camera angle than it feels down there.
I’ve also checked with teams, and to my knowledge no players/staff were injured in the process.— Kris Budden (@KrisBudden) September 27, 2025
Storming the court or field has been a big point of debate in recent years in college athletics. It looks and feels awesome for a home team to celebrate a big upset or massive victory. It’s also an enormous safety and liability issue, which is why conferences have started to produce fines for schools to try to discourage the activity. ESPN college basketball analyst Jay Bilas even wants students arrested for it. But it’s a unique part of the college experience. It’s something those Virginia students and players will remember forever. And as long as fans or players are somehow able to make it out in one piece, it’s going to continue.
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