Mississippi State’s 2026-27 men’s basketball calendar is locked in, and the Bulldogs will waste no time getting comfortable at home.
Chris Jans’ team opens with three straight games at Humphrey Coliseum, starting Nov. 2 against Tennessee Tech at 6:30 p.m. on SEC Network+. Northwestern State comes to Starkville on Nov. 5, followed by Jackson State on Nov. 9, both also set for 6:30 p.m. starts on SEC Network+.
The nonconference slate brings a mix of neutral-site tests and road trips. Mississippi State meets Xavier in the Greenbrier Tipoff in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia, on Nov. 13 at 8 p.m. on FS1, then heads to UCF on Nov. 17 at 6 p.m. on ESPN+. The Bulldogs also face Tulsa on Nov. 20 in Magnolia Madness in Jackson, then Wake Forest on Nov. 25 in The Bahamas for the Battle 4 Atlantis, with a second game in that event listed for Nov. 27 and still to be determined.
December keeps the schedule busy. Georgia Tech visits for the SEC/ACC Challenge on Dec. 2 at 8:15 p.m. on SEC Network, followed by Alabama A&M on Dec. 7 and a road trip to Marquette on Dec. 12 at 5:30 p.m. on FS1.
Mississippi State also hosts Mississippi Valley State on Dec. 15, meets VCU in the Rocket City Classic in Huntsville, Alabama, on Dec. 19, and closes nonconference play against Campbell on Dec. 28.
SEC play begins Jan. 2 with Alabama coming to Starkville at 5 p.m. on SEC Network. From there, the Bulldogs go to Vanderbilt on Jan. 6, then Oklahoma on Jan. 9, before a Jan. 13 home date with Florida that will air on ESPN2 or ESPNU. The rest of January includes Georgia, Kentucky, South Carolina, Auburn and Arkansas.
The back half of league play features another meeting with Alabama on Feb. 16 in Tuscaloosa, along with home games against Missouri, Texas A&M, LSU and Texas, plus road trips to Ole Miss on Feb. 13, South Carolina on Feb. 27 and Tennessee on March 2. The regular season ends March 6 at home against Ole Miss at 3 p.m. on SEC Network.
Before all that, Mississippi State will tune up with two exhibitions: at NC State on Oct. 18 in Greensboro, North Carolina, and at home against Memphis on Oct. 23.
The Bulldogs are coming off a 13-19 season that kept them out of the NCAA Tournament for the first time under Jans. They do, however, bring back Josh Hubbard, who is 196 points shy of the program’s career scoring record.
In Other News...
Ole Miss-Texas Just Became A Bigger Game Than State Fans Wanted
For Mississippi State fans, the bigger-picture irritation is easy to see: Ole Miss keeps finding itself in the kind of spotlight that can turn a good season into a national stage. The SEC has already lined up the Rebels matchup with Texas as a prime attraction, and it comes with all the ingredients that keep the rest of the league watching, from rankings near the top of the polls to the kind of postseason stakes that can reshape the College Football Playoff race.
Texas brings its own extra layer of attention because of Arch Manning, whose family name still resonates strongly in Oxford. The Longhorns and Rebels do not meet often enough to make this feel routine, and the historical backdrop only adds to the intrigue as another high-profile SEC test draws closer for Ole Miss. [Read more 🡒]
Mississippi State Faces A Real QB Decision Heading Into LSU
Jeff Lebby brought in AJ Swann for a reason. The veteran transfer arrived with SEC starting experience and was supposed to give Mississippi State experienced depth behind Kamario Taylor, but the Bulldogs recent trip to Alabama offered a different glimpse at the backup picture. When Taylor left the game and the staff needed a replacement, it was redshirt freshman Parker Puckett who got the first look instead of Swann, a detail that adds another layer to a quarterback room already trying to settle itself.
Now Mississippi State heads toward LSU with no clear answer on who would take over if Taylor cannot go. Lebby has listed Puckett and Swann as co-backups, and the uncertainty matters because the Bulldogs need a plan they can trust if the starter is unavailable. For a team trying to stay steady in SEC play, the quarterback depth chart is suddenly one of the more closely watched decisions on the board. [Read more 🡒]
LSU Can Expose Mississippi States Biggest Offensive Problem
Mississippi State heads into its matchup with LSU trying to sort out more than just an opponent. The Bulldogs are dealing with uncertainty at quarterback after the injury to Will Rogers, and that only adds to an offense already searching for answers on the ground. For a team that has leaned on the passing game, the timing is not ideal, especially with LSU also trying to clean up its own defensive issues.
The coaching staffs have plenty to work through in the lead-up, but Mississippi States biggest concern is obvious: how to create enough balance to keep LSU from pinning its ears back. If the Bulldogs cannot threaten the Tigers with a more effective run game, they could spend the night asking their quarterback situation to do too much. How Mississippi State chooses to handle that challenge may end up saying as much about the game as the score itself. [Read more 🡒]