JT Higgins steps down as head coach of Texas A&M golf to take USC job

It was announced on Friday evening that Texas A&M men’s golf coach JT Higgins will be stepping down from his post in Aggieland to take the head coaching position at the University of Southern California.

“The decision to leave Texas A&M was the most difficult of my life,” Higgins said in a release. “While together we have built one of the elite programs in all of college golf, it is the people I will miss the most - friends, players and co-workers.”

Higgins’ crowning achievement during his 19 years at Texas A&M was guiding the golf team to the 2009 NCAA men’s golf national championship.

“I am so proud of what we built here: the obvious are the incredible practice facilities and hardware in the trophy cases, but more subtle, I believe this golf program played a big role in Bryan-College Station becoming one of the best golf communities in the State of Texas,” said Higgins.

Higgins was inducted into the Golf Coaches’ Association of America Hall of Fame in 2015 and he was named the regional coach of the year three times and conference coach of the year twice. Since taking the Texas A&M job ahead of the 2001-02 season, Higgins’ Aggies finished in the top ten five times, captured one conference championship (2012, Big 12), made 16 NCAA regional appearances and 12 NCAA championship appearances.

As Higgins departs for USC, assistant coach Brian Kortan will serve as the Aggies’ interim head coach for the upcoming 2020-21 season. Texas A&M plans to conduct a national search in the spring of 2021.