STARKVILLE, Miss. (Interstat) — The Mississippi State Bulldogs host the Auburn Tigers on Friday, May 8, 2026, in the second game of a three-game Southeastern Conference series at Dudy Noble Field, Polk-DeMent Stadium. First pitch is scheduled for the afternoon.

Mississippi State (37-12, 15-8 SEC) took the series opener Thursday with a 4-0 shutout. The Bulldogs, ranked in the latest D1Baseball.com poll, have won seven of their last 10 games. Auburn (33-14, 12-11 SEC) looks to even the series after falling in Thursday’s opener.

The forecast calls for 67-degree temperatures and cloudy skies.

Players to watch

Auburn right-hander Griffin Graves has been dominant in his last three appearances. On May 5, Graves threw 4.0 scoreless innings, allowing no hits and striking out one in a 10-2 win at UAB. On April 21, he tossed 2.0 innings with three strikeouts in a 14-2 win at Samford. On April 14, he worked 3.0 scoreless innings with two strikeouts against Alabama State.

Mississippi State first baseman Reed Stallman had a breakout performance Tuesday against Nicholls State, going 4-for-5 with two home runs and five RBIs in a 21-6 win. Stallman also homered April 17 at South Carolina, going 1-for-3 with two RBIs.

Recent results

Auburn enters having won two of its last three games. The Tigers beat UAB 10-2 on Tuesday behind Graves’ scoreless outing, third baseman Eric Guevara (2-for-5, HR, 3 RBIs) and reliever Marcel Kulik (1.2 IP, 0 H, 2 K). Auburn split a four-game series at Texas A&M, winning 5-4 and 18-5 on May 2 before falling 4-3 on May 3.

Mississippi State has won five of its last six games. The Bulldogs routed Nicholls State 21-6 in a seven-inning game Tuesday, getting a combined four home runs and 11 RBIs from Stallman and third baseman Ace Reese (4-for-5, 2 HR, 6 RBIs) and five RBIs from right fielder Jacob Parker. Mississippi State then dropped a 6-11 decision at Texas on May 3 but took the series opener 7-4 on May 2.

Head-to-head

The series opened Thursday with Mississippi State winning 4-0. The Bulldogs and Tigers meet again Saturday.

Projection

The Interstat game simulator projects a 7-6 Mississippi State victory.

Up next

Auburn travels to Jacksonville State on Tuesday before hosting Georgia for a three-game series May 14-16. Mississippi State continues its home series against Auburn on Saturday before traveling to Texas A&M on May 14-16.