The Texas football team faced a minor online scandal ahead of their first contest in the highly anticipated 2023 campaign, and the Longhorns are trying to clear up the controversy that is making waves on social media.

Head coach Steve Sarkisian explained the motto as he enters his third year at the helm, and is trying to embrace their villain status.

“I think that they've kind of assumed this mentality of, ‘Embrace the hate.’ We get it. We're the University of Texas, we get it. This is our last year in the Big 12,” Sarkisian said.

Online social media users were labeling the message as white supremacist and in poor taste given the racial climate of the country, according to Fox News.

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Longhorns athletic director Chris Del Conte spoke out in support of the shirts, explaining the meaning behind the phrase and defending the usage.

“We know we have to embrace the hate this year,” Del Conte explained to Orange Bloods. “Everyone in the Big 12 is mad at us. They think we broke up the Big 12; they think we broke up the Pac 12 because we left.”

The Longhorns will look to put the uproar behind them and get back out on the field for their first contest of the year. They will host Rice on Saturday afternoon as heavy 35-point favorites. As for the most hated team in the Big 12, they are also favorites to win the conference in their final season. Texas is sitting with +100 even odds, and the next-closest Oklahoma Sooners are at a +420 price.