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UCF pulled off the biggest win in program history on Saturday, October 24, 2026 — and it cost the school $100,000 before the celebration was even over. The Big 12 Conference fined the university after a group of fans directed a derogatory chant at BYU and its faith during the Knights' 39-31 double-overtime upset of the No. 2 Cougars in Orlando.
The fine, announced Wednesday, October 28, is only half the story. Along with it, the Big 12 unveiled a new conference-wide policy that could change games themselves: if fans do it again in the same game, the offending school's team could be flagged 15 yards on the field.
What Happened at the UCF-BYU Game?
The trouble started before kickoff at the Acrisure Bounce House. Video shared on social media showed a section of UCF fans chanting an expletive-laced insult aimed at Mormons, the nickname for members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, with which BYU is affiliated. The church itself discourages the nickname, but it is the term most fans know.
UCF did not ignore it. The public address announcer warned the crowd at least five times that disrespectful and profane chants would not be tolerated, and university security removed some of the fans responsible during the game. A UCF reporter who was in that end zone described the chanters as a couple dozen students who joined in briefly, while staff members were actively looking to identify and eject them.
The Big 12 acknowledged all of that in its statement, crediting UCF's pregame protocols and immediate in-game actions. It fined the school anyway, saying discriminatory behavior has no place in the conference. The $100,000 will be directed toward student education initiatives.
The Big 12's New Chant Policy
The fine came with a new set of rules that apply immediately at every Big 12 athletic event, and the penalties escalate fast.
A first confirmed incident during a game now brings an automatic minimum fine of $100,000, plus a formal warning giving the school a chance to stop it from happening again. A second confirmed incident during the same game brings an in-game competitive penalty — a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty in football, or a two-shot technical foul in basketball — and may bring an additional fine of up to $500,000.
The people caught chanting face consequences of their own. Anyone ejected for discriminatory conduct is banned from attending athletic events for the remainder of the academic year and is subject to the university's fan and student conduct policies.
The conference has also been running its "Respect the Game" initiative, a series of short videos played at conference sporting events promoting sportsmanlike conduct.
UCF Is Not the First School Fined
The reason the Big 12 acted so forcefully is that this keeps happening to BYU on the road. The Cougars have been on the receiving end of similar chants at several visiting stadiums, and the conference's patience has clearly run out.
Colorado State issued an apology in September after its fans targeted BYU and the Mormon church with derogatory chants. Colorado was hit with a public reprimand and a $50,000 fine for a similar incident. Oklahoma State was fined $50,000 in February after inappropriate chants during a men's basketball game against BYU. Other incidents involving BYU road games were reported at Oregon, Arizona, and Cincinnati in 2025.
Put those numbers together and the message is blunt: the old ceiling was $50,000, and the new floor is $100,000, with a potential $500,000 on top of that. The Big 12 has effectively doubled the price of a first offense and added a tenfold threat for a second one.
Can a Conference Really Penalize Yards?
Not everyone is convinced the new policy will hold up. Football rules analyst Terry McAulay pushed back publicly, arguing that fan conduct is not subject to the playing rules and that a 15-yard penalty for chanting is not authorized under NCAA football rules. In his words, the Big 12 cannot simply make up its own in-game rules.
That objection sets up a fascinating standoff. The conference says it is committed to a respectful environment for student-athletes, coaches, and fans, and that discriminatory conduct will not be tolerated. But if the first time a team is actually flagged for a chant, the call could be challenged — or the policy could end up in a dispute between the conference and the NCAA's rulebook.
For now, the policy stands, and every Big 12 school has been put on notice before the next weekend of games. BYU itself hosts Arizona State on Saturday, October 31, 2026, under the new rules.
A Historic Win With an Asterisk
What makes this story sting a little extra for UCF is the game itself. Beating the No. 2 team in the country made BYU the highest-ranked opponent ever to fall to the Knights, a milestone win in double overtime in front of a home crowd. It should have been remembered purely for that.
Instead, the win now comes with a six-figure fine, a new conference policy named in its shadow, and a debate about whether chants from the stands should ever move the ball on the field. The Knights won the game. The chant cost them $100,000. And the next school whose fans cross the line could find out what it costs in yards.
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