SEC Media Days: Horns Down Can Be Penalized in SEC
![Horns Down Horns Down](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_4432,h_2493,x_0,y_551/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/mmsport/all_sooners/01j2xyy4f78mqsyxyt9y.jpg)
DALLAS — Horns down? Hold up.
Oklahoma players will be assessed an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty if game officials determine it was used for taunting.
But that will continue to be a judgment call in the Sooners’ new conference, much like it was in the Big 12.
That’s what Southeastern Conference coordinator of officials John McDaid said Tuesday at SEC Media Days.
John McDaid, SEC’s coordinator of officials, on penalizing for Horns down signal: “Unsportsmanlike conduct needs to fit 1 of 3 categories: Is it taunting an opponent? Is it making a travesty of the game? Is it otherwise compromising our ability to manage the game? There’s a…
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) July 16, 2024
“Unsportsmanlike conduct needs to fit one of three categories,” McDaid said. “Is it taunting an opponent? Is it making a travesty of the game? Is it otherwise compromising our ability to manage the game? There’s a difference between a player giving a signal directly in face of an opponent, as opposed to doing it with teammates celebrating after a TD or on the sideline.
McDaid made an interesting analogy about the Horns Down, saying "if you take the act out of a football stadium or put it in a shopping mall or in a grocery store, is it something that would offend the senses of the majority of reasonable people?" He doesn't think it's offensive.
— Kirk Bohls (@kbohls) July 16, 2024
“To net all that out, every single occurrence is not an act of unsportsmanlike conduct.”
SEC coordinator of officials John McDaid explaining the horns down penalty in 2024. pic.twitter.com/qUIUZsl6co
— Daniel Homrok (@danielhomrok) July 16, 2024
McDaid clarified that would be the same result if Florida players do the “Gator chomp” in the face of an opponent, or if Ole Miss players execute the “land shark” gesture in a taunting fashion.