Month: June 2024

‘I didn’t leave for a better job,’ Texas A&M coach Jim Schlossnagle tells all to ESPN

“I didn’t need this job. I had a great job. To be honest, TCU’s program was ahead of Texas A&M’s program. I didn’t leave for a better job.”

Baseball coach Jim Schlossnagle recently spoke to Dave Wilson of ESPN for an in-depth interview in which he discussed topics including why he came to Texas A&M and how he wants to improve the program.

“I didn’t need this job. I had a great job. To be honest with you, TCU’s program was ahead of Texas A&M’s program. I didn’t leave for a better job. I left for a different job,” Schlossnagle said. “If you asked the average college fan, on a scale of one to 10, where was Texas A&M’s baseball program in 2021, they would have said, ‘Hey, man, it’s a solid eight,’ right? But the attraction wasn’t the eight. The attraction was the difference between eight and 10.”

“If you look at the SEC West — just in our division — since 2012, Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Arkansas, Alabama and LSU have either built brand new ballparks or done major renovations since then. Auburn has spent more money on their stadium than Texas A&M. We’re the biggest school with supposedly the most money. Kyle Field is to college football what Olsen Field should be to college baseball.

“What I’m trying to do is get this program right where it should be relative to the size, power and strength of the school.”

Since taking over the program, Schlossnagle has accumulated a 126-60 record and one appearance in the College World Series during his first season.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes and opinions. Follow Shaun on Twitter: @Shaun_Holkko.

Texas A&M junior Braden Montgomery is ‘as complete of a player as you’re going to get’

“Everybody had heard about Braden, but no one had seen him in person. He’s about as complete of a player as you’re going to get in college.”

Texas A&M junior Braden Montgomery is projected to be a Top 10 pick in many mocks around the country and for good reason ahead of July’s 2024 MLB Draft.

Ben Weinrib of MLB.com recently wrote an article about Montgomery’s potential to go in the first five picks and Aggies coach Jim Schlossnagle raved about the versatile outfielder/right-handed pitcher.

“Yeah, not fun,” Schlossnagle said of facing Montgomery. “He pitched great against us. He effectively ended our season, both with his bat and on the mound. We knew he was a great player. We also knew he had areas he could get better, but we had no idea what a great human being he is.”

“Everybody had heard about Braden, but no one had seen him in person. It was like seeing Santa Claus the first time. And he hits a home run and it’s like as storybook as you could possibly be.”

“He’s about as complete of a player as you’re going to get in college baseball.”

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes and opinions. Follow Shaun on Twitter: @Shaun_Holkko.

Texas A&M junior reliever Brad Rudis improves perfect record with win vs. Grambling

“The mindset is always the same no matter the score or if there’s runners on base. Just hammer the zone and let the defense work behind me.”

Junior right-hander Brad Rudis’ relief appearance on Friday afternoon ensured an easy opening win for Texas A&M against Grambling State to start the Bryan-College Station Regional.

Rudis (6-0) earned the victory on the mound after relieving sophomore starter Tanner Jones. He entered the game with the bases loaded and one out in the top of the fourth inning but got out of the jam. Rudis struck out the first Tiger that he faced, then got the next to fly out to center field. He allowed 1 walk in 1.2 frames without allowing a hit on 18 pitches.

“The mindset is always the same no matter the score, if there is runners on base or whatever it may be,” Rudis recalled postgame. “Just hammer the zone and let the defense work behind me. That’s about it.”

The Aggies play Texas tomorrow night for a berth in the Bryan-College Station Regional Final. First pitch at Blue Bell Park is scheduled for 8 p.m. on ESPN.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes and opinions. Follow Shaun on Twitter: @Shaun_Holkko.

Duke softball star Jala Wright stays for hours after WCWS elimination to sign autographs

ACC Pitcher of the Year Jala Wright stayed for hours after Duke got eliminated from the Women’s College World Series to interact with fans.

Friday surely didn’t go how Duke softball and star pitcher Jala Wright wanted it to go, but the senior didn’t let that affect the way she treated the Oklahoma City fans.

The Blue Devils got eliminated from the Women’s College World Series after a second consecutive loss, falling 2-1 to Alabama one day after losing to Oklahoma in the opener.

After 52 wins, ACC titles in both the regular season and the conference tournament, and a Super Regional victory, Wright’s senior season came to an end at roughly 9:15 p.m. Eastern time.

At 11:00 p.m., nearly two hours after the dust settled, the ACC Pitcher of the Year was still signing autographs and talking to fans. NCAA Softball’s social media account shared a video of Wright standing before dozens of eager young fans with memorabilia in hand, and the Duke star looked determined to make time for each and every one of them.

Wright’s 2024 season ended with a 19-3 record and a 1.50 ERA in 34 appearances. She went the distance for eight complete games, and she struck out 189 batters in 154.1 innings.

