Texas Coach David Pierce On Hot Seat? Analyst Names Potential Replacements

Should the Longhorns move on from David Pierce, industry insider Kendall Rogers gave fans names to monitor.

Aaron E. Martinez/American-Statesman /

A high set of expectations will always rest on the shoulders of the individual tasked with leading the Texas Longhorns baseball team. Those expectations tend to include an annual trip to Omaha and the College World Series, or at the very least a competitive Super Regional.

In the eight years under David Pierce, the Longhorns have made three trips to the College World Series, including back-to-back showings in 2021-22. However, they have yet to win a national title under him and have seemingly regressed since the aforementioned 2022 season when they went 0-2 in Omaha.

Texas Longhorns head coach David Pierce disputes a call with an umpire during the game against Oklahoma State at UFCU Disch–Falk Field on Friday, May. 3, 2024 in Austin. / Aaron E. Martinez/American-Statesman /

Now, the seat for Pierce may be heating up. Depending on who you ask, his performance has not met the standards of a program like Texas. And per industry insider Kendall Rogers, in an appearance on 104.5 ESPN on Friday, he isn't overly optimistic about Pierce returning.

“His answer over the weekend in College Station was … I didn’t think it was real positive,” Rogers said. “I thought it was kind of telling a little bit. Everything I’m hearing around there is that they’re more than likely going to make a change.”

That answer, of course, came when Pierce was asked after the 10-2 season-ending loss to Louisiana in the Bryan-College Station Regional. When asked if he'll return next season, Pierce said, "That decision is not in my hands."

Should the decision be made to move on from Pierce, the question then becomes who would the Longhorns' next coach be. Heading into the SEC next season means they cannot afford to get the decision wrong, and per Rogers, there are two early names to monitor.

“If I were an LSU fan, I’d keep a very close eye on Texas. Because I don’t think they’re getting Jim Schlossnagle and the next option will be Jay Johnson,” he said. “I don’t think they’ll get Jay, either, but I can promise you they’re going to try.”

With any potential coaching search, it is, of course, wise to take any rumors or rumblings with a grain of salt. That being said, those are undoubtedly the caliber of names that Athletic Director Chris Del Conte would go for.

This year alone has seen Del Conte go out and make a couple of home run hires elsewhere in Texas' athletics program. First, after legendary men's swimming coach Eddie Reese retired, they hired Bob Bowman away from Arizona State to take over the program. Notably, Bowman coached Olympian Michael Phelps and led the Sun Devils to the 2024 men's swimming and diving national championship.

Not done there, the Longhorns found themselves needing to hire a new women's golf coach - and again, Del Conte nailed the decision. He brought in Laura Ianello from Arizona, who led the Wildcats to a national championship victory in 2018.

With these two hires, and Del Conte's track record of both hiring and locking in Steve Sarkisian for the long term, should give baseball fans confidence in a potential Pierce replacement. A sentiment that Rogers echoed.

“I know how Chris Del Conte works. He will want to make a splash,” Rogers said. “He does not want them to repeat what happened when they hired Pierce. And I think he’s going to try to make a big splash.”

The two names mentioned, Johnson and Schlossnagle, are coaches with their own lengthy track record of success. LSU hired Johnson ahead of the 2022 season, and in his three years, the Tigers have made the NCAA Tournament each time - including winning a national championship in 2023.

Schlossnagle is the more experienced, and far less likely, option. During his time at TCU, he led the Horned Frogs to five CWS appearances, including four straight from 2014-17. He, too, was hired by Texas A&M in the same cycle as Johnson at LSU.

During his time leading the Aggies, they have made the NCAA Tournament every single year and got to Omaha during his first season. This season they find themselves two wins away from making it two trips to the College World Series in his first three seasons leading the team.

At the end of the day, getting to Omaha is seen by many as the bare minimum for the Longhorns' coach. That has only happened three in his eight seasons at the helm, with the 2020 season being lost to Covid-19 costing a potential fourth appearance.

If Del Conte and the Longhorns do decide to move on from Pierce, you should anticipate an excellent hire. While it may not be Johnson or Schlossnagle, it will very likely be someone universally praised. Knowing Del Conte's track record of hiring coaches during his time at Texas, that much feels like a certainty