{"id":161718,"date":"2026-02-12T15:37:11","date_gmt":"2026-02-12T15:37:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/161718\/"},"modified":"2026-02-12T15:37:11","modified_gmt":"2026-02-12T15:37:11","slug":"landman-tv-show-inspires-new-class-at-tcu-teaching-students-the-real-world-thing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/161718\/","title":{"rendered":"Landman TV show inspires new class at TCU, teaching students the \u2018real world thing\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

The landman profession isn\u2019t a new concept in Fort Worth, but it has definitely gained traction since becoming the namesake for Taylor Sheridan\u2019s popular West Texas oil drama<\/a>.<\/p>\n

And, now, a new class at Texas Christian University\u2019s Neely School of Business<\/a> may inspire a student or two to become a landman themselves.<\/p>\n

This semester, 30 students are enrolled in an eight-week seminar inspired by \u201cLandman.\u201d The school doesn\u2019t offer an energy major, but it does have an energy business minor, so a mix of majors are taking the class.<\/p>\n

The course title, \u201cLand Management and Land Administration,\u201d may be the first clue that the class material won\u2019t be as flashy as the \u2014 literally \u2014 explosive and fast-paced TV show.<\/p>\n

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Related<\/p>\n

\"Andy<\/p>\n

The course content is newer for a number of the students, including Wesley Corliss, a Massachusetts native who first moved to Texas when he was in the U.S. Air Force.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s very different than the show,\u201d the sophomore finance major laughed. <\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of contract law, a lot of property law, tracing deeds through history … Maybe contract law doesn\u2019t make for very interesting television, but [the class] has been interesting.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas Christian University students take notes during a course called \u201cLand Management and Land Administration,\u201d on Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026. The eight-week seminar is inspired by Taylor Sheridan’s \u201cLandman\u201d TV show. <\/p>\n

Angela Piazza \/ Staff Photographer<\/p>\n

Professor Tom Seng agreed the content may not be \u201cexhilarating\u201d but said students are getting a real deal crash course in what it\u2019s like to be the person negotiating land rights on behalf of energy companies.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou watch the series, it\u2019s super exciting, it\u2019s crazy, it\u2019s Hollywood,\u201d said Seng, an assistant professor of professional practice and energy finance. \u201cThen we bring them down to earth in a big way, presenting serious material.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018It\u2019s the real world thing\u2019<\/p>\n

The textbook-of-sorts for the course is the exam prep-guide, American Association of Professional Landmen, created for its certification program<\/a>. Seng said they\u2019d be able to cover about eight of the guide\u2019s 17 chapters, which is exactly what someone studying to become a registered or certified professional landman would study.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s the real world thing,\u201d Seng said.<\/p>\n

Seng said TCU being featured in the ultra-popular \u201cLandman\u201d was a catalyst for creating the course, among other elements \u2014 like Sheridan graduating from Paschal High School adjacent to the university, and AAPL being headquartered in Fort Worth.<\/p>\n

\"Wesley<\/p>\n

Wesley Corliss, a Texas Christian University sophomore, finance major and energy business minor, takes notes during a course called \u201cLand Management and Land Administration,\u201d on Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026. The eight-week seminar is inspired by Taylor Sheridan’s \u201cLandman\u201d TV show. <\/p>\n

Angela Piazza \/ Staff Photographer<\/p>\n

He\u2019d previously thought of creating a similar class, but now the time felt right.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf that series was called \u2018Oil Man,\u2019 we would not have this class,\u201d Seng said. \u201cThe fact that Sheridan decided it\u2019s \u2018Landman,\u2019 we can leverage that and explain here\u2019s the Hollywood portrayal of a landman and this is a real profession and this is what they do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Plus, the perk of being at TCU \u2014 and having a professor with decades of experience in the natural gas industry \u2014 means access to experts and professionals who can visit class.<\/p>\n

Guests lecturers have visited each class, like Buford Pollett, associate professor of energy law and commerce at the University of Tulsa, on Tuesday.<\/p>\n

Related<\/p>\n

\"Leslie<\/p>\n

Pollett, who tuned in virtually, lectured on oil and gas leases but also what leases may look like for wind and solar energy.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been a big deal for AAPL to embrace land in more general terms than just oil and gas,\u201d Seng said. He noted that Pollett helped the trade group craft standardized language for leases tied to wind and solar to add to its portfolio of standardized mineral and surface leases.<\/p>\n

In addition to exposing students to another potential career path in energy, Seng said it\u2019s important they know the lead \u201cLandman\u201d character, played by Billy Bob Thornton, is \u201creally a throwback,\u201d especially with the expansion of renewable energy.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is not just your grandfather\u2019s profession,\u201d Seng said, adding that there are still very much field landmen, like Tommy, who are the first contacts with landowners and mineral owners, but also the white-collar landman in the office doing behind-the-scenes research, making deals and trading properties.<\/p>\n

Nancy McCaskell, certified professional landman and AAPL president when \u201cLandman\u201d debuted in Nov. 2024, was one of the first guest lecturers.<\/p>\n

She credits the show with increasing the awareness around what landmen do.<\/p>\n

\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas Christian University professor Tom Seng listens to a remote guest speaker during a course called \u201cLand Management and Land Administration,\u201d on Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026. The eight-week seminar is inspired by Taylor Sheridan’s \u201cLandman\u201d TV show. <\/p>\n

Angela Piazza \/ Staff Photographer<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s the first time in my career that I don\u2019t have to start from ground zero when I\u2019m telling people what it is that I do,\u201d McCaskell said. \u201cWhether it\u2019s right or wrong, they\u2019ve got an idea about something and that\u2019s a great place to start.\u201d<\/p>\n

McCaskell, who became a landman in the \u201880s, watched energy expand from a majority of companies drilling vertical wells to now horizontal wells, geothermal wells, wind, solar and \u201ceverything in between,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat Tom [Seng] is doing at TCU is really important, because he\u2019s not really getting down into the nitty gritty of what we do every day,\u201d McCaskell said. \u201cThey\u2019re getting a good survey and a good overview of what\u2019s involved in land work.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cort Comer, a senior supply chain major from Fort Worth, is one of the students who already began doing land work before he signed up for the class. <\/p>\n

He said he likes the history involved with the profession and how you can make money as a landowner.<\/p>\n

Comer said, despite already having been introduced to the field, he\u2019s still learning and has enjoyed access to the guest speakers.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s more in-depth,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd, it is encouraging me to continue in land work.\u201d<\/p>\n

Related<\/p>\n

\"Andy<\/p>\n

This reporting is part of the Future of North Texas, a community-funded journalism initiative supported by the Commit Partnership, Communities Foundation of Texas, The Dallas Foundation, the Dallas Mavericks, the Dallas Regional Chamber, Deedie Rose, Lisa and Charles Siegel, the McCune-Losinger Family Fund, The Meadows Foundation, the Perot Foundation, the United Way of Metropolitan Dallas and the University of Texas at Dallas. The News retains full editorial control of this coverage.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The landman profession isn\u2019t a new concept in Fort Worth, but it has definitely gained traction since becoming…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":161719,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[451,116,118,117,411,412,289,783],"class_list":{"0":"post-161718","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-fort-worth","8":"tag-energy","9":"tag-fort-worth","10":"tag-fort-worth-headlines","11":"tag-fort-worth-news","12":"tag-future-of-north-texas","13":"tag-future-of-north-texas-energy-environment","14":"tag-higher-education","15":"tag-tcu-horned-frogs"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/161718","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=161718"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/161718\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/161719"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=161718"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=161718"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=161718"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}