TCU to cast a wide net in baseball coaching search for Jim Schlossnagle’s replacement
With longtime baseball coach Jim Schlossnagle departing for Texas A&M, TCU will conduct a national search to find his replacement, TCU athletic director Jeremiah Donati said in a statement.
“We now turn our attention to the opportunity in front of us and will begin a national search for the next leader of our baseball team at TCU,” Donati wrote. “We have an elite program with high expectations. Our student-athletes, fans and community deserve the best possible head coach and staff to lead this program forward and we are committed to delivering that to them.”
Donati will use the assistance of a search firm in the process, according to a source familiar with the department’s thinking. This is the first significant coaching hire for Donati since he became AD in December 2017.
Donati is expected to interview pitching coach Kirk Saarloos, who has been at TCU since the summer of 2012 and has been targeted by other schools and MLB organizations over the years. Associate head coach BIll Mosiello, who has been on staff since the summer of 2013, is another internal candidate who could interview for the position.
While the general thought among some is Saarloos should be the hire — respected college baseball insider Kendall Rogers wrote on Twitter that “the smart move right now would be to go with Kirk Saarloos” — Donati and TCU could prefer a coach who has experience running a program.
If that is the case, outside candidates would likely include Dallas Baptist’s Dan Heefner and East Carolina’s Cliff Godwin. Heefner and Godwin have both led their teams to this year’s super regionals. Duke’s Chris Pollard and Tracy Smith, who won’t be retained at Arizona State, are other names to consider. Another possible outside candidate is Houston’s Todd Whitting, who has ties to TCU as Schlossnagle’s assistant from 2004-10.
At the end of the day, TCU will conduct a thorough search for a position it views as one of the top college baseball jobs in the country. Schlossnagle turned TCU into a destination job, leading it to five College World Series berths and 15 NCAA tournaments in his 18 seasons.
TCU went 734-346 under Schlossnagle, who joined the school from UNLV in 2004.
TCU’s baseball program made just two NCAA Tournament appearances prior to Schlossnagle’s arrival.
This story was originally published June 9, 2021 at 6:02 AM.
