Mississippi State infielder Dylan Cupp enters NCAA transfer portal

Mississippi State infielder Dylan Cupp has entered the NCAA transfer portal, On3 has learned. He does so after spending the last two years with the Bulldogs.

Cupp played in 33 games this season, starting 31 of them. He made a decent impact for the Bulldogs, hitting .282 on the season with nine doubles and a home run, while collecting 15 RBI.

That came one year after Cupp appeared in 22 games, starting 21 of them. As a freshman in 2024, Dylan Cupp hit .258 at the plate. He also knocked out four doubles and accounted for 13 RBI.

The news of the transfer comes mere hours after Mississippi State officially announced the hire of new coach Brian O’Connor. O’Connor comes to Starkville by way of Virginia.

Mississippi State hires Brian O’Connor

O’Connor just completed his 21st season in Charlottesville. He’s a coaching vet with a considerable track record at this point.

All told, O’Connor had an 885-370-2 overall record at Virginia, including a 362-234-1 mark in ACC play. He was the conference’s Coach of the Year five times and helped the Cavaliers to two ACC titles.

UVA was O’Connor’s first head coaching opportunity after he served as an assistant at Notre Dame from 1995-2003. That came after he was the pitching coach at his alma mater, Creighton, from 1993-95 after a brief stint in the Philadelphia Phillies’ minor league system.

Brian O’Connor will now serve as the full-time replacement for Chris Lemonis, who was fired after a 7-14 start to SEC play. Mississippi State athletics director Zac Selmon announced the decision following a losing weekend at Auburn, and he informed the Bulldogs in a team meeting.

“A change in leadership is what’s best for the future of Mississippi State Baseball,” Selmon said in a statement. “We have not consistently met the standard of success that our university, fans and student-athletes expect and deserve. I want to thank Coach Lemonis for his work and the time he gave to our program, including a national championship in 2021. We appreciate his efforts and wish him and his family all the best moving forward.

“In a team meeting moments ago, I expressed to our student-athletes the confidence we have in their abilities and the potential they have for the remainder of the season. I encouraged them to compete with pride, resilience, and intensity. With the hard work, preparation, and talent already within this group, we are committed to putting them in the best position to finish the season competing at the highest level.”

On3’s Nick Schultz also contributed to this report.