As the seconds on the clock ticked down, a victory over Iowa became obvious.

It also became clear that the only thing on the minds of Iowa State students was to celebrate the second-straight win against their intrastate archrivals.

And in the minds of university administration and local law enforcement leaders, the post-game celebration was, for the most part, safe and successful.

“I thought the fans and students behaved pretty well after the game,” said Loras Jaeger, director of ISU’s Department of Public Safety. “I want to compliment them on that. I congratulate the students for acting responsibly and staying safe.”

Immediately after the game ended, the majority of the student section poured out onto the field without police resistance.

To many students and fans who were around two years ago, when crowds attempting to rush the field were met with heavy resistance from law enforcement, unbridled access to the field came as a pleasant surprise.

“It’s nice being able to come out on the field and just be crazy,” said Jared McLaren, junior in management information systems.

Athletic Director Gene Smith said he believes it was the right decision to let students run down on the field.

“I think it works; it’s a great way to celebrate,” he said. “I know the team likes connecting with the crowd before they go to the locker room.”

Jaeger also thought the action on the field after the game went well.

“The fans deserved to celebrate, and other than a few crazy people, the crowd acted very well,” he said.

Letting students on the field improved relations between authorities and the students, said Dennis Ballantine, Ames chief of police.

“I think it decreased the amount of antagonism between the two groups,” he said. “The students didn’t come out of there mad, and that is a good thing.”

The primary object of focus for Cyclone fans was the goalpost in the north end zone of Jack Trice Stadium. Acting on the “goalpost” chant that rippled through the crowd several times during the game, students crowded on and around the goalpost in an attempt to bring it down.

Although many fans slipped off and were replaced by others, at any given time for nearly a half an hour there were about 20 bodies clinging to the crossbar and uprights of the goalpost.

The effort to take down the goalpost was the only thing that marred the victory, Smith said.

“I have to say I’m still concerned with students getting up on the goalpost,” he said. “Not because it will hurt the goalpost but because they might hurt themselves. Several people fell back off it, and fortunately people caught them and broke their falls, but that won’t always happen.”

The goalposts, installed in 1998, were tested for the second time, the first after a 38-0 triumph over Ball State last year. They again lived up to their expectations of invulnerability.

“We pretty much let them have [the goalpost] and proved once again those things are indestructible,” Ballantine said.

Many students agreed.

“If we haven’t brought it down yet, it’s not coming down,” said Jared Doddema, sophomore in horticulture.

“There’s absolutely no chance of that thing going anywhere,” agreed Luke Bodeen, sophomore in computer engineering.

But despite the attempts to break the goalposts and the thousands of fans on the playing surface, Jack Trice Stadium fared pretty well from the onslaught of elated Cyclones.

“We had 2,000 to 3,000 people on field, and no one got hurt,” Smith said. “There was no damage to the turf and, as far as I know, they did no damage to anything in the stadium, so I was pleased.

“The only thing is we need to find a way to celebrate besides getting on the goalposts. We hope we can continue to win and get to the point where we act like winners,” he said.

However, the celebration was not all good news. After the fans eventually starting filing out of the stadium, a bonfire caught ablaze in Lot S1, southwest of the stadium.

“The fire was just some people in [Lot] S1, having problems, that started a couch on fire and then began to throw other items on the fire,” Jaeger said.

The blaze was quickly extinguished by the Ames Fire Department and no arrests were made, Jaeger said. Although no one was injured by the fire, two cars did sustain damage.

Jaeger said this was not the first time DPS had problems with students partying in Lot S1.

“I think it’s time that the students occupying S1, DPS and the Athletic Department sit down and set some ground rules,” he said. “DPS is certainly supportive of people having a good time, but when people start fires and fights, we don’t like that.”

The fire was the only crowd problem that happened after the game was over, Jaeger said.

“In the past, I could have seen where it would have got out of hand, but maybe we’re learning how to win,” he said.

Ballantine said his department had no serious problems with postgame celebrations.

“They were partying heavy and we had a few arrests, but overall things went well,” he said. “We had some people who were drunk, but they got arrested for it.”

Jaeger said he saw quite a lot of alcohol being consumed as well, but that it wasn’t abnormal considering the circumstances.

“It really was about what I expected with such a beautiful day and huge crowd,” he said. “Sure, there was a lot of partying going on, but the charges were not unusual.”

Before, during and after the game, DPS handed out 34 citations for being underage in possession of alcohol and made five arrests for public intoxication. They also transported one individual to Mary Greeley Medical Center to be treated for alcohol poisoning.