Brian O’Connor was named the 19th head coach in Mississippi State baseball history just over two weeks ago. Since then, he’s begun addressing a mountain of tasks to set the foundation of success for his maiden voyage in 2026 – and for many years to come.
There’s been little time for shaking hands and kissing babies. As soon as the veteran coach was tabbed to lead the maroon and white, the pressure to return the Bulldogs’ to baseball glory was immediate.
“I love the fast pace of it, trying to put everything together to have the best team and program that we can have at Mississippi State,” O’Connor told SportsTalk Mississippi. “I feel really good about what we’ve done in two weeks to retain the current roster. We’ve been consumed with that in building those pieces to build out that roster for next year and beyond.”
O’Connor’s first action item was meeting with players on the 2025 roster who had remaining eligibility. The former Virginia head coach wasn’t alone in the roster retention effort, with two of his top assistants, Matt Kirby and Kevin McMullan, making the move with him from Charlottesville to Starkville. Four support staffers who had previously worked under O’Connor will be joining the crew at MSU.
Further continuity was held with Justin Parker being retained as the program’s pitching coach.
“We know each other. We know our strengths and our rules are that allowed us to hit the ground running, versus having to hire a bunch of staff members that you don’t know,” O’Connor said, noting that keeping Parker has been critical to bridging the gap from the most recent coaching staff.
“I’m a big believer in efficiency, people knowing their roles and counting on them to deliver. That was one of the advantages of bringing two coaches with me.”
The 22-year leader of UVA baseball carries a diamond-encrusted reputation with him to the new gig, previously guiding the Cavaliers to their first national title in 2015, seven College World Series trips, and a bevy of national recognition, such as his induction into the ABCA Hall of Fame in 2024.
O’Connor hopes to transfer the winning ways to a program steeped in high level success. Mississippi State clearly has high hopes of a raised ceiling for the new skipper, making him the second-highest paid coach in college baseball with an eye-popping $2.9 million per year salary.
The three-time national coach of the year is well aware of the pressure that comes with being the head man of a proud program. Exhibit A, as O’Connor says, is the rabid loyalty from the Bulldog faithful. That was clearly on display at his introductory press conference, complete with fireworks and thousands of boisterous fans.
“I’ve been familiar with the fanbase – the passion and the love they have for this baseball program,” O’Connor said. “It’s part of what makes it an incredible experience for everyone involved. [The fans] understand the game, they appreciate the game, and they appreciate great play. Obviously, they want it on the side of Mississippi State, but their understanding of what goes into it is truly a lot of fun.”
With a nearly unrivaled resource commitment to baseball, much of what Mississippi State leaders and fans hope for under the new staff is success that builds year after year.
On April 28, the day athletic director Zac Selmon announced the program was parting ways with Chris Lemonis, the program had skidded to a 45-69 SEC record since winning the national title in 2021, along with missing the NCAA Tournament in two of the former head coach’s final three campaigns.
That stretch was filled with a series of pronounced highs and painful lows. O’Connor is clear on what it will take to reignite stable success in Starkville.
“It starts with the consistency of recruiting and roster creation. We have a lot of work to do on that,” he said, noting that working the transfer portal is important but long-term development is critical to building a constant contender.
“It’s going to take two or three years to build that roster up. You look at a lot of the teams that have been to Omaha and won the national championship, there’s a good majority of that team that were born and raised in that program. That’s going to take a few years for us to solve.”
The 2025 Bulldogs salvaged what looked like a lost season with a late surge into the NCAA Tournament, where they went 1-2 in the Tallahassee Regional. MSU finished 36-23 and 15-15 in conference play.
While O’Connor was clear that making Mississippi State a national title player on an annual basis will be a process, his first priority is making the Bulldogs an elite team out of the gate.
“First and foremost, [the priority] is putting the best team on the field next year for Mississippi State, then it’s building the future.”
