Bjorks A+ hire…ADs are rated on many things but the quality of their hires is right up there and this was a terrific one.
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Photo by Jamie Maury, TexAgs
Texas A&M Baseball
365 Days of Schlossnagle: Texas A&M's incredible one-year turnaround
During that time, the hopes and the excitement of A&M fans have gone into orbit.
It’s been a year of amazing accomplishments, not the least of which was the end of the TCU jinx. That hex was exorcized with a 15-9 NCAA regional victory last Sunday night.
Schlossnagle is the reason the jinx ever existed in the first place. In his previous role as TCU’s head coach, the Horned Frogs eliminated A&M in the super regionals in 2015 and ’16 and beat the Aggies in the College World Series in 2017.
Jamie Maury, TexAgs
Schlossnagle was officially introduced to the 12th Man with a press conference on June 10, 2021.
“Tonight had nothing to do with me,” Schlossnagle said. “It was these guys (Jack Moss and Dylan Rock) and (relief pitcher) Brad Rudis. These guys (Moss and Rock) making big swings.”
It is true Moss, Rock and Rudis played huge roles in A&M’s triumph. But Schlossnagle’s self dismissal, while perhaps noble, is…well, way off base.
A year ago today, Schlossnagle was pried away from TCU and became Texas A&M’s baseball coach. He immediately set lofty goals in an introductory press conference.
“I want to be in Omaha (for the College World Series) next year,” he said then. “There’s just a lot of work to be done. I’m sure (fans) are going to want that this year. So do I, but I think every good thing takes work. It doesn’t necessarily take time.”
The Aggies are two victories over Louisville in this weekend’s College Station Super Regional away from reaching Omaha.
Absolutely credit Schlossnagle. He compiled an excellent coaching staff. An intriguing mix of players from different backgrounds was molded. Team chemistry was established.
In just a year, Schlossnagle has brought A&M to the brink of the College World Series despite facing what appeared to be a gargantuan series of obstacles.
He took over a team that was just 9-21 in the Southeastern Conference last season. Indeed, the Aggies had managed no more than 16 SEC wins in each of the previous four seasons.
The SEC is perhaps more powerful in baseball than even football. Five SEC teams are still alive in the baseball playoffs.
Jamie Maury, TexAgs
Dylan Rock and Jack Moss have been key additions to the team.
A&M was a preseason pick to finish 13th in the 14-team SEC.
Injuries to shortstop Kalae Harrison and third baseman Trevor Werner were problematic. Schlossnagle’s roster was a collage of transfer portal pickups, holdovers and incoming freshmen. There was little continuity.
But Schlossnagle also has an eye for talent. And talent has an eye for Schlossnagle.
Do Rock and Moss transfer to A&M if not for the opportunity to play for Schlossnagle? Does catcher Troy Claunch or pitchers Micah Dallas and Jacob Palisch?
Maybe. Maybe not. No doubt, A&M Director of Athletic Ross Bjork is thankful he doesn’t have to know.
“We wanted to scour the country to see who’s out there that are top five, eight, top ten coaches. Who’s interested? Will they talk to us?” Bjork said a year ago. “We did that with a lot of people, but after the meeting (with Schlossnagle) we had, it was, ‘OK, that’s the bar. Somebody’s got to beat that.’ He was the guy, and it worked out.”
Has it ever.
Perhaps the truest cliche in sports is a team takes on the personality of its coach. The Aggies are a gritty team that doesn’t stress when in distress.
Whether a seven-run ninth-inning rally against TCU, overcoming a 6-1 deficit to beat Alabama 12-8 or climbing out of a 9-0 hole to beat South Carolina 13-12, amazing comebacks have become a trademark of this A&M team.
That’s Schlossnagle’s influence. He, too, was unfazed by early struggles. He kept grinding to get amazing results.
The Aggies lost a February series to Penn. They lost two of three in the Frisco College Baseball Classic in early March. They fell to Houston 8-2 in their final game before Southeastern Conference play began.
Relief pitching was erratic. Timely hitting was not clutch.
“I called him after the Penn series, and I said, ‘Coach, it’s going to be OK. We don’t have to panic. This is a long-term build. This is a process.’ To have it flip like that and to be able to host and win the west... Unbelievable turnaround in year one.”
But it changed.
The Aggies opened SEC play by winning a series at LSU. They won a series at Georgia. They won a series over Arkansas. In fact, they closed the SEC season by winning seven consecutive series.
They also beat ranked opponents Texas, Texas State and Dallas Baptist along the way.
They won the SEC West. They won twice in the SEC Tournament. They were picked to host a regional. They beat TCU. They’ve advanced to host a super regional. They’re two wins away from a trip to Omaha.
“It’s really fascinating,” Bjork told TexAgs Radio on Thursday. “People talk about the process. To me, this is what happened because he didn’t ever panic. Just think about after the Penn series. He could have just scrapped everything. Or going up to Frisco. He could have easily panicked and said, ‘Hey, let’s scrap everything. Let’s start over. Let’s do this, let’s do that.’ But he just kept being consistent. That’s a sign of great coaching and great leadership.
“You got some transfers in, and you didn’t know how that would all gel. To see it happen in year one...I called him after the Penn series, and I said, ‘Coach, it’s going to be OK. We don’t have to panic. This is a long-term build. This is a process.’ To have it flip like that and to be able to host and win the west...an unbelievable turnaround in year one.”
No doubt, it’s been an incredible season under Schlossnagle.
Maybe even a better year.
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