Why Texas coach Jim Schlossnagle remembered an Augie Garrido text after loss to Tennessee

HOOVER, Ala. — Following an abrupt exit from the SEC baseball tournament on Thursday, Texas coach Jim Schlossnagle thought about a 10-year-old text message.

Thursday's 7-5 loss to Tennessee in the quarterfinals was decided by Gavin Kilen’s two-run double in the 12th inning that had just eliminated Texas at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium. Schlossnagle was asked in his postgame press conference if he was worried about his team losing its momentum with the NCAA Tournament on deck.

Schlossnagle replied that he wasn’t concerned and then told a story about the 2015 text message he received from former Texas coach Augie Garrido. Schlossnagle, then coaching TCU2, had just gone 0-for-2 at the Big 12 Tournament when he got Augie's text: "This is the best thing to ever happen to your team."

Garrido wasn’t wrong. TCU bounced back in the NCAA Tournament and reached that year's College World Series for a second straight season.

Time will tell if Schlossnagle is able to draw parallels between his 2015 TCU team and the squad he has at Texas. But after losing in the SEC quarterfinals and lasting just one game in Hoover, the top-seeded Longhorns must turn their attention to their upcoming NCAA regional.

"Stinks to lose, stinks to go home. This is a fun place to be this time of year," Schlossnagle said. "But we've got to go home and get ready for next weekend."

Tennessee relief pitcher Brandon Arvidson throws against Texas during the Vols' 7-5 win in the SEC Tournament. Arvidson was a star at Dripping Springs High School and played for UT coach Jim Schlossnagle two years ago at Texas A&M.

Ex-Texas recruit Brandon Arvidson stifles the Longhorns

Texas jumped out to a 4-0 lead over the eighth-seeded Volunteers and chased SEC pitcher of the year Liam Doyle during the fourth inning. But the Longhorns then struggled to get anything going offensively against Tennessee reliever Brandon Arvidson. The Dripping Springs-raised left-hander was on Schlossnagle’s A&M team in 2023 and later backed off his plans to transfer from San Jacinto College to Texas when Schlossnagle moved to Austin last summer.

Over 5⅓ innings, Arvidson struck out nine batters while allowing four hits and one unearned run.

"It's definitely an incentive to pitch better, but I was excited to go out there no matter who we were facing," Arvidson said. "But the curveball was really working today. Felt like I could throw it anywhere, and the fastball command was good, as well. Yeah, that was about it."

Texas (42-12) lost its four-run lead behind self-inflicted wounds — most notably, a crucial error by shortstop Jalin Flores in the fifth frame and the bases-loaded walk that Thomas Burns issued in the sixth — and Tennessee (43-15) took a 5-4 lead in the 10th on Kilen's homer. Texas, however, responded to Kilen's solo shot with Kimble Schuessler's second RBI single of the game.

In the bottom of that 10th inning, Schuessler stole second base with one out and forced Tennessee to intentionally walk Flores, the Longhorns' leader in RBIs. Texas then struck out twice to end the threat of a walk-off win. Then, in the 11th, Texas once again got two runners on board with one out, but failed to plate the winning run.

As it slipped to 1-4 in extra-inning contests, Texas stranded 10 runners on base. The Longhorns struck out 18 times, which tied a season high.

"We didn't score many runs in the middle innings. I think we need to work on that," UT infielder Ethan Mendoza said. "We came up clutch the bottom of the ninth, scored a run. That was big. We just never got that big hit we were all looking for. But hopefully, we get to work on that and be better next time."

Texas infielder Ethan Mendoza makes the turn for a double play after forcing Tennessee's Andrew Fischer out at second base. The Longhorns will find out their NCAA Tournament fate on Monday, but are expected to host an NCAA regional as a national top-eight seed.

Texas finds out its NCAA Tournament seed Monday

Texas will learn its fate for the NCAA Tournament on Monday morning. Since the Longhorns won the SEC championship during the regular season and boast a lofty RPI, a top-eight seed in the bracket seems like a safe bet.

The Longhorns, though, must reassess what went wrong in Hoover before they begin chasing the program's seventh national championship. Texas also will enter the NCAA Tournament having lost seven of its last 11 games.

"We treat every game like it's opening day, and that just helps us wash what happens in the past, whether we win or lose, and just keep playing to our standard," UT pitcher Ethan Walker said. "So we can acknowledge what happened today, but tomorrow, we're getting ready for opening day."

Walker made his first-ever start for the Longhorns on Thursday. A Walters State transfer who hadn't pitched more than two innings in a game this season, he gave up just one hit over his 4⅓ innings. He hit two of the 15 batters he faced.

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This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Why Texas coach Jim Schlossnagle remembered an Augie Garrido text after loss to Tennessee