Texas athletics director Chris Del Conte apologized to Florida on Tuesday and announced a permanent ban from Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium for a fan with field access who recorded himself flipping off and cursing at Florida Gators players after their 27-24 win over the Texas Longhorns in Austin on Saturday.
The announcement came in Del Conte’s weekly “Forty Acres Insider” newsletter on Texas’ athletics website. By then, video of the postgame scene had gone viral.
Chris Del Conte’s Full Statement and Apology to the Florida Gators
Del Conte got straight to it. “I want to address the video circulating on social media showing unacceptable behavior by an individual who had the privilege of field access following Saturday’s game. We pride ourselves on sportsmanship and treating our opponents with respect. This individual’s actions did not reflect those values or meet our standards and will not be tolerated.”
The statement did not name the man, and his identity has not been publicly released.
Del Conte closed with a message for the visitors and a verdict on the man himself:
“The matter has been addressed internally, and I want to personally apologize to the University of Florida and its entire football program. Having access to our field comes with a responsibility to represent Texas with class and respect. This individual failed to uphold that responsibility and has been permanently banned from Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium.”
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Tyler Horka, who covers Texas as a beat reporter for Inside Texas, posted the full statement Tuesday evening and tied it to “the behavior of the fan in this video.”
The announcement from Del Conte comes amid widespread condemnation from the college football world, led by former Notre Dame Fighting Irish offensive lineman Mike Golic Jr. who called the fan a “gigantic loser” in the immediate aftermath of the game.
What the Postgame Video Showed After the Gators’ Comeback
The confrontation came shortly after a game that slipped away from the Longhorns in front of their own fans. Texas, ranked No. 7 at the time, led 17-3 in the second quarter after Ryan Niblett’s 63-yard punt return touchdown. Then Florida answered with 24 straight points, including two Tramell Jones Jr. touchdown passes to Lacota Dippre and an 11-yard Jadan Baugh run.
Arch Manning’s 9-yard touchdown pass to Cam Coleman pulled Texas within three with 4:21 left, but Manning lost a fumble with 1:58 to go. Kanye Clark recovered, and the Longhorns never got the ball back. The loss, which On3 noted was Texas’ second in a row, dropped the Longhorns to 4-2, while Florida improved to 5-2.
The post-game incident on the field was captured by Anthony Geronimo. Gators players shouted back, and Florida staffers restrained some of them “to prevent the situation from escalating further.” No fight was reported, and in the video a Texas staff member appeared to walk over to the man.
On3‘s James Fletcher III reported that the man, dressed in Longhorns attire, also shouted at the players on their way to the locker room “as staff attempted to confirm whether he had field access.”
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This isn’t the first time that Texas has had to apologize for its fans’ behavior at a football game.
In 2024, during a game against Georgia, fans hurled debris onto the field after a disputed pass interference call on Texas that was later reversed, putting players and coaches in danger.
The SEC hit Texas with a $250,000 fine and directed the school to find the fans responsible and discipline them. In the end, none of them were punished.
This article originally appeared on Pro Football Network.