I wasn’t at the football game Saturday, but being informed afterward that the Texas crowd booed one of our own players troubled me.

Whether fans were seeking to denigrate Garrett Gilbert or call into question the decision of the coaching staff, my sympathies go out to him, who from the field in that moment probably didn’t perceive much difference between the two. No college athlete should ever experience this from a home crowd. How mortifying to be the object of the jeers of a mob that has lost touch with its human element. Students, alumni and fans: What if it was your friend, roommate, brother or son? Would that alter your thoughts on this matter?

Please don’t misunderstand: Athletes should indeed be scrutinized for what they do on and off the field; however, there are appropriate outlets for these scrutinies, and booing our own players during a game isn’t one of them.

This isn’t one of our finer moments, Longhorns. Maybe some of you share my disappointment. Maybe I’m way off the mark. In either case, I believe that at this point, we have more reason to be embarrassed than do any of the players who weren’t on their athletic A-game Saturday. Let’s take the lesson, move on and not repeat the mistake again.

— Matt Portillo, Music and rhetoric and writing senior