STARKVILLE — Mississippi State baseball’s recent slide in the SEC has it no longer projected to host a regional at Dudy Noble Field.
The No. 16 Bulldogs (27-10, 7-8 SEC) are on a six-game SEC losing streak after getting swept by Georgia and Tennessee, both at home. They run-ruled Samford on April 15, 11-1, and start a three-game road series at South Carolina (19-19, 5-10) on April 17 (6 p.m. CT, SEC Network+).
MSU hasn’t played a postseason game at home since 2021 when it won the program’s only national championship.
Here’s where Mississippi State stands in the latest NCAA Tournament projections.
Mississippi State baseball NCAA Tournament projections
Baseball America projects MSU as a No. 2 seed in the Charlottesville Regional. That would be with Virginia as the host, where coach Brian O’Connor was hired from this season. There are five Virginia transfers on MSU and five former Virginia assistant coaches.
East Carolina would be the No. 3 seed in that regional with UConn at No. 4.
D1Baseball’s projection, published April 14 before MSU beat Samford, has Mississippi State as a No. 2 seed in the Lawrence Regional with Kansas as the host. NC State would be the No. 3 seed and Oral Roberts the No. 4 seed.
Mississippi State NCAA Tournament resume
Mississippi State is No. 23 in RPI as of April 15.
One aspect that’s boosted MSU is that it doesn’t have a bad loss. The Bulldogs are 19-0 in Quads 3-4, but 5-7 in Quad 1 games and 3-3 in Quad 2 games. The South Carolina series will be Quad 2.
Mississippi State baseball NCAA Tournament history under Brian O’Connor
O’Connor is a first-year coach at Mississippi State, so it hasn’t played in the NCAA Tournament with him. MSU won the 2021 national championship under coach Chris Lemonis, but he was fired during the 2025 season.
Mississippi State has made the NCAA Tournament in the last two seasons as No. 2 seeds, losing in the Charlottesville Regional final and the Tallahassee Regional final.
O’Connor was the Virginia coach for 22 seasons, reaching 18 NCAA Tournaments, nine super regionals, seven College World Series and winning the 2015 national championship.
Sam Sklar is the Mississippi State beat reporter for The Clarion Ledger. Email him at ssklar@usatodayco.com and follow him on X @sklarsam_.
This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Mississippi State baseball NCAA Tournament projections in 2026 bracket
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