She also earned two saves, and opposing batters only managed a .181 average against her for the season.

‘Land a lot of jabs,’ Texas A&M senior 1B Ted Burton reflects on win vs. Grambling State

“I think the approach was we wanted to land a lot of jabs instead of a haymaker punch. We did a great job of that,” the first baseman said.

Texas A&M senior first baseman Ted Burton contributed 2 hits in an explosive 7-run second inning that led to an 8-0 win against Grambling State on Friday afternoon to begin the Bryan-College Station Regional.

“I think the approach was we wanted to land a lot of jabs instead of a haymaker punch. We did a great job of that. We faced a lot of good arms in the SEC and not to knock their pitchers at all, they did a great job filling it up, but just base hit after base hit swinging at good pitches. That was the key today,” Burton explained postgame. “When things are going well, it’s easy to stray away from the approach, the same thing when things are going bad. Just sticking with the game plan that our coaches came up with was a huge deal for us. I just think that stringing together quality ABs after quality ABs puts a lot of strain on their team and pitcher just being able to do that consistently and that inning was huge.”

The Aggies play Texas tomorrow night for a berth in the Bryan-College Station Regional Final. First pitch at Blue Bell Park is scheduled for 8 p.m. on ESPN.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes and opinions. Follow Shaun on Twitter: @Shaun_Holkko.

Texas A&M coach Jim Schlossnagle recaps win vs. Grambling to start NCAA Regional

“I thought base running was going to play a huge role in the game for our team. They have given up over 100 stolen bases on the season.”

After the No. 3 Texas A&M baseball team began the NCAA Tournament with an 8-0 victory versus Grambling State, head coach Jim Schlossnagle spoke to the media.

“Good ballgame, it felt like it kinda unfolded about like I thought,” Schlossnagle said. “I thought base running was going to play a huge role in the game for our team. I thought there were some things that we could, I don’t know if you say exploit, but they have given up over 100 stolen bases on the season. So I felt like running bases was going to be a big part of the game.

“We swung the bat OK at times, I think we out-hit them 10-8. I thought that Rudis came in and got those big outs when they loaded the bases and then each guy we brought in did a nice job of doing their part. Armstrong in particular to save us some pitching for the rest of the tournament.

“All in all, a good day, weather cleared up, we had a good crowd, so excited to move on.”

The Aggies play Texas tomorrow night for a berth in the Bryan-College Station Regional Final. First pitch at Blue Bell Park is scheduled for 8 p.m. on ESPN.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes and opinions. Follow Shaun on Twitter: @Shaun_Holkko.

Why is four-star offensive tackle Jaelyne Matthews taking an OV to Rutgers football?

Rutgers football is set to host Jaelyne Matthews this weekend.

This weekend, Rutgers football is hosting Jaelyne Matthews, one of the top players in New Jersey and a four-star offensive tackle. It is the culmination of a recruiting process that began almost three years ago between Matthews and the Big Ten program.

The first offer for Matthews, part of the class of 2025, came from Rutgers following his freshman season at Toms River North (Toms River, New Jersey). Since then, Matthews has developed into one of the most sought-after players in the nation.

In their rankings, Matthews is the No. 93 player in the nation according to ESPN. In the On3 Industry Rankings, he is a top-25 offensive tackle in the nation. He was selected to play in the Under Armour All-American Game this upcoming January.

The visit to Rutgers this weekend, Matthews said, is to further his relationship with the staff.

“To see if I really am their number one recruit and prospect,” Matthews told Rutgers Wire.

“Because being wanted by your home town team is a big deal and a lot of people think Jaelyne’s not going to go to Rutgers but they for sure have a fair shot.”

(Credit to Matthews for utilizing the under-appreciated third person reference in the quote).

Part of the coaching staff for Rutgers, and a potentially big part of the equation for Matthews, is offensive line coach [autotag]Pat Flaherty[/autotag].

[lawrence-related id=38511,38495]

In his second year at Rutgers, Flaherty’s track record is impressive. With over two decades of NFL experience as an offensive line coach, Flaherty has one of the strongest resumes in Power Five football of any position coach.

In his first year back at Rutgers, Flaherty turned around a bottom-three offensive line into a strong unit. Former walk-on Hollin Pierce, after one season under Flaherty, is now considered a top-100 player in college football.

Flaherty[lawrence-related id=24640]

Matthews said his relationship with Flaherty is “great” as are things with the rest of head coach Greg Schiano’s staff.

“He calls me every other day. He called me (on Thursday) and asked me to send him prom pictures,” Matthews said.

“Him along with coach Susan (special assistant to the head coach Joe Susan) and coach Schiano really make me feel like part of the family.”

Matthews does not have a commitment date locked in but said he will be picking at some point this summer from a final five of Georgia, Miami, Ole Miss, Rutgers and Tennessee.