The Texas–Texas A&M Rivalry is Re-ignited—Sort of
They can run, but they can’t hide.
When Texas A&M bolted for the SEC in July of 2012, they ended a century-old rivalry with Texas, depriving fans of both schools the traditional, acrimonious-yet-fun game every Thanksgiving weekend. Though the rivalry really only permeated the sphere of football in a meaningful way, at least Longhorns and Aggies can agree that their matchup this Friday in the Houston regional of the NCAA baseball tournament is good enough to stir up a little emotion. This will be the first meeting between the two teams in the so-called “big three” men’s sports (football, basketball, baseball) since the Aggies came to Austin for a baseball game on April 29, 2012. This is the Longhorns’ 56th appearance in the tournament, a Division I record.
The teams meet at 3 p.m. at Reckling Park on the Rice campus, with the winner playing the winner of the George Mason–Rice game. Texas is 2-1 against Rice this season, including 2-0 against the #1 seed in their hometown of Houston.
A #2 seed in the tournament, Texas gave up two late-game leads in a doubleheader against Oklahoma State in the Big 12 Baseball Championship semifinals on May 24th. If they had been able to put that series away, the matchup against A&M very well could have taken place at UFCU Disch-Falk field here in Austin. Though Houston is a neutral site, it’s relatively close to College Station, which may someday be considered a true suburb of the city.
You can watch the game on ESPNU on Friday afternoon.
Image of the Longhorn baseball team after a home win vs. Kansas on March 15 by bandito horns via Flickr
