Texas baseball hires Jim Schlossnagle away from rival Texas A&M

Jun 22, 2024; Omaha, NE, USA; Texas A&M Aggies head coach Jim Schlossnagle walks to the mound against the Tennessee Volunteers during the fifth inning at Charles Schwab Field Omaha. Mandatory Credit: Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports
By Max Olson
Jun 25, 2024

Texas has hired Texas A&M’s Jim Schlossnagle as its next baseball coach, the school announced Tuesday night.

Schlossnagle just led rival Texas A&M to the College World Series finals, where the Aggies lost to No. 1 Tennessee in three games. Their 53-15 season included three weeks at No. 1 in the polls and was the best in program history at a school that had never played for a national title in baseball.

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The Longhorns, the winningest program in college baseball history, will replace David Pierce with a coach who led TCU to five College World Series appearances and took the Aggies to Omaha in two of his three seasons.

“Everywhere Coach Schlossnagle has been he’s built winners at the highest level, had a first-class program in every way and is an absolutely perfect fit to lead our baseball program,” said Kevin Eltife, chairman of the UT System Board of Regents. “I couldn’t be more excited to watch him work his magic on the Forty Acres.”

Texas will reportedly owe Texas A&M a $2.7 million buyout fee to hire Schlossnagle

Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte previously worked with Schlossnagle at TCU from 2009 to 2017. The Horned Frogs made a run of four consecutive CWS trips from 2014 to 2017, and Schlossnagle left as the winningest coach in program history with 734 wins over 18 seasons.

Pierce was fired Monday after going 295-162 in eight seasons at Texas. The Longhorns have not won a national title in baseball since legendary coach Augie Garrido won it all in 2005. Next season, they’re joining the Aggies in the SEC, a league that has produced five consecutive national champs.

Schlossnagle had a 4-1 record against the Longhorns in his three seasons in College Station. Texas A&M ended Texas’ 2022 season with a 10-2 defeat in Omaha, and the Longhorns’ 2024 campaign ended with two losses in the Bryan-College Station Regional, including a 4-2 loss to their rival in 11 innings.

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Following Texas A&M’s 6-5 loss Monday night to end the season, Schlossnagle bristled when asked in his postgame news conference to address the Texas coaching vacancy and his future.

“I think it’s pretty selfish of you to ask me that question, to be honest with you,” Schlossnagle said. “I left my family to be the coach at Texas A&M. I took the job at Texas A&M to never take another job again. And that hasn’t changed, in my mind. That’s unfair to talk about something like that. … I understand you gotta ask the question, but I gave up a big part of my life to come take this job and I’ve poured every ounce of my soul in this job and I’ve given this job every single ounce I can possibly give it. Write that.”

Texas A&M went through an athletic director change earlier this year when Ross Bjork departed to become the AD at Ohio State in January. Texas A&M president Mark A. Welsh III hired Nebraska AD Trev Alberts away from his alma mater in March.

Texas A&M regents approved $80 million in renovations for Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park in May.

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(Photo: Steven Branscombe / USA Today)

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Max Olson

Max Olson covers national college football for The Athletic. He previously covered the Big 12 and recruiting for ESPN.com. Follow Max on Twitter @max_olson