Jim Schlossnagle makes his Longhorns debut next week with a team ranked by everyone in the top 20

Jim Schlossnagle knew he wasn’t inheriting some broken down jalopy. The Texas baseball program has always been a high-end machine. It just needed a tune-up. Pollsters nationwide feel the Longhorns are set to have a huge bounce this season. Texas has been slotted in the top 20 of all five major preseason college baseball rankings. […]

Brian Davis
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Jim Schlossnagle knew he wasn’t inheriting some broken down jalopy. The Texas baseball program has always been a high-end machine. It just needed a tune-up.

Pollsters nationwide feel the Longhorns are set to have a huge bounce this season.

Texas has been slotted in the top 20 of all five major preseason college baseball rankings. The Horns were ranked as high as No. 7 by Perfect Game and No. 19 by D1Baseball. Schlossnagle’s club is ranked 13th in perhaps the most referenced poll conducted by USA Today.

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“I’m super excited, very thankful to (former coach David) Pierce and his staff for the guys that are here,” Schlossnagle said at the end of January. “We just need those top-end players, we got to keep them healthy and they need to do well. Not that the other guys can't do that. They're just not they're not ready yet.”

As expected, the SEC dominates the preseason polls. SEC teams took up 12 of the 25 spots in the USA Today Baseball Coaches Poll. Schlossnagle’s former team, Texas A&M, is viewed as the consensus No. 1 team with Tennessee (No. 2), LSU (No. 3) and Arkansas (No. 5) all in the top five.

Also this preseason, Texas standouts Max Belyeu and Rylan Galvan were named to the preseason All-SEC team, the league office announced.

Belyeu was a first-team pick by SEC coaches after being named the Big 12 player of the year last season. He hit .329 with 18 home runs and 53 runs batted in.

Galvan was a second-team All-SEC pick by the coaches. The catcher became an everyday player in 2024 while batting .287 with eight home runs and 37 runs batted in. In the Big 12, Galvan was an honorable mention all-league pick.

Texas opens the season against Louisville on Feb. 14 at Globe Life Field in Arlington as part of the Shriners Children’s College Showdown.

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