Alabama tracking students' locations to see who leaves games early

Alabama head coach Nick Saban hasn't been shy about voicing his displeasure with poor student attendance at games.

Last year, the head coach ripped Alabama students for leaving a blowout win against Louisiana-Lafayette and hinted their section could be decreased. Now, it appears the Crimson Tide have a plan to keep students in their seats regardless of the score.

According to a story by The New York Times' Billy Witz, Alabama is tracking students' locations through their phones using a version of the "FanMaker" app while inside Bryant-Denny Stadium.

If a student leaves a game early, they lose out on the chance to earn loyalty points that can be redeemed for improved access to tickets for the College Football Playoff and SEC title game.

"The Tide Loyalty Points program works like this: Students, who typically pay about $10 for home tickets, download the app and earn 100 points for attending a home game and an additional 250 for staying until the fourth quarter," wrote Witz. "Those points augment ones they garner mostly from progress they have made toward their degrees - 100 points per credit hour. (A regular load would be 15 credits per semester, or 1,500 points.)"

Alabama athletic director Greg Byrne dismissed concerns that the technology violates students' privacy. He said students can close or delete the app once outside the stadium.

In Alabama's home opener last week against New Mexico State, the app was limited by server issues, forcing students to take photos with the scoreboard to prove they were still at the game.