Now that Texas has finally joined the Southeastern Conference, the Longhorns still won't be safe from the infamous "Horns Down" celebrations by other schools' teams and fans. Flashing the "Horns Down" does not fall under the category of unsportsmanlike conduct, SEC coordinator of officials John McDaid said at SEC media days.

"The act itself needs to be offending to the senses," McDaid said. "If you took that act out of a football stadium and did it in a shopping mall or a grocery store, would it offend the senses to a majority of the reasonable people in the area? That signal would not. You might have some people that share that signal with you, if you did that at a grocery store or a shopping mall, depending where you are. We're going to evaluate it in context."

Rodney Terry, Nick Saban respond to 'Horns Down' gesture

Whether "Horns Down" is actually insulting depends on whom you ask. Texas men's basketball coach Rodney Terry got some heat for calling UCF players "classless" when they flashed it after a game. Football coach Steve Sarkisian and athletic director Chris Del Conte seem to "embrace the hate."

Nick Saban once bashed his players for using the gesture after beating Texas. Oklahoma defensive lineman Ethan Downs did it during halftime of the Sugar Bowl and got booed relentlessly.

For what it's worth, ask any media member and you'll get a resounding and exasperated, "Who cares?" But with rivalry games against Texas A&M, Arkansas and Oklahoma on the schedule, the gesture will become even more prevalent with the SEC's blessing.

"It shouldn't be a penalty anyway," Sooners safety Bill Bowman Jr. said Tuesday. "Everyone has a hand signal. If you let a hand signal affect you and affect the game, maybe you shouldn't be there."

Well, the SEC settled that quickly. Surely, it won't be an issue once the season begins.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: 'Horns Down' gesture by Texas' opponents won't count as penalty in SEC