Flashing ‘horns down’ may draw flag
ARLINGTON, Texas — So when is flashing “horns down” considered a penalty, and should it always draw a flag?
Greg Burks, the Big 12 coordinator of officials, said it depends on when and where an opposing player flashes the hand signal that is the exact opposite of the Texas Longhorns’ “Hook ‘em horns” gesture.
Burks said Tuesday officials are likely to let it go if someone scores and then turns to his own fans and “it’s real quick.”
An unsportsmanlike conduct penalty comes into play if the gesture is directed at the other crowd or bench — the Longhorns in this case — or it is directed toward another player.
“By rule, anything prolonged and designed to bring attention to the individual rather than the team is a foul,” Burks said.
His advice to those wanting to do “horns down”: Do it in the back of their own bench area.
Clemson has holes to fill on defense
Clemson coach Dabo Swinney hears so many questions about the Tigers’ defensive losses that he has lost count.
Clemson is without seven defensive starters from the lineup that routed Alabama 44-16 in January to win its second national title in three seasons. That includes All-americans in defensive end Clelin Ferrell and tackles Christian Wilkins and Dexter Lawrence, who were all selected in the first round of the NFL draft.
Linebackers Kendall Joseph and Tre Lamar are also gone, as is cornerback Trayvon Mullen, the defensive MVP of the championship game who was picked 40th overall by the Oakland Raiders.
“We’ve got good depth talent-wise,” Swinney said. “But we don’t have experienced depth. Whereas last year, it was just the opposite because we were rolling NFL guys in there.”
Swinney believes Clemson’s linebackers and secondary could be the best of his 11-plus seasons. But the coach said it will take some time with twothirds of the Tigers’ roster consisting of underclassmen.
“They’re still young,” Swinney said. “So we have to keep our hand on the wheel.”
AAC not in rush to replace Connecticut
Schools interested in joining the American Athletic Conference after Connecticut leaves can call commissioner Mike Aresco. The AAC will not be soliciting applications for membership.
Aresco said that the league is leaning toward not replacing Uconn and going forward with 11 schools after the Huskies depart for the Big East.
“One thing we decided early on: We weren’t going to be making phone calls. We weren’t going to be targeting anyone,” Aresco said. “People have my phone number. If somebody was interested in our conference, we’d listen because we would have a fiduciary obligation to listen.”
Uconn’s return to the Big East was announced last month, but exactly when it departs from the AAC and how much it will have to pay in exit fees still must be negotiated. Conference bylaws require a 27-month notification period before a school can leave and a $10 million exit fee. Both sides would prefer the transition to happen after this school year, though that will likely cost Uconn extra.