Also included above is a TexAgs Live segment with Ryan Brauninger, Richard Zane and Scott Clendenin from Friday morning, previewing this weekend’s series with Ole Miss.
Who: No. 20 Ole Miss Rebels (32-17, 12-12 in SEC)
Where: Swayze Field - Oxford, MS
When:
Friday: 6:30 p.m. CT (SEC Network+)
Saturday: 4 p.m. CT (SEC Network+)
Sunday: 5 p.m. CT (SEC Network)
Pitching matchups
Friday: LHP Ethan Darden (4-0, 2.88 ERA) vs. LHP Hunter Elliott (4-2, 5.49 ERA)
Saturday: RHP Aiden Sims (8-1, 3.60 ERA) vs. RHP Cade Townsend (5-1, 2.42 ERA)
Sunday: TBA vs. RHP Taylor Rabe (3-3, 4.17 ERA)
Scouting Ole Miss
Admittedly, it’s tough to get a read on Mike Bianco’s 2026 club. Not only are the Rebels treading water in conference play, but they’re outside the nation’s top 50 in almost every club category. Ole Miss ranks fifth in K/BB (3.38), sixth in K/9 (11.4), 11th in BB/9 (3.39), 12th in home runs (86), 14th in homers per game (1.76), 20th in walks (269), 20th in WHIP (1.30) and 23rd in ERA (4.21). Beyond that, the statistics are rather unremarkable.
That’s not to say Ole Miss isn’t extremely dangerous. Their No. 20 ranking suggests they’re on the fringe of hosting a regional, though their only resume-boosting series victories came at Florida in early April before they swept not-dead-yet LSU the week after.
Indeed, the Rebels are a curious club, but inside Swayze Field, beer showers are always in the forecast as they’re 24-6 at home and feature plenty of firepower and physicality offensively.
Will Furniss, a 6-foot-4, 240-pound left-handed hitting first baseman from Nacogdoches, is their top hitter when it comes to average at .329, but despite having 41 RBI, he has only left the ballpark six times as a senior. Outfielders Judd Utermark and Tristan Bissetta are the only two Rebs with season-long OPS marks north of 1.000, and they both have 19 home runs to their credit. However, in SEC games, Utermark has contributed nicely, but Bissetta’s average drops to .206 in 24 conference contests. Further, sophomore outfielder Hayden Federico is hitting .346 vs. SEC pitching, and Furniss’ OPS jumps to 1.018 in conference.
Of course, the same was said about a lack of eye-catching offensive numbers before last week’s series with Auburn, and we saw how that turned out.
Similar to War Eagle, where Hotty Toddy thrives is on the pitcher’s mound, where their rotation is among the most talented in the SEC. Hunter Elliott’s numbers aren’t pretty, with a 1.49 WHIP to go along with his 5.49 ERA, but beyond Friday, the Rebels have a pair of draft-eligible sophomore right-handers set to square off with A&M’s right-handed-heavy lineup.
As MLB.com’s No. 21 prospect in the upcoming draft, Cade Townsend combines a 94-97 mph fastball with a pair of power breaking balls (curveball, slider) and a cutter that sits around 90 mph. That four-pitch mix has allowed him to rack up 73 strikeouts in 52.0 innings while walking just 13. Opponents are hitting just .193 against him, and his WHIP is sub-1.00. For fans of elite pitching, Saturday’s matchup of Townsend vs. Aiden Sims is undoubtedly the best of the weekend, at least on paper.
Further down that prospect list at No. 119 (five spots behind old friend-turned-Gopher Isaac Morton) is Taylor Rabe, a 6-foot-5 righty with a deceptive fastball that tops out at 100 mph. The Sunday man’s usage has been interesting, appearing in 12 games with only six starts. However, his longest outings have come in SEC play, tossing six innings vs. LSU and Georgia, five at Arkansas last week and 4.2 at Florida on April 2. His SEC ERA is an unremarkable 5.06, but he has 54 strikeouts against just seven walks in 45.1 innings this season. An elite strike-thrower, Rabe could be selected in the top three rounds come July.
In relief, lefty Walker Hooks has been Ole Miss’ top bullpen bullet, appearing in 14 conference games and securing five saves. Against SEC opponents, Hooks paces the Rebel staff with a 2.10 ERA and 0.80 WHIP with 29 strikeouts in 30.0 innings. Other oft-used relievers include right-handers Hudson Calhoun and Landon Waters, who have 4.33 and 0.90 ERAs across 14 and 19 appearances, respectively.
The stakes are high for Ole Miss. Entering the weekend, the Rebs sit at No. 13 in the all-important RPI rankings. Surely they understand that a successful series likely means they’re back at Swayze for the opening weekend of the NCAA Tournament. An unsuccessful one likely puts them on the outside of that hosting bubble.
| Hitting | Avg. | Runs/Game | Slugging % | On-Base % | K/Game |
| Aggies | .305 | 9.17 | .574 | .429 | 7.78 |
| Rebels | .264 | 6.88 | .471 | .388 | 10.33 |
| Pitching | ERA | WHIP | BB/Game | Opp. Avg. | K/Game | Fielding % |
| Aggies | 4.77 | 1.35 | 2.63 | .264 | 8.50 | .980 |
| Rebels | 4.21 | 1.30 | 3.27 | .243 | 11.02 | .975 |
Texas A&M storylines to watch
We have some answers, but we still have some questions.
