I’ve been avoiding this for days now. Weeks, really. I keep pulling up the same blank Word document, staring at it for a few minutes, then running off to do laundry or get gas or make a phone call, or whatever other excuse I can come up with to avoid writing these words. But I’m out of time now. I’ve only got about 24 hours before I have to give everything back anyway, so if I don’t say any of this today then it just won’t get said. I just twitch-stroked the keys “command+s” out of habit to save what I’ve written so far. A box popped up asking me to give this file a name. I considered it for a ..read more

Applause erupted as two men entered the room. Inside the Crane Theatre, seated in fat-cushioned chairs fanning out around a large and blank projector screen, the members of Mississippi State’s baseball team were waiting to meet their new head coach, Chris Lemonis. The now-previous head coach of Indiana trailed behind John Cohen, the now-previous head coach and current Athletic Director of MSU. Everyone in the room knew what was about to happen, just as everyone in the room knew how long and obstacle-riddled the road to get there had been. “Four months ago, all of you sat in this same room and ..read more

These are not my words to write. It is not my story to tell. This epic eventually became one that those around the country became enthralled with, and that Mississippi State fans committed themselves to wholly. Here, at its finish, it remains that way – an incredible journey and an unbelievable tale of which thousands just witnessed the finale. But that’s not where this story I started. I wasn’t there when this saga began, when this roller coaster ride first started clicking and clacking down the tracks. Only a few dozen of the tens of thousands of us watching the final moments were there for ..read more

3:30 p.m. Monday, Omaha Doubletree Mississippi State’s baseball team walks through a tunnel of fans as it loads the bus to head to TD Ameritrade Park for its second game of the College World Series, a winner’s bracket matchup with North Carolina. 3:50 p.m., TD Ameritrade Park The Bulldogs arrive at the stadium and discover the first game of the day – the loser’s bracket matchup between Oregon State and Washington – is in a rain delay. 4:45 p.m., in transit After an hour of sitting in a holding room, MSU decides to bus back to the team hotel and wait out the rain delay in comfort. 7:50 p.m., in ..read more

A walk-off is the most dominance-asserting move you can pull in baseball. In one pitch, one hit, one play, you just ended the game and there is not a single thing the other team can do about it. In a sport with no clocks, it’s the equivalent of a buzzer-beater, a last-second Hail Mary, a match won on the very last penalty kick. Hey, strikeouts or double plays are nice ways to end a game, too. But there’s nothing in baseball like a walk-off. It is, at once, the most soul-crushing and spirit-lifting way a game can possibly end. It is euphoria and elation, or tragedy and defeat, depending which s ..read more

Of course I’m sitting in a hotel room at 2 a.m. writing this story. What else should I have expected? What other result than the one we witnessed should any of us have expected from this Mississippi State baseball team? What different road could anyone have possibly expected them to take except the absolute most difficult one possible? Of course that’s what happened. 11 innings. An early lead. Then an early deficit. Then a tie game mid-way through, followed by another lead late, naturally replaced by yet another tie in the bottom of the ninth. Nothing has ever been easy for this team, so why s ..read more

Easton. Easton. Easton. Repeat the word in your head. Easton. Easton. Easton. Stare at the name on the bat, take a deep breath, and repeat the word in your head until your heart rate falls to a steady pace. This is not a commercial for Easton bats. Nor is it an exercise at some kind of strange baseball-themed yoga retreat. Deep breath. Easton. Easton. Easton. Read the word, repeat the word, breathe, step back to the plate, then absolutely crush an off-speed pitch over the left field wall and go on to sprint and jump and dance and yell around the bases before plunging into a pile of your scream ..read more

Becky Mock was working off some nervous energy as she walked around Dick Howser Stadium. A dedicated Mississippi State baseball fan who has been something like a second mother to dozens of players over the years, she was waiting out a fairly stressful two-and-a-half hour rain delay. Her Bulldogs were down 2-0 to Florida State, and whenever play resumed, there was only one inning left. FSU would bat first, then MSU would have one last shot in the bottom of the ninth. The winner advanced in the Tallahassee Regional. The loser would see their season end right there. Becky’s path took her near th ..read more

It’s hot in Florida. That’s no revelation, but man, standing on the turf outside the dugout, wrapped in the humidity of inland Florida, the sun bearing down on neck and arms with no barrier save the occasional wisp of cloud – it’s pretty hot. Some might say miserable. But out on the field – around the base paths, behind home plate, on the mound and in the outfield – players and coaches alike are running, jumping and swinging around like a bunch of kids playing in an air-conditioned McDonald’s Playplace. They’re pumped to be out there in the middle of a hot day, pumped to be sweating out water ..read more

In exactly 100 days, according to the experts down the hall who I still have not deemed completely innocent in the Case of the Missing Leftover Pizza, Mississippi State football will kick off the 2018 season. In dedication of such a momentous occasion, I’ve skipped the libation, gone right past beration and landed square on expectation in this list of 100 Things To Look Forward To For The 2018 Football Season. (It’s a working title.) This list is completely of my own devising, and though it comes from years of experience with football seasons as both a fan and a working media member contributi ..read more