No. 3 Georgia heads to No. 5 Texas for top-drawer matchup at top of the SEC

The 2025 college baseball season has miraculously already reached the halfway point. Initial field of 64 projections have been released, as conversations surrounding RPI and remaining schedules begin to heat up.

The SEC looks like a monster, one that’s capable of forming a hefty chunk of the eventual College World Series field this summer. Through three weeks of conference play, tiers have formed, with four teams tied at the top of the standings at 8-1.

Two of those teams will throw down this weekend on The Forty Acres. Texas (23-4, 8-1 SEC), buoyed by consistent production and first-year head coach Jim Schlossnagle, will welcome red-hot Georgia (29-2, 8-1 SEC) to UFCU Disch-Falk Field for the first time ever.

Senses are heightened and results are feeling all the more important in April. Both have plenty to play for as they look to cement contender status and fight for the top spot in the best conference in baseball.

Georgia’s stock continues to rise

Pitching continues to look like less and less of an issue for Georgia. After a throng of disastrous moments and early deficits, the seas don’t look as rough as they once did as some arms are emerging.

Brian Curley has a .93 WHIP and has gone five innings in each of his starts the last two weeks. The likes of Kolten Smith (3.63 ERA in 17-plus innings) and Matthew Hoskins (2.70 ERA in 16-plus) are beginning to stretch out, too. While head coach Wes Johnson isn’t going to be receiving many deep starts, there’s enough depth for the Bulldogs to rag-tag their way through a weekend, even in the SEC.

Sixteen different arms have now tallied 10-plus innings for UGA this season. Results have obviously been varied, but a mostly-reliable pecking order is forming. After Charlie Goldstein trudged through three innings in game one against Auburn last weekend, Smith struck out eight across five hitless innings of relief. DJ Radtke notched the save as the Dawgs managed a 4-1 win, a striking scoreline considering the way things have gone at Foley Field this season.

There’s not a lot of overwhelming break or unhittable speed coming from the Georgia staff, but they do offer plenty of different looks and are finding ways to land patchwork wins. It’s also worth mentioning once again that Georgia does not need to be great on the mound. It just needs to be mediocre, because the bats usually take care of the rest.

Now with 84 home runs as a team, UGA continues to mash. Designated hitter Ryland Zaborowski (.448/.579/1.011) and second baseman Robbie Burnett (.365/.564/.906) are First Team All-American candidates and have now combined for 29 homers and 95 RBIs. Seven everyday players currently have an OPS over .930. Third baseman Slate Alford hit two homers on Tuesday in a 21-1 demolition of Queens and is now up to 40 RBIs.

The Dawgs have scored nine runs or more 20 times this season. It’s an all-out barrage just about every game and the numbers remain staggering. A team slashline of .324/.466/.629 is about as gaudy as it gets. While 243 strikeouts isn’t great, they’ve also walked 204 times, the most in the SEC.

The jury was still out on UGA after it took two of three from Kentucky in a series that witnessed 62 total runs. It then went to Gainesville and swept a Florida team that, while injured and underachieving, still packs quite a punch at home. Auburn was then up for the task in Athens, but the Bulldogs’ bats once again delivered in the clutch to pull off another sweep.

Georgia stock is high, as shown by the No. 3 next to its name in this week’s D1Baseball Top 25. Texas will provide a different look, however.

Longhorns continue to find ways to win

When compared to Georgia, Texas is not a team that’s pummeled its way to victory under flashing lights and a heap of hype. It’s been a meticulous attack under Schlossnagle, one that’s resulted in a terrific first half of the Longhorns’ first season in the SEC.

Beginning conference play with three tight wins in Starkville over Mississippi State, Texas then made its first sincere statement of the year, taking two of three at home from LSU, scoring 17 runs across its pair of wins over the top-five Tigers. It then eased past Missouri, collecting a sweep in Columbia.

This will undoubtedly be the toughest task of the season for the Texas pitching staff. Lefties Jared Spencer (3.62 ERA in 37-plus IP) and Luke Harrison (2.12 ERA in 29-plus IP) continue to take the ball and are each set to make their eighth starts of the season. Righty Ruger Riojas (3.00 ERA in 33 IP) has emerged as a viable weekend option and is coming off a scoreless seven-inning outing last week at Mizzou.

The Longhorns’ team 3.13 ERA in second in the SEC. They’ve allowed just 14 home runs, the least in the league, of course making for an interesting storyline when facing the Georgia lineup. Dylan Volantis (27 strikeouts to just four walks in 23 IP) is perhaps the top left-handed reliever in the conference and continues to prove reliable alongside Max Grubbs, Andre Duplantier II and others.

It’s unreasonable to expect a blemish-less weekend from the Texas pitching staff, but how well it limits damage in high-pressure situations could tell the tale.

Texas is quite capable in the box, too, though it’s now adjusting to life without one of its top bats. Star junior outfielder Max Belyeu (.358/.465/.642) is out for the remainder of the regular season with a thumb injury — a humongous loss. Both catcher Rylan Galvan (.338/.495/.803) and third baseman Adrian Rodriguez (.326/.385/.568) are working to get back to 100-percent healthy, too. That’s plenty of up-in-the-air at-bats.

Center fielder Will Gasparino is scorching and now has a 1.072 OPS. How much damage will he do at the dish alongside second baseman Ethan Mendoza (.373/.488/.559), shortstop Jalin Flores and others? The opportunity to do damage will likely present itself often, barring an uptick from UGA on the bump.

Weather could make an impact

Unfortunately, Mother Nature is set to make its presence felt across the SEC this weekend. Just about every series is facing harsh storms across Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Getting all three games played could be a challenge.

Hoping for a lightning-less weekend, both the Bulldogs and Longhorns have a massive opportunity to move up another rung in the conference pecking order. UGA was tabbed as the No. 3 overall seed in the D1Baseball midseason field of 64 projections, while Texas checked in at No. 7 overall. It looks likely that there will be a regional in Athens and Austin this summer.

First pitch for game one of the colossal series on Friday night is currently set for 7:30 p.m. ET.