The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
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Mississippi State
No. 4 Baseball preview: No. 10 Mississippi State
04.30.2026 | Baseball
Longhorns meet Bulldogs in Austin for first time since 1983
#10 MISSISSIPPI STATE vs. #4 TEXAS
May 1-3, 2026
Where: UFCU Disch-Falk Field
Time: Friday at 6:30 p.m.; Saturday at 2:30 p.m.; Sunday at 1 p.m.
Stream/TV: SEC Network+ (Friday & Saturday); ESPN (Sunday)
Radio: 103.1 FM / AM-1300 The Zone
Live stats: texas.statbroadcast.com
PROBABLE PITCHING MATCHUPS
FRIDAY – Mississippi State LHP Tomas Valincius (7-1, 2.13 ERA) vs. Texas LHP Dylan Volantis (6-0, 2.06 ERA)
SATURDAY – Mississippi State RHP Duke Stone (4-2, 4.64 ERA) vs. Texas RHP Ruger Riojas (5-2, 3.88 ERA)
SUNDAY – Mississippi State LHP Charlie Foster (0-2, 5.67 ERA) vs. Texas LHP Luke Harrison (4-2, 3.93 ERA)
THE MATCHUP — For the fifth time in the last seven weeks, No. 4 Texas faces a top-20 opponent in Southeastern Conference play. The Longhorns welcome the 10th-ranked Mississippi State Bulldogs to UFCU Disch-Falk Field, as the two sides square off in Austin for the first time since 1983. Texas boasts a 9-7 advantage over Mississippi State in the all-time series. Last season, the Longhorns swept the Bulldogs in their first-ever SEC series. Texas and Mississippi State first met in 1922.
A LOOK AT THE LONGHORNS — As of April 30, the Longhorns sport the No. 3 RPI and No. 11 SOS in the country. Texas has compiled 11 Quad 1 wins. The Longhorns have notched the sixth-best scoring margin in all of Division I Baseball, averaging a +4.1 run differential. On the mound, Texas ranks first in FIP (2.99), fifth in WHIP (1.19) and opponent batting average (.219), and 10th in ERA (3.69). At the plate, the Longhorns' .932 OPS sits 20th nationally.
THE EYES OF TEXAS ARE UPON YOU — Heading into the first weekend in May, Texas is a consensus top-4 team. The Longhorns check in as high as No. 3, according to Baseball America. Texas is also slotted at No. 4 by D1Baseball, Perfect Game, the NCBWA and USA Today. With three weeks remaining in conference play, Texas sits in third, trailing SEC-leader Georgia by 1 1/2 games.
IT JUST MEANS MORE — Since Jim Schlossnagle's first campaign in the SEC in 2022, he has won more conference series than any other coach in the league. Over that four-plus year run, Schlossnagle's 35 SEC series wins stack up ahead of Dan Van Horn (30), Kevin O'Sullivan (27), Tony Vitello (27) and Jay Johnson (26). With Schlossnagle at the helm last year, Texas became the first team to win the SEC in its first season since the league's inaugural campaign in 1933. The Longhorns — who were picked eighth in the conference's preseason poll — won the league by two games. Texas' 22-8 ledger in SEC action marked its best record in conference play since 2010. The Longhorns were the lone team to win eight series in league action.
OWN THE DISCH — Since UFCU Disch-Falk Field opened in 1975, Texas has gone 1,684-430-3 (.796) at home thanks in large part to Longhorn Nation. Texas has averaged 7,221 fans per game at home, the fifth-highest mark in the country, highlighted by the second-largest regular season crowd with 0f 8,059 against then-No. 8 Oklahoma on March 28. Across the three-game series vs. the Sooners, the Longhorns welcomed 23,407 fans to UFCU Disch-Falk Field, the third-highest recorded attendance for a three-game set in the ballpark's history.
traDISCHion UNLIKE ANY OTHER — The Longhorns will honor their history throughout the 2026 season, as part of the Saturday traDISCHion series at UFCU Disch-Falk Field. For the fifth consecutive campaign, Texas is celebrating past greats on select Saturdays. The Longhorns saluted J. Brent Cox on March 14, recognized Adrian Alaniz on March 28 and honored Chance Ruffin on April 18. Taylor Teagarden is slated to be celebrated on May 2. The final traDISCHion will feature Dustin Majewski on May 16.
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