It didn’t take the Texas Longhorns very long to find a new baseball coach, poaching Jim Schlossnagle from rival Texas A&M, a source told ESPN, confirming multiple reports.
Schlossnagle and the Aggies lost a deciding Game 3 to the Tennessee Volunteers in the Men’s College World Series finals on Monday night, finishing the season with a 53-15 record. The Aggies averaged 8.5 runs this season.
He will replace David Pierce, who was out Monday after eight seasons with Texas. Pierce won the Big 12 three times but made only three appearances in the College World Series.
The Longhorns’ best season under Pierce was in 2021, when they finished third at the CWS.
Schlossnagle, who went 135-62 in his three seasons with Texas A&M, will be reunited with athletic director Chris Del Conte at Texas. Schlossnagle served as baseball coach at TCU when Del Conte was AD with the Horned Frogs.
Schlossnagle will become just the seventh coach of the Texas baseball program since 1911. The Longhorns have won six national championships but none since 2005
Under Schlossnagle’s leadership, the Aggies overcame late-season injuries, including one to star outfielder Braden Montgomery, to reach their first MCWS finals. Their 53 wins were their most since 1993.
“Tough one to swallow,” Schlossnagle said after Monday’s loss. “You make it this far, you want to win your last game.”
Schlossnagle on Monday bristled at a question about speculation that he’d be a candidate to replace Pierce at Texas.
“I took the job at Texas A&M to never take another job again. And that hasn’t changed in my mind,” Schlossnagle told a reporter. “… That’s unfair to talk about something like that.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.