Three reasons why fans hate the Texas Longhorns

Every team has moments in their history that are remembered for not the best of reasons. The Texas Longhorns are no different. In their defense, happenings within or centered around their program are magnified because of their national brand in college football and beyond. You could compare them to the Dallas Cowboys in the NFL or the New York Yankees of the MLB which are other organizations that have a national brand.

These are teams that folks either love or hate, usually without any in between. And the Texas Longhorns are one of those. With that comes publicity when actions are taken whether it is in their control or not.

Here are three reasons fans hate the Texas Longhorns

"We’re back": in the 2019 Sugar Bowl, the Texas Longhorns defeated the Georgia Bulldogs 28-21 behind the arm and legs of quarterback Sam Ehlinger. After the game, Ehlinger was interviewed on the field and responded with his famous “we’re back” statement, addressing I directly to Longhorn nation.

Ehlinger and the Longhorns would finish that season 10-4, but regress to 8-5 the following year, making Ehlinger’s statement even louder for the rest of the college football world to magnify. And again, with the Longhorns being a national brand, magnified it was.

You can also argue that this comment by Ehlinger was a little unjust considering the Bulldogs were without three defensive starters in the contest.

Horns down penalty: “Horns Down”  began in 1963 according to The Daily Texan. In that year, “The Daily Texan featured a Baylor student doing it (the “horns down” sign), bringing media attention around the new phenomenon. It eventually became an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty while the Longhorns have been in the Big12 conference.

While other teams like the Florida State Seminoles “Tomahawk Chop” and the Florida Gators “Gator Chomp” are used similarly by opponents, those are not penalized, making it seem to much of the college football world like the Longhorns are getting special treatment.

In all actuality, the Longhorns did not ask for this. In fact, when it became a penalty, then current Longhorns head coach Mack Brown was against it. Nonetheless, it has been a penalty for games in the Big 12 conference in which the Longhorns participated in until present, but no longer be as they are joining the SEC who will regulate the gesture differently and not deem it an automatic unsportsmanlike conduct.

Horns down not in video game: The same “Horns Down” gesture that was mentioned as a penalty during the Longhorn’s time in the Big 12 will not be a part of the EA Sports College Football 25 video game that is incoming in July of this year.

While the “Hook ‘Em” gesture will be a part of the game from the Longhorn fans and players, the fact that “Horns Down” will not be again has folks in the college football world hating on the Longhorns. And again however, this is not a decision of the University of Texas to not include the gesture. But with the game going into such detail in other ways, it leaves fans a bit irritated.

With a national brand comes national attention and fans hating on the Longhorns for many reasons that are quite frankly overhyped and unfair. However, in sports there seems to always have to be a villain in which all other teams are united against. And in college athletics, that seems to be the Longhorns.