Jim Schlossnagle left Texas A&M for the Texas head coach job immediately after the Aggies’ College World Series run fell short, which created a firestorm of controversy in Aggieland.

Here are five things to know about Schlossnagle:

1. Aggie turned Longhorn

Schlossnagle’s previously mentioned move from College Station to Austin was one of the most shocking coaching moves both in state history and in recent college sports history. Not only did he leave the Aggies to become the Longhorns’ head coach, but he did so less than 24 hours after Texas A&M lost the College World Series final to Tennessee.

The next day, he was officially named Texas’ next head coach and took the entire coaching staff with him. The day after he took the Texas job, 11 Aggie players (including six starters from the College World Series) entered the transfer portal. It’s safe to say that as Texas joins the SEC next season, Schlossnagle’s first trip back to College Station as Texas’ head coach will be a series to keep an eye on.

According to D1Baseball.com’s Kendall Rogers, the deal with Texas was done before the Aggies’ postseason even started.

“One interesting note is that I was told by multiple sources today that this deal — at least at the highest level — was done between A&M’s series with Georgia and before the Regional round,” Rogers tweeted.

Longhorns columnist Kirk Bohls put it bluntly: “Texas just stole A&M’s soul.”

2. His tense moment with a reporter before taking the Texas job

In the postgame press conference after the Aggies lost the CWS final to Tennessee, a reporter asked him about his future with Texas A&M since Texas had just fired head coach David Pierce.

He snapped back at the reporter.

“I think it’s pretty selfish of you you to ask me that question, to be honest with you,” he said. “But 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.”

At his introductory press conference, Schlossnagle explained and apologized for his comments.

“I wish I could have answered that better,” Schlossnagle said. “I didn’t intend to mislead (Texas A&M fans). In that moment, that’s exactly how I felt.”

“If I had left Texas A&M for some other school, in a different part of the country, the interesting text messages and messages that I got yesterday probably wouldn’t have happened. But I get it,” he later said.

3. The UT-A&M jump wasn’t his first in-state coaching move

Schlossnagle spent nearly two decades as TCU’s head coach, starting in 2004 until he left the Texas A&M in 2021. Just before that year’s Big 12 tournament, Schlossnagle told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram that he “had no interest in any other job.”

He had a terrific run in Fort Worth, as he became the winningest coach in TCU history and led the Frogs to Omaha five times (including a stretch of four straight seasons). TCU had been to NCAA Tournament just twice before Schlossnagle arrived and took the Frogs to the tournament 15 times.

4. He is one of the most decorated coaches in college baseball

Over his tenures as head coach of UNLV, TCU, and Texas A&M, he has accumulated a 945-452 record and plenty of awards along the way.

He has won eight conference Coach of the Year honors, is a two-time National Coach of the Year, and has gone to the College World Series seven times. He is also one of 11 coaches to win games in the CWS with multiple programs.

5. Unique relationship with Texas AD Chris Del Conte and waiting at a cemetery

Schlossnagle’s relationship with Texas AD Chris Del Conte dates back to Schlossnagle’s TCU days. Del Conte was TCU’s AD from 2009-2017 before becoming the Longhorns’ AD. At his introductory press conference with Texas, they cited their friendship as a reason for the move.

“For 10 years I’ve had a front row seat to watch the man lead a [TCU] from the ashes to five times in Omaha,” Del Conte said.

Later in the presser, Del Conte said he hid in a cemetery outside of College Station waiting for Schlossnagle to get home so we wouldn’t be seen in Aggieland.

“When I was in the cemetery, [then on the way] to their house, it’s just as crazy as it sounds. I played every scenario in my mind. I drove to his house, had a long, long discussion, put him in the car, and we drove off,” he said.

After the press conference, he proved his story was real with a picture of his hiding spot:

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