Horns Down: Why Kentucky will be a Thorn in Texas' Side

The Oklahoma Sooners and Texas Longhorns are officially members of the SEC. The welcoming party from Kentucky is greeting them with two Horns Down.

As Louisville fans can attest, BBN loves to mock an opponent with a hand gesture. It doesn’t matter if you’re on the video board for a game against Mississippi Valley State or a recruit on an official visit to Kentucky, it’s never a bad time to throw Ls Down. Unlike Scott Satterfield, at least Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte is taking the right approach as the Longhorns move to a new conference.

“I love all that, by the way, the Horns Down stuff. I think it’s comedy,” he told ESPN. Del Conte also uses a familiar line for Kentucky fans, describing Texas as “everybody’s Super Bowl.”

“That won’t change in the SEC,” he added.

The Longhorns are bringing a Texas-sized personality to the SEC. While most pundits focus on the renewed rivalries and Steve Sarkisian’s return, Kentucky is going to provide an unexpected speed bump in the school’s conquest of the Southeastern Conference.

Other Sports Matter Too

The Red River Shootout at the Cotton Bowl is the first thing that comes to mind when you bring up the SEC’s new additions, but they aren’t just playing football. Oklahoma softball just completed a Four-peat and the Longhorns have won 15 National Championships over the last three years.

Texas shook up the college baseball world by stealing Texas A&M’s coach a day after they lost in the finals of the College World Series. They’re entering a league where every team has punched at least one ticket to Omaha, thanks to Kentucky’s record-breaking 2024 campaign. I’m sure Texas will feel right at home when they’re playing in a brisk Kentucky Proud Park next spring.

The Longhorn volleyball program is one of the best in the sport. They won seven straight Big 12 titles to close out their tenure in the league. Now they’re entering one where Kentucky has won seven straight titles. The Longhorns have five National Championships in program history, including the last two. They missed out on another one when they ran into the Wildcats in the 2020 National Championship game. When Kentucky and Texas meet each fall, it’s going to be the biggest SEC match of the season.

Texas is a Gift to Kentucky Basketball

Rodney Terry may be in over his head as the Longhorns’ head basketball coach. It certainly seemed that way in his first season as the full-time head coach. Things may get even trickier for him if the state’s best players continue to decide to play college basketball at Rupp Arena.

Tyrese Maxey just signed a $200 million contract extension. Julius Randle is chasing an Eastern Conference title with some talented new teammates in New York. PJ Washington helped a Texas team reach the NBA Finals. De’Aaron Fox was snubbed from the All-Star Game after leading the league in steals. Cason Wallace was on the NBA All-Rookie team last season. The Harrison Twins put a couple of Final Fours on their resumes in Lexington.

What do all of those players have in common? They’re from Texas.

It’s unclear if Kentucky’s dominance on the recruiting landscape in the Lone Star State will continue without John Calipari running the show in Lexington. Nevertheless, Texas basketball would look dramatically different over the last decade if Kentucky wasn’t regularly pilfering the best talent from the state.

Kentucky is in a Great Spot for a 40-Acre-Sized Upset

In that ESPN article I alluded to earlier, Sark spoke with Chris Low about the demands of the SEC. What makes this conference the best of the best? The margin of error is thin and there’s very little drop-off in competition from week to week. After spending two years at Alabama, Sark learned that it’s not about being the best in September, it’s being deep enough to still compete with the best at the end of the season. This was the sentiment he shared with Del Conte when he was hired in 2020.

“We can’t get enamored with just building a team to win the Big 12. We’re going to have to build a team that can take down Alabama in January. I’m not talking September, but in January be equipped to beat those teams you’re going to have to beat to win a national championship,” he said.

Kentucky isn’t coming to town in January, but they will be in Austin at a great time. The Wildcats are traveling to the Forty Acres in between a pair of old Southwest Conference rivalry games, Arkansas and Texas A&M. It’s easy to call this a look-ahead spot for the Longhorns, who will be in the thick of the CFB Playoff hunt in late November.

Kentucky will be an underdog that can play the role of spoiler. Mark Stoops has a deep, veteran team that understands the grind of SEC play. Under Stoops, the Cats typically lose a game they shouldn’t and win a game they shouldn’t. There would be no greater welcoming gift to the SEC for the Longhorns than a shocking loss to Kentucky in the penultimate week of the regular season.