TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — University of Alabama's national championship victory is making headlines for all the wrong reasons.
The Crimson Tide won its 18th national title on Monday, but it's the tidal wave of fans that took to the streets after their victory that took social media by storm.
Hundreds of videos online show fans in Tuscaloosa, Alabama parading through the streets packed like sardines, clearly ignoring social distancing.
The image of a potential superspreader event stunned ESPN's Scott Van Pelt live on air.
"Well, that's Tuscaloosa, Alabama," Pelt said. "That's a college town, we got college kids, and what can you say?...who knows if they're masking."
Last Friday, in anticipation of an Alabama victory, Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox asked fans to avoid large gatherings and wear face masks during the big game.
Alabama has recorded more than 404,000 coronavirus cases as of Jan. 11, with a positivity rate of 20 percent.
Traffic cameras later showed police dispersing the large crowd.
Alabama faced off with Ohio State in the NCAA College Football National Championship game, defeating the Buckeyes 52-24.
