Friday, October 9
Starkville
7 p.m.
Mississippi State
vs
Texas A&M
Photo by: Mississippi State Athletics
State Hosts Texas A&M In Annual Think Pink Match Friday
October 08, 2026 | Soccer
STARKVILLE โ A Maroon and White battle awaits Mississippi State on Friday night when the Bulldogs host Texas A&M at 7 p.m. CT at the MSU Soccer Field. Friday's match will air on SEC Network+.
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The Bulldogs (7-1-4, 1-0-4 SEC) have played to three straight scoreless draws, and it has been 20 days since a ball has entered either net in one of their matches. It's State's longest scoring drought since 2022, while simultaneously being its longest shutout streak since setting the program record in 2023 at nearly 540 minutes.
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After losing the first nine meetings between the two teams, Mississippi State has won four of the last five and all but the most recent of those five matches has been decided by one goal.
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There is a connection between the teams this season. MSU head coach Kevin O'Brien, assistant Emma Webb and forward Hailey Johnson were all teammates with the Aggies' Bella Carapazza last year at Lipscomb. Carapazza scored Lipscomb's game-winning goal in Starkville last fall.
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Friday night is State's annual Think Pink match, and fans can claim free pink scarves while supplies last.
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Familiar Foe: Kevin O'Brien, Emma Webb and Hailey Johnson will face their former Lipscomb teammate Bella Carapazza, who scored in her last trip to Starkville last fall.
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On The Front Foot: The Bulldogs have only trailed for 103:56 this season (9.6 percent of play) and have never trailed in an SEC game.
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Goose Eggs: MSU has not allowed a goal in 282:59. The school record is a stretch of 538:45 that included five shutouts in 2023. But it has also been 296:39 since State scored, which is the longest scoring drought for the Bulldogs since the 2022 season.
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Short Bench: MSU has used the fewest players in the SEC in conference games with only 16 field players seeing time. All subs combined are responsible for just 8.3 percent of State's field minutes.
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Head Coach: Bobby Shuttlesworth | Record at TAMU: 4-8-0 (1st Year) | Career Record: 4-8-0 (1st Year)
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The Bulldogs (7-1-4, 1-0-4 SEC) have played to three straight scoreless draws, and it has been 20 days since a ball has entered either net in one of their matches. It's State's longest scoring drought since 2022, while simultaneously being its longest shutout streak since setting the program record in 2023 at nearly 540 minutes.
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After losing the first nine meetings between the two teams, Mississippi State has won four of the last five and all but the most recent of those five matches has been decided by one goal.
ย
There is a connection between the teams this season. MSU head coach Kevin O'Brien, assistant Emma Webb and forward Hailey Johnson were all teammates with the Aggies' Bella Carapazza last year at Lipscomb. Carapazza scored Lipscomb's game-winning goal in Starkville last fall.
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Friday night is State's annual Think Pink match, and fans can claim free pink scarves while supplies last.
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Kicking Off
Introducing Himself: Texas A&M is one of just four remaining SEC teams that Kevin O'Brien has never faced as a head coach. He will also meet LSU and Oklahoma later this year.ย
Familiar Foe: Kevin O'Brien, Emma Webb and Hailey Johnson will face their former Lipscomb teammate Bella Carapazza, who scored in her last trip to Starkville last fall.
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On The Front Foot: The Bulldogs have only trailed for 103:56 this season (9.6 percent of play) and have never trailed in an SEC game.
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Goose Eggs: MSU has not allowed a goal in 282:59. The school record is a stretch of 538:45 that included five shutouts in 2023. But it has also been 296:39 since State scored, which is the longest scoring drought for the Bulldogs since the 2022 season.
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Short Bench: MSU has used the fewest players in the SEC in conference games with only 16 field players seeing time. All subs combined are responsible for just 8.3 percent of State's field minutes.
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About Texas A&M (4-8-0, 0-5-0 SEC)
Rankings: IWSOC โ NR | TopDrawerSoccer โ NRHead Coach: Bobby Shuttlesworth | Record at TAMU: 4-8-0 (1st Year) | Career Record: 4-8-0 (1st Year)
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Series History
Overall: 4-10-0 | Current Streak: Won 1 | Home: 2-6-0 | Away: 1-4-0 | Neutral: 1-0-0 | Last Meeting: ย Oct. 27, 2024, MSU 2-0ย
Notables
Under first-year head coach Bobby Shuttlesworth, Texas A&M is a team filled with youth. Ten freshmen have already played, and nine started in the season opener. The Aggies are led by freshman Ireland Churchill who is pacing the squad in minutes, goals, points and shots. A freshman is in the net as well in Makenna August. Shuttlesworth won two national titles as an assistant at Florida State before making the move to Bryan-College Station. He is looking to keep Texas A&M from recording just the fourth losing season in program history, needing to win five straight matches to do so.ย
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Next Up
The Bulldogs close out the current homestand against Oklahoma on Oct. 15 at 6 p.m. CT. That match is the program's annual Kick or Treat game, and it will air on SEC Network+.ย
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Follow the Bulldogs
For more information on the Bulldog soccer program, follow onย X,ย Facebookย andย Instagramย by searching "HailStateSOC."ย
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Players Mentioned
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