(Above: The current three sites of the series. From top to bottom: Dudy Noble Field in Starkville. Pete Taylor Park in Hattiesburg. Trustmark Park in Pearl).
Wednesday night Southern Miss travels to Starkville to match up with Mississippi State in baseball. This is the 122nd all-time meeting between the two teams with the most recent matchup occurring two weeks ago as Southern Miss beat the Bulldogs 3-0. Southern Miss first baseman Matthew Russo had an outstanding performance, collecting three hits, including a solo home run. The Golden Eagles’ pitchers were dominant, limiting Mississippi State to just four hits. Southern Miss pitching had a combined 10 strikeouts including 5 from Starkville native Colby Allen.
(Above: Golden Eagles first basemen had three hits including the go ahead 2 run home run in the 5th inning.)
Overall, it was a well-fought game with Southern Miss showcasing their pitching prowess and timely hitting to secure the win Even though Mississippi State leads the series 79-44, in recent years the Golden Eagles have carried their own and this rivalry has created some exciting matchups. Today I’m looking at some of the highlights and some of the history of games over the last 20 years between this great college baseball rivalry. This rivalry dates back to 1947 and has been played in 7 different sites.
* Starkville, MS 55 games Dudy-Noble Field 1947-2019
* Hattiesburg, MS 35 games Pete Taylor Park 1985-2025
* Hattiesburg 14 games USM Baseball Field 1964-1983
* Pearl, MS 13 games Trustmark Park 2009-2024
* Hattiesburg, MS 3 games Smokie Harrington Park 1981-1983
* Jackson, MS 2 games Smith-Wills Stadium 1988-1989
* Atlanta, GA 1 games Russ Chandler Stadium 2011
March 5, 2024 Trustmark Park Pearl, MS
Mississippi State emerged victorious with a narrow 5-4 win over Southern Miss. The Bulldogs scored two runs in the third inning and added two more in the fifth inning to take a 4-0 lead. Southern Miss responded with four runs in the first inning, but Mississippi State’s pitching held strong for the remainder of the game.
Key highlights of the game included a solo home run by Mississippi State’s Hunter Hines and a strong pitching performance by Nate Dohm, who went seven innings and struck out eight batters. Southern Miss had a solid performance from their starting pitcher, Cole Boswell, who kept the game close with his effective pitching.
February 28, 2024 Trustmark Park Pearl, MS
Southern Miss led 9-6 heading into the bottom of the eighth. Justin Storm, who had limited the Bulldogs to just one base runner since two outs in the fifth when he entered the game, gave up a double to Lane Forsythe to open the frame. After a hit batter and a walk, Southern Miss went to the bullpen for the fourth time in JB Middleton.
Middleton opened his appearance with a run-scoring wild pitch, before Dakota Johnson posted a sacrifice fly to make the score 9-8. A hit by pitch then followed by a game-tying single by Slate Alford, before Hunter Hines put the designated home squad up for good with a sacrifice fly.
The Golden Eagles got a one-out double from Blake Johnson in the ninth, but winning pitcher Nate Dohm got the final two batters to end the game.
February 22, 2019 Dudy Noble Field Starkville, MS
Southern Miss opened their second series of the 2019 season with an instate matchup with Mississippi State.
Southern Miss edged out Mississippi State with a narrow 1-0 victory in a nail-biting 10-inning game.
The game was a pitcher’s duel, with both teams’ pitchers delivering outstanding performances. Southern Miss’s Walker Powell and Mississippi State’s Ethan Small were the stars on the mound, keeping the game scoreless through nine innings. In the top of the 10th inning, Southern Miss managed to score the only run of the game, securing their victory.
February 16-18, 2018      Pete Taylor Park                Hattiesburg, MS
I’m including this entire series because of the sequence of events that occurred after. Things got off to a horrendous start for the 12th ranked Bulldogs as the opened the 2018 in Hattiesburg with an 11-0 loss to the 21st ranked Golden Eagles for one of the worst losses in recent memory for Mississippi State.  State would follow it up and lose Saturday and Sunday 4-7 and 5-2 respectively.  After the embarrassing series sweep Mississippi State Coach Andy Cannizaro was force to resign due to having an extra marital affair.  Things would pick up for the Bulldogs as they would advance to the College World Series being led by intern coach Gary Henderson
June 3, 2011                       Russ Chandler Stadium Atlanta, GA
The Golden Eagles and Bulldogs matched up in the 2011 Regionals, Southern Miss as a 3 seed and State as a 2.  Ultimately lack of hitting would prove to be frutile for Coach Berry’s squad as Southern Miss would lose 3-0.  The lack of scoring also ruined another solid outing from senior All-American Todd McInnis, who threw his second-straight complete game for the Eagles. McInnis (8-3) struck out six and walked just two as all three runs were earned. Southern Miss would lose the next day to Georgia Tech.  While State would go onto lose to Florida 11-1 despite strong pitching from Chris Stratton
April 21-22, 2008              Pete Taylor Park               Hattiesburg, MS
Up until 2008 the Bulldogs and Golden Eagles would match up for a Tuesday/Wednesday mid-week series every year, rotating between Starkville and Hattiesburg. The heated rivalry would always bring packed houses.  Things got heated in 2008 when the Bulldogs came to Hattiesburg.  Legendary Coach Ron Polk was ejected in the 5th for arguing a call. Fans hurled insults at Coach Polk as he walked off the field, and that would be the end of the home and home mid-week series every year as athletic officials at Mississippi State felt disrespected. The two teams would still meet up every year but usually in Starkville or Trustmark Park in Pearl.  Ron Polk would resign as coach after 29 years as Head Coach at Mississippi State.
April 12, 1983                    Smokie Harrington Park Hattiesburg, MS
Ron Polk and Mississippi State would roll into Hattiesburg playing a two game mid-week series with one game at Hattiesburg High’s Smokie Harrington Park and the next night on campus at the USM Baseball Field.  Not much is known about the game at Smokie Harrington Park, other than the Bulldogs won 9-6. State had two freshmen who were already making waves as some of the best players in college baseball.  Those players were Will Clark and Rafael Palmeiro. At 450 feet to dead center Smokie Harrington Park has one of the deepest outfields of any ballpark in the country.  Rafael Palmeiro would accomplish a rare feet at the ballpark by crushing a home run over the deep center field wall.    Â
April 9, 1947 Dudy Noble Field Starkville, MS
In the inaugural year of the Southern Miss baseball program the Golden Eagles the Golden Eagles opened with two games against Mississippi College at Kamper Park, now the site of Hattiesburg Zoo, getting two wins to begin their first year. They then headed off to their first road contest a matchup against the Mississippi A&M Maroons in Starkville. Not much is known about this game but the game featured to legendary coaching figures in Southern Miss’ Reed Green, in his first and only year coaching baseball. And Mississippi State’s Dudy Noble, years before the field would be named after him. Reed Green was a three sport coach that season coaching basketball, baseball and football. He gives the name sake for Reed Green Coliseum built in 1965, and the home of the Southern Miss basketball program.
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