First, Michael Earley has provided us with a new-look starting rotation for a second time in five weeks. One southpaw has been replaced with another on Friday night as Ethan Darden will earn his first start of the year, with Shane Sdao moving to the bullpen. However, Darden is not devoid of starting experience as the 6-foot left-hander made 39 starts in his three years at Clemson. Whether he is being used as an opener could be up for debate, but obviously, Earley and Jason Kelly would prefer some length from Darden to begin the weekend.
Additionally, Earley told the media on Thursday that you should still expect to see Sdao as his role adjusts. In conference play, Sdao’s ERA sits at 9.74 to go along with a 2.16 WHIP. Still, the hope is that this reset will allow him to refocus and impact ballgames positively down the stretch and into the postseason.
Further, the decision to leave Aiden Sims on Saturday is an interesting one, but not without merit. Sure, he has been your top pitcher for the entire season, and he might even be deserving of “ace” status. However, keeping the sophomore right-hander in Game 2 allows the Ags to fire their best bullet with a chance to either win or tie a series, more than likely with Weston Moss starting Sunday’s finale behind him.
And why not just name Moss the starter on Sunday? Well, keeping the TBA tag on him has worked over the last four series, so if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it as Moss looks to build off his best start of the season.
In the bullpen, Gavin Lyons likely had a case to start games on the weekend, but his ability to bounce back and impact multiple contests in each series has proven invaluable considering the noticeable lack of depth when it comes to relievers. In 12 conference appearances, Lyons has a club-best 3.81 ERA, and his 28.1 innings are tops among A&M relievers. When it comes to top relievers, perhaps the only arm that has been better than Lyons is Clayton Freshcorn. A National Stopper of the Year candidate, Freshcorn now has 11 saves to his credit, which ranks fifth in a single season on A&M’s all-time list. His chase of Jason Jester and Nolan Hoffman (14 in 2013 and 2018, respectively) continues this weekend.
As for the questions currently revolving around A&M’s club, most of them center around health.
Last weekend, Chris Hacopian DH’d in all three games, forcing Jake Duer to play left field as Sawyer Farr and Travis Chestnut split duties at second base. With Hacopian dealing with a bone bruise on his left leg that is more about pain tolerance than injuring it any further, whether or not he can move laterally at a sufficient level becomes a key question to answer. His swing is not hindered, which allows the projected first-rounder to keep impacting the game offensively. If Hacopian is ready to return defensively, that provides Earley with options at DH, whether that be Duer for added defense in left from Terrence Kiel II or even Wesley Jordan, who homered on Tuesday vs. Prairie View.
Or perhaps Nico Partida could DH? Well, that won’t happen on Friday or this weekend.
That seems more unlikely as the freshman third baseman is listed as “out” after suffering a hamstring pull, not a groin, last Saturday vs. Auburn. When available, Partida provides fantastic defense at the hot corner in addition to 12 home runs as a fish, as he had a strong case to be the SEC’s Freshman of the Year before the injury. Without him in the lineup, SEC Player of the Year candidate Gavin Grahovac has moved from one corner to the other with Blake Binderup sliding in at first. In his absence, is there a chance that Farr gets a shot at third to allow Grahovac to play first base?
It might seem obvious to rest Partida until he is back to 100 percent, as there are bigger and better things for A&M to chase later this month and next, but we know now that he will miss at least the series opener on Friday.
It’s decided that the lineup will feature Grahovac, whose tear has been other-worldly. In 23 games, he is hitting .365 with a 1.230 OPS, 11 home runs and 36 RBI. Bear Harrison is also making a case for All-SEC acclaim as well, hitting .319 with a 1.181 OPS in SEC games, but sticking with Grahovac, his 64 RBI now pace the team, surpassing Caden Sorrell’s 62. Additionally, one talented junior is chasing down another in the home run column as Sorrell’s 21 remains tops on the team, but Grahovac keeps getting closer and closer with 17. While Auburn’s pitching staff largely kept A&M in check for much of the weekend, a bounce-back series offensively is largely dependent on the trio of Grahovac, Sorrell and Harrison.
What’s at stake this weekend
Speaking of question and answer... Are you ready?
Your response better be “hell yeah, damn right” because the Fightin’ Texas Aggies are right in the thick of the conversation to be a top-eight national seed when the NCAA Tournament field of 64 is announced on Memorial Day.
Up to this point, Earley has presided over an impressive year-to-year turnaround, but to quote Kobe Bryant, the job’s not finished. Far from it.
First, the Aggies are still kicking in the SEC race. At 2.5 games behind first-place Georgia, the Maroon & White will need some help, but there are other attainable goals that simply come down to handling their business.
They’ve yet to secure homefield advantage through the postseason, but that goal is well within reach as easy as this weekend. Currently projected to be the No. 8 national seed according to D1Baseball, the Ags enter the series at Ole Miss with at No. 11 in the latest RPI rankings. A singular win in Oxford should be seen as holding serve, but a series win at Swayze Field might cement Blue Bell Park as a regional site.
These final six regular-season opportunities are each important. While not officially “must-win” ballgames, a postseason-esque atmosphere should be expected as these outcomes will no doubt impact A&M’s Road to Omaha.
There should be plenty of motivation to beat Ole Miss, by damn.
