A “greenhorn” is a newcomer; the University of Texas athletic teams are called the “Longhorns.” A freshman football player on the Texas Longhorns might be called a “greenhorn,” although this nickname has not been frequently used.
 
“Green” has become a code word for “environmentally friendly.” A “greenhorn” can also mean a Texas Longhorn who is environmentally conscious. In 2008, “green tailgaters” at Texas Longhorn football games called themselves “greenhorns.”
   
 
Merriam-Webster Dictionary 
Main Entry: green·horn
Pronunciation: \-ˌhȯrn\
Function: noun
Etymology: obsolete greenhorn animal with green or young horns
Date: 1682
1 : an inexperienced or naive person
2 : a newcomer (as to a country) unacquainted with local manners and customs
 
JournalStar (Peoria, IL)
In secondary, Longhorns will be greenhorns
College football notebook
Journal Star news services
Posted Aug 25, 2008 @ 09:43 PM
The Texas Longhorns revealed their first depth chart for the season Monday with a few new faces and a bit of anxiety about their pass defense.
   
Austin (TX) American-Statesman
An eco bent among some UT tailgaters
Greenhorns green up the grill
By Asher Price
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Amid the crush of tailgates before Saturday’s football game between the University of Texas and the University of Arkansas, Aaron Blades had set up a television, an Xbox and a pair of fans beneath a tent on a knoll by the Erwin Center, all using electricity from a solar-powered generator.
 
Blades, 26, and his wife, Jennifer, 24, call themselves “Greenhorns” because of their green tailgating.
 
In addition to the generator, they fire their grill with propane, which releases fewer emissions than charcoal, use reusable plates, cups and utensils, sip locally brewed beers, and recycle and compost where they can. A beer pong table is made out of plywood, which the couple and Blades’ mother used to protect windows on their Houston-area home during Hurricane Ike. (The solar panel provided them with electricity in the days following the storm.)
 
The idea for the Greenhorns, established this year, was born out of guilt, said Aaron Blades, who has degrees in chemical engineering and law from the University of Texas.
 
“We live in Houston, and the green thing grew out of the fact that we took an SUV and a trailer out here,” he said. “We felt bad that we were burning gas like nobody’s business. We want to counteract the environmental damage we do getting here.”
 
The Web site Lighter Footstep gives other green tailgating tips, including drinking organic beer, grilling veggie dogs and, short of propane, burning ecofriendly coals.