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The Mississippi State Bulldogs and the Missouri Tigers square off for the first time in a series as SEC foes this weekend at Taylor Stadium at Simmons Field in Columbia. Last year, the teams did meet in the SEC tournament, a game that went 17 innings and saw the Bulldogs pick up a 2-1 victory.
The teams enter the contest with different feelings after last weekend. While an obviously unhappy John Cohen made his players shave and apologized to fans for the way his team played following a series loss to Ole Miss over Super Bulldog Weekend, Missouri enters this series off of a series win against Kentucky in Lexington last weekend. Both teams stand at 3-2 over their last five contests heading into this series.
The Tigers (17-18, 6-9) boast wins over Kentucky and Southern Mississippi so far this year.
One of the players to watch for Missouri is senior Eric Anderson. Playing in his fifth year of eligibility, Anderson has gotten the job done on the mound—the Tigers have him scheduled to start Sunday—and at the plate where he has .339 batting average and three homers, mostly from the leadoff spot. Dylan Kelly leads the team with a .343 batting average.
The bullpen has been solid for Missouri this year as well. Should the game be turned over to the trio of Breckin Williams, Austin Tribby, and closer Keaton Steele, the Tigers will be in good hands. Friday night starer, Brett Graves has struggled a bit over the past few weeks, but he remains the ace of the staff.
Projected Pitching Matchups
| Mississippi State Bulldogs | Missouri Tigers | |
| Friday | RHP Trevor Fitts (2-2, 3.29 ERA) | RHP Brett Graves (3-2, 2.67 ERA) |
| Saturday | LHP Ross Mitchell (5-3, 2.15 ERA) | RHP John Miles (2-4, 5.25 ERA) |
| Sunday | TBA | RHP Eric Anderson (2-2, 3.15 ERA) |
Television, Radio, and Internet Broadcasts
| Television | Radio | Internet | |
| Friday | Mediacom 22 | MSU baseball radio network | HailStateTV (audio) |
| Saturday | None | MSU baseball radio network | HailStateTV (audio) |
| Sunday | None | MSU baseball radio network | HailStateTV (audio) |
In other SEC action, LSU currently leads their series with Ole Miss 1-0 after an extra innings win on Thursday. Elsewhere, Vanderbilt travels to Arkansas, Alabama travels to Tennessee, Auburn hosts South Carolina, Georgia travels down to Gainesville to take on the Florida Gators, and Texas A&M welcomes Kentucky.
If you are looking for more about the game, here are the Mississippi State game notes, the Missouri game notes and a good read on Missouri baseball from Rock M Nation.