Jim Nagy explains decision to leave Senior Bowl for Oklahoma GM position

In February, Oklahoma football officially named Jim Nagy its general manger. Before accepting the job offer, Nagy had been the executive director of the Senior Bowl since 2018.

The Senior Bowl is widely regarded as the best postseason all-star game in college football. It showcases the best NFL Draft prospects who have completed their college eligibility. During an appearance on The Triple Option podcast, Nagy explained his decision to move on from his leadership role with the Senior Bowl and join Oklahoma.

“You walk in the door and there’s always seven national championship trophies and seven Heisman trophies — like, everything has been done at Oklahoma,” Nagy said. “We know we can do it here, right? And I believe in scouting. I believe in my profession. I love my profession. I know the value of scouting, and I know what that can add to a great coaching staff that we already have here. So that’s really what it was.

“I wasn’t going to make this jump to a level I never really intended to work unless we were going to win at a really high level. We plan to win in championships here. I felt like this was the place that could do it, where we could do it, and now here we are.”

Few people understand scouting better than Nagy. Before working with the Senior Bowl, Nagy worked in a variety of scouting positions for the Seattle Seahawks, Kansas City Chiefs, New England Patriots and Washington Redskins. In total, Nagy has 18 year of experience in NFL front offices.

Nagy’s success in the NFL translated to the Senior Bowl. In the past five game cycles, the Senior Bowl has produced more than 100 drafted players each year, representing more than 40 percent of those NFL Draft classes.

Now, Jim Nagy is ready to help Oklahoma produce NFL-level talent, as well. However, the decision to join the Sooners wasn’t always an obvious one for Nagy.

“I interviewed for the Jets GM job back in December. Obviously didn’t get that, but that was a really cool opportunity. And then, the phone did ring from some college programs,” Nagy said. “I’ve never even thought about working in college. My goal from the time I was a little kid was to work in the National Football League, and again, fortunate to have been able to do that for a couple decades.

“The plan was maybe to get my daughter through high school down there in Mobile, [Alabama]. She’s got two years left. This was not an ideal time to make the move. I mean, to tell your 16-year-old, who grew up in the same house and has her group of friends that she’s now moving to Oklahoma — this decision wasn’t made lightly, man, at all. But again, it was Oklahoma.”