Texas Issues Apology to Georgia, Delivers Warning to Longhorns Fans

The Texas Longhorns are apologizing for controversial fan behavior in Saturday’s loss to Georgia — and sending a warning to fans.

Texas fans grew incensed after a third-quarter interception was overturned on a pass interference call, throwing garbage on the field. With the Longhorns losing 23-8, Texas safety Jahdae Barron intercepted a pass and returned it 36 yards to Georgia’s 9-yard line.

Barron’s interception was initially overturned when he was called for pass interference, while the Texas fans grew increasingly vocal as replays showed the interception. Some began throwing trash onto the field from the student section, prompting Texas coach Steve Sarkisian to walk over to the section to tell fans to stop.

The call was later overturned after play was stopped, giving Texas the ball back. Texas scored a touchdown on the play but went on to lose 30-15.

On Sunday, Texas issued a statement apologizing to Georgia and the SEC for the fan outburst.

“While we deeply appreciate thate passion and loyalty of our fan base at The University of Texas at Austin, we do not condone the unsportsmanlike conduct that was exhibited by some individuals throwing objects onto the field during last night’s game and sincerely apologize to the University of Georgia players, coaches, and fans, as well as the Southeastern Conference and officiating crew,” read the state statement attributed to Texas Board of Regents chairman Kevin Eltife, UT president Jay Hartzell and athletic director Chris Del Conte.

The statement went on to warn that Texas would not tolerate that behavior from their fans in the future.

“Respect, sportsmanship, and fairness are the values that drive our program, and we expect all of our fans to uphold these standards,” the statement read. “We are committed to fostering a positive environment for all participants, teams, officials and fans, and we will take steps to ensure that this type of behavior does not happen again.”