Paul Finebaum chastises Jim Schlossnagle for 'embarrassing' handling of accepting Texas opening
The words that Jim Schlossnagle offered to convey that he was intent on staying at Texas A&M — delivered tersely to a reporter after losing the national championship on Monday — are words he’ll likely be eating for a while after taking the head coaching job at Texas on Tuesday. And it didn’t take long for Schlossnagle’s comments to be spun back around on him.
Schlossnagle was rumored to be a contender for the opening at Texas, despite still marshaling his team in Omaha. After the Aggies were eliminated on Monday night, Schlossnagle was asked about being linked to the Texas opening and responded by calling the query “selfish” and taking aim at the premise.
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“I think it’s pretty selfish of you to ask me that question, to be honest with you,” Schlossnagle said following the game. “I left my family to be the coach at Texas A&M. I took the job at Texas A&M to never take another job again, and that hasn’t changed in my mind. That’s unfair to talk about something like that. That would be like you asking [Braden] Montgomery if he’s going to sign in the draft. But I understand you gotta ask the question, but I gave up a big part of my life to come take this job and I’ve poured every ounce of my soul in this job and I’ve given this job every single ounce I can possibly give it. Write that.”
Less than 24 hours after giving that answer, Schlossnagle was reportedly taking the Texas job.
It’s a chain of events that had SEC luminary Paul Finebaum dressing down Schlossnagle for the way he acted.
“I’ll repeat something that I thought about earlier: The question was going to happen, the rumors had been out there, there had been [Tony] Vitello rumors, as well,” Finebaum said. “So he got asked the question and the correct answer — and by the way, these are things you have to think about. I’ve talked to great coaches, hall of fame coaches, some of the best of all time, and they always say, ‘I have a plan if we win and I have a plan if we lose.’ You have to be cognizant of what you’re going to communicate and his answer was embarrassing. All you have to say is, ‘Listen, I’m — we just walked off the field where we gave our guts, left our guts on that field and all I care about tonight is my players.'”
Finebaum continued.
“Make a stand,” Finebaum said. “Instead he chastised the reporter, it was all about him, I left my family behind for this job, its the last job I’ll ever have and look, 19 hours later it’s being reported by multiple outlets in Texas that he’s leaving.”
And given Schlossnagle not only comported himself in a way that left a bad taste for many, he did so while jumping from one bitter rival to another, all while his new school joins the SEC in a matter of days.