EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Michigan State baseball announced its complete 2024 schedule Thursday. Head coach Jake Boss Jr. and the Spartans will play 32 non-conference games, opening on Friday, Feb. 16, and includes 24 Big Ten Conference games, starting in mid-March.
MSU announced its non-conference schedule earlier this month, in addition to Thursday's release of the Big Ten portion of the slate includes in all, 56 games plus one exhibition.
"It's a very challenging schedule, but I think our group is going to be excited and they're ready for it," Boss said. "I think there's plenty of opportunities for really quality RPI wins. We've some very good series here at home, as well as a couple marquee opponents that we haven't played before. We're excited to go compete for Michigan State."
The Spartans' B1G ledger includes 24 conference contests of eight three-game series, split between four home and four away weekends.
"I think every weekend in the conference will be a really good challenge, the Big Ten is extremely deep again," Boss said. "From top to bottom, there are no weekends you can take off and so we're going to be have to be ready to play every weekend from the first weekend of conference action to the last weekend."
The first 15 of the 32 non-conference games will be played away from East Lansing, before the home-opener on Friday, March 15, welcoming Evansville to McLane Stadium at Kobs Field for a three-game series. The Spartans' home schedule also includes a three-game series vs. Niagara, Friday-Sunday, April 5-7. MSU also has eight home games, along with three road games against in-state and regional rivals, in addition to the 2024 Crosstown Showdown exhibition game.
Michigan State opens the 2024 season in Charleston, South Carolina at the Swig & Swine Classic at Shipyard Park, taking on Merrimack on Friday, Feb. 16, Seton Hall and Lehigh on Saturday, Feb. 17, and Ball State on Sunday, Feb. 18.
"We've been to Shipyard Park a couple times now and Jason Murray runs that place and does a great job," Boss said. "It's a very unique setting with their fields right on the water, so we're excited to play in the Swig & Swine College Classic there. It's a very good field in that tournament so we're excited to go down there to start the season. Charleston is a great city and we've had good support down there so we're really excited about going back there."
The Spartans open their 2024 Spring Break trip in Holly Springs, North Carolina for a three-game series against Northern Kentucky on Friday-Sunday, Feb. 23-25, before a midweek match-up in Athens, Georgia facing Georgia on Wednesday, Feb. 28.
"Facing Northern Kentucky the next weekend in Holly Springs, North Carolina is a place that we've never been before but it's got a very good reputation, so it will be a fun neutral site game for use on the front end of our Spring Break trip," Boss said. "We were able to schedule at road game at Georgia, which obviously is one of the better programs in the country and it's a place that we've also never been so we'll be excited to go down there and compete against those guys.
MSU then returns to its home-away-from home, Fluor Field in Greenville, South Carolina to meet Western Michigan on Friday, March 1, Florida State on Saturday, March 2 and Illinois on Sunday, March 3.
"The following weekend we host the first of back-to-back round-robin tournaments in Greenville, opening with Western Michigan, Florida State and Illinois, and then the second weekend with VCU, Western Carolina and Western Michigan; so two very good tournament fields," Boss said. "We have close ties with Western Michigan with Coach Gernon, and Florida State is a premier power across the country, and coached by Link Jarrett, who used to be at Notre Dame is doing a great job with that program, and it will be fun to have an ACC opponent in Greenville. Then, Illinois is very well-coached by Dan Hartleb, it's a first-class team and they do a great job with their program, and since we don't play them in Big Ten play, that allows us the opportunity to play them in a non-conference game and join us in the tournament."
Michigan State returns to Greenville the following weekend to play VCU on Friday, March 8, Western Carolina in a doubleheader on Saturday, March 9 and Western Michigan on Sunday, March 10.
"The next weekend with VCU, also very well-coached by Bradley LeCroy, who does a great job there. Western Carolina has been on the schedule a lot over the last number of years and that program is solid under Alan Beck, and they play the game the right way. We're glad to have Western Michigan join us there again that weekend as well, so it should be an exciting Spring Break trip for us," Boss said.
The Green & White open home action hosting Evansville in a three-game series, Friday-Sunday, March 15-17 at McLane Stadium at Kobs Field. Michigan State and Evansville have played six times, with a pair of three-game series in Evansville in 2011 and 2022.
"We open at home against Evansville, which is a return trip from 2022 when we down that there. Evansville has a solid program in the Missouri Valley and we've played them down there a couple times and we're excited to get them up here at home in East Lansing," Boss said.
MSU hosts Purdue Fort Wayne on Wednesday, March 20.
The Spartans open up Big Ten action with a three-game weekend series at Maryland, Friday-Sunday, March 22-24. MSU made its only trip to College Park, Maryland in the 2017 season.
"We're excited to open up at Maryland, it's a place that we haven't been to in a little while, so nobody on the current roster has been there, so our guys are anxious to go compete against them on their home field," Boss said. "There's no question about them, they are an extremely talented program and their success speaks for itself, so it will be a really good challenge for us right off the bat."
Michigan State hosts a midweek, non-conference contest against Michigan on Tuesday, March 26, before hosting Oakland on Wednesday, March 27 at McLane Stadium at Kobs Field.
"We play Michigan also in a non-conference game, both schools feel that it's good for the rivalry, but also good for our league, good for RPI and there's a lot of benefits of playing each other outside of our conference games