Texas A&M meet Texas for first time
The two biggest collegiate baseball programs in Texas will meet for the first time in the College World Series as they both fight for the right to remain
In the last 119 years, the Texas Longhorns have faced off against the Texas A&M Aggies 374 times. From their first clash at College Station in 1903 to last March in Austin, the two teams have fought for bragging rights over the state of Texas, with the Aggies travelling 184 times and the Longhorns making the long bus trip 170. There have been 20 meetings in tournaments around the state and neighboring region.
But this is the first time that the two have met with everything on the line. For the first time ever, Texas A&M and Texas will meet in the College World Series, and with both of them having lost their opener, the losing team today will head back to Texas, while the winner has one more chance to try and claw their way out of the loser’s bracket.
Texas are trying to look at it as business as usual, with outfielder Dylan Campbell saying, “I’d say we just kind of look at it as just another game.” Pitcher Tristan Stevens gave a similar response, offering up, “It’s just another game, at the end of the day.”
Their coach, David Pierce, however, was a bit more in tune with the situation. “These guys downplayed it, and they should,” said Pierce. “It wouldn’t matter if it was A&M or whomever. It’s just a game we’re playing for our lives to continue, our baseball lives for this year. But I think it’s huge for our fan base. It would be nice if it was in the winners’ bracket. But it’s not.”
With Texas highly touted from the opening pitch of the season to be a College World Series contender, and Texas A&M seen by many as the best chance that the SEC has to bring the trophy down south, both of their opening losses were shocking.
Now, if either of these two teams is to become national champions, they have to climb uphill from here. In this double-elimination tournament, one more loss sees their season end.
Only four teams have ever been able to claw their way to a national title from this position, so it is a mammoth task that the Aggies and Longhorns are faced with.
The Aggies are expected to start Micah Dallas on the mound to see if they can stamp out the woes that they suffered from the hill on Friday. On the other side, the Longhorns are expected to give Lucas Gordon the nod, who has been their go-to guy all season long.
For one of these two teams, today is one more step on their hard-fought journey, and for the other it is the end of the line. First pitch is at 12 noon ET. Be there.