“The pride and winning tradition of the University of Texas will not be entrusted to the weak or the timid.”
The motto frequently espoused by athletics director Chris Del Conte would perhaps be unfair to apply
to Ange Kelly and the Texas Longhorns soccer program in 2025, but it is fair to say that they were bad in finishing 4-12-1 and 14th in the 16-team SEC, and that amounts to the same thing as Del Conte dismissed Kelly on Monday after 14 seasons.
“After the season, we took time to reflect on this year, the future of Texas Soccer and where the program is headed. Following thoughtful discussion, we think it is in the best interest of The University of Texas to move in a new direction,” Del Conte said in a statement released by the school.
“Coach Kelly has led this program in a first-class manner and has poured tremendous energy and dedication into our student-athletes and staff over the past 14 seasons. We are grateful for all she has accomplished and for the professionalism, character and pride she has consistently demonstrated. We sincerely thank Coach Kelly for her service to Texas Soccer and to our University, and we wish her all the best in the future.”
The 2025 campaign marked only the third losing season over Kelly’s lengthy tenure which concludes with a 156-90-35 (.617) record, three conference titles, eight NCAA Tournament appearances, and Sweet 16 appearances in both 2017 and 2023. During Kelly’s time on the Forty Acres, the Longhorns produced 66 All-Conference selections, eight All-Americans, and the first Olympian and medalist in Texas history, Canada’s Julia Grosso, (Tokyo 2020).
“I am sincerely grateful to have had the privilege to lead the Texas Soccer Program for the past 14 seasons. I want to extend my deepest appreciation to our staff and all of the student-athletes that have represented the burnt orange. I will always cherish the relationships that have been made and will forever hold them close to my heart,” Kelly said.
A native of Scotland who grew up in Ontario, Kelly starred at North Carolina in the early 1990s, winning four national championships during her time in Chapel Hill and earning 29 caps for the Canadian national team, including starts in every 1995 World Cup match.
Kelly arrived in Austin after turning around the Tennessee program, winning four SEC Tournament titles and securing nine NCAA Tournament berths, including five Sweet 16 appearances, significant accomplishments at a program that had never made the tournament in program history before Kelly took over.
At Texas, though, the breakthrough never truly came, and Kelly proved unable to replace the dynamic attacking duo of midfield Lexi Missimo and forward Trinity Byars, who led the 2023 Longhorns to the Sweet 16.
