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Rodney Terry rips UCF's 'Horns Down' after Texas basketball loss: 'Classless'

caleb yum, austin american-statesman
·2 min read
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Texas basketball coach Rodney Terry and his team took a tough loss on Wednesday night, falling to 1-3 in conference play after a 77-71 loss to UCF.

It wasn't just the loss that angered him though. As he and his team were going through the handshake line, cameras caught Terry upset and telling UCF players "that's classless" and "don't do that."

After the game, Terry told the media that he was upset that some Knights players were giving the "Horns Down" symbol to his team in the line.

Rodney Terry's UCF comments after Texas basketball loss

"I always tell my guys, whether you win or lose: you win the right way, you lose the right way. You carry yourself the right way, you don't go into the handshake line and have about six or seven guys putting the horns down," Terry said.

"We don't do that. You know, because when you do those kinds of things, it looks very classless. And it also looks like you were just hoping to win. We never go into games trying to hope to win. We go into games expecting to win."

Texas Longhorns head coach Rodney Terry yells instructions at his team during the game against University of Central Florida at the Moody center in Austin, Texas Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2023.
Texas Longhorns head coach Rodney Terry yells instructions at his team during the game against University of Central Florida at the Moody center in Austin, Texas Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2023.

"Horns Down" has been a subject of plenty of scrutiny over the years, with the NCAA football enforcing a taunting penalty in 2019 for any team caught flashing it during a game.

Despite that, it hasn't stopped teams. Alabama players were caught doing the symbol after their win over Texas in 2022, earning the wrath of former Crimson Tide coach Nick Saban.

"Don't do that s—t," Saban yelled at them.

Even off the field, the horns will come down. During halftime of the Sugar Bowl, Oklahoma defensive lineman Ethan Downs made sure cameras caught the hand gesture as he was honored for the 2023 AllState AFCA Good Works Team.

It may not mean much to the rest of college football, but for Texas teams and their fans, its one of the ultimate disrespects. That feeling won't be changing anytime soon.

"I was letting those guys know you don't do that. You know, you guys won. Hey, we shake your hand tip my hat to you. But we're not gonna let you act that way, not in our building," Terry said. "You're not gonna put your horns down and do all that nonsense."

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Rodney Terry's UCF comments: Texas basketball coach calls it 'classless'