No. 2 Texas Grinds Out Massive Series Win Over No. 5 Auburn: Longhorns Notebook

Winning games on the road in the SEC is a difficult task for even the conference's best teams. Just ask the No. 2 Texas Longhorns (20-3, 4-2) following their grueling battle against the No. 5 Auburn Tigers (19-4, 4-2).

In a repeat of their opener from the first weekend of SEC play, the Longhorns dropped Friday's game in heartbreaking fashion, losing 4-3 after a walk-off single in the ninth inning. Then they escaped by the skin of their teeth on Saturday, stranding the bases loaded and pulling out a 7-6 win to avoid a bullpen collapse and tie the series.

Sunday, though, was a day dominated by the Texas pitching staff. Dylan Volantis was not his usual self, only tossing four innings and walking four, but he did not allow a run. Behind him, the bullpen more than made up for the first two games with five shutout innings while the bats did their job to fuel a 5-0 series-clinching win.

Three key takeaways from the Longhorns' series win over the Tigers

Texas Longhorns outfielder Anthony Pack Jr. — Texas Longhorns' outfielder Anthony Pack Jr. celebrates a grand slam against the USC Upstate Spartans. | Texas Longhorns Athletic

Bullpen concerns continue

Something happening once can be written off as a coincidence, as can the same thing occurring twice. A third and even fourth time, though, and you have a pattern. For the Longhorns, that means trouble when it comes to the bullpen.

There have been four late-inning bullpen meltdowns for Texas this season, two of which have come against Auburn. Friday night saw a 3-1 lead crumble as the bullpen allowed three in the ninth on a walk-off loss.

While they were able to escape the second game with a 7-6 win, the bullpen gave up four runs and had to escape a two out, bases loaded jam to do so in the ninth. They delivered in the finale, though, tossing five shutout innings to secure a massive conference series win.

Mendoza held hitless

The top of the lineup is tasked with setting the table for the rest of the order. And so far in his duties as the leadoff hitter, Ethan Mendoza has been sensational at doing just that. Unfortunately, that was not the case in this series.

After going hitless in the midweek loss to the Tarleton State Texans, Mendoza’s slump continued against Auburn. He did get on base multiple times but did so without recording a hit, dropping his average down to .269 on the season.

One of your best hitters going hitless over a series is far from ideal, of course. Mendoza, though, has what it takes to bounce back – which means there’s no need to hit the panic button.

Keep grinding away

There will never be an easy weekend in conference play for teams in the SEC. That's just the price you have to pay when facing the best college baseball has to offer week in and week out over the course of a 30-game gauntlet. The Longhorns, however, have been up to the task so far again in 2026.

Both of their series so far against conference foes have seen them drop the opener in a heartbreaker, followed by back-to-back wins to take the series. Sweeps are ideal but hard to come by in the SEC, and series wins are nothing to scoff at.

If they can continue to grind out wins and consistently take at least two games from each SEC foe, then the Longhorns will be in a strong position to repeat as conference champs.

What’s next for Texas?

The Longhorns are back in action on Tuesday evening, as they’ll be on the road again for a showdown with the Houston Cougars at 6:30 p.m. CT.