Alabama Football: $30,000 BCS Crystal Football Trophy Accidentally Destroyed

The Alabama Crimson Tide have learned the hard way to be careful when displaying a championship trophy made of not-so-solid crystal.

According to a report from ESPN.com, the Coaches' Trophy from the Tide's win against LSU in the BCS National Championship Game was accidentally destroyed on Saturday afternoon. It was on display when a player's father got his foot tangled up in the rug beneath the trophy, sending it crashing to the ground.

Alex Scarborough of ESPN.com tweeted a picture of one of the crystal shards:

I wonder how many seconds passed before the unnamed player's father said, "Oops."

The trophy, which is sculpted in Ireland, is valued at $30,000. Its sentimental value, however, is priceless.

Things could be worse. A university spokesman said the school is looking into getting the shattered trophy replaced, so that it can be displayed once again in Mal Moore Athletic Facility. Once the replacement arrives, it will be like the accident never happened, much to the relief of the unnamed player's father.

In the meantime, that player's father can rest easy knowing he's not the first person in history to break the Coaches' Trophy. In 2008, then-recruit Orson Charles broke Florida's championship trophy from that same year. Perhaps due to intimidation, Charles eventually committed to play ball at Georgia.

Now that the incident has happened, it stands to reason Alabama will be more careful about properly securing the trophy. "Charlie Green, trophy manager for the American Football Coaches Association, says he uses adhesive tape to secure the trophy to its stand when it's toured around the country," reports ESPN.

The Tide should do the same, and whatever else they have to do to keep the trophy safe.

Though, they should probably stop short of using a hammer and nails.