FAYETTEVILLE -- Fans attending a basketball game at Walton Arena soon will be required to walk through metal detectors installed at each entrance, the University of Arkansas announced Tuesday.
The university also announced metal detectors will be in place this spring at Baum-Walker Stadium for baseball games.
The announcement cited the safety of fans, game-day workers, players and coaches as the reason for the change, with the first men's basketball game under the new policy scheduled for Tuesday, and the first women's game scheduled for Nov. 11.
UA spokesman Kevin Trainor also referred to SEC regulations that he said are set to require metal detectors at basketball and football venues beginning in the 2020-21 season.
"Other venues are at the discretion of the institutions," Trainor said in an email.
UA's football stadium this year has not had metal detectors in place.
The estimated cost for the metal detectors at campus baseball and basketball games this year is approximately $365,000, Trainor said, but "with additional staffing, we anticipate that will increase to near $400K." The equipment is manufactured by CEIA, Trainor said.
Unlike at airport gate screenings, fans will be allowed "to keep many items, like cell phones, keys and wallets, in their pockets or carry them in their hands" as part of the entry process, Athletic Director Hunter Yurachek said in a statement.
"As we enhance our security measures at our venues, we have also made efforts to expedite entry and minimize the inconvenience for our guests," Yurachek said.
With the UA announcement, six of the 14 SEC schools now have metal detectors at their basketball venues, according to responses from school spokesmen and information posted by schools online.
As far as baseball, Trainor said four schools -- Florida, Kentucky, Mississippi State and Tennessee -- have plans for metal detectors at their venues this season, citing the SEC as a source.
Spokesmen with Kentucky, Mississippi State, Tennessee and Florida said only that they currently did not have metal detectors at their baseball venues. Other SEC schools also told the Democrat-Gazette they did not have metal detectors at their baseball stadiums.
Plans may be forthcoming elsewhere. Nick Joos, a spokesman for Missouri athletics, said "we anticipate having [metal detectors] in place at football, baseball and softball games next year," referring to 2020-21.
Sports on 10/30/2019