Texas A&M received an unwelcome distraction ahead of game 3 of College World Series against Tennessee
The Tennessee Vols are set to take on the Texas A&M Aggies in game three of the College World Series on Monday night. The best-of-three-series is tied 1-1 after Tennessee scored four runs late on Sunday to beat the Aggies 4-1. On Monday, just hours before game three, Texas A&M received an unwelcome distraction. The […]
The Tennessee Vols are set to take on the Texas A&M Aggies in game three of the College World Series on Monday night.
The best-of-three-series is tied 1-1 after Tennessee scored four runs late on Sunday to beat the Aggies 4-1.
On Monday, just hours before game three, Texas A&M received an unwelcome distraction.
The Texas Longhorns fired head baseball coach David Pierce on Monday morning.
As soon as the news broke, speculation began that Texas A&M head coach Jim Schlossnagle could be the Longhorns' top target to replace Pierce.
Whether or not Schlossnagle takes the job is anyone's guess at this point. Either way, Schlossnagle should definitely be considered a legitimate candidate due to his connection to Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte.
Del Conte served as TCU's athletic director from 2009 to 2017. Schlossnagle served as TCU's head baseball coach from 2004 to 2021.
The two men reportedly had a close relationship during their time together at TCU.
From The Battalion: In 2009, just before Schlossnagle’s ninth season as a head coach, TCU hired Chris Del Conte, who now works for Texas in the same role, as its athletic director.
Del Conte and Schlossnagle already knew each other — Schlossnagle’s reputation preceded him. Together in Fort Worth, Del Conte gave Schlossnagle an avenue to life outside of baseball within the university. Every Sunday, for years, the two would walk a three-mile loop around campus.
“We would just talk about our lives, talk about our families, talk about everything but sports. Some days in the game, the game gets so all consuming that you don’t have an outlet to talk about anything else besides the game,” Del Conte said. “Our conversations were nothing about the game. [We talked about] what we wanted for our kids, what we wanted for life. Those are my most cherished memories [with Jim] because the wins and losses are difficult. Long after the game of baseball is over, he’ll be a friend of mine.”
And, in Schlossnagle’s first year working with Del Conte, 10 years after his first appearance, TCU went to the College World Series. Schlossnagle had his taste of college baseball’s mecca exactly a decade before, and here he was again.
It would be foolish to think that a conversation between the two men won't happen at some point. It would also be foolish to think that Schlossnagle won't least ponder taking the Texas job (assuming it's offered). And with that in the back of Schlossnagle's mind on Monday night, perhaps it will be just enough to distract him and his team from playing their best game against the Volunteers.
Tennessee player included on list of must-watch true freshmen in 2024, but he’s ranked way too low
Gotta be ranked higher than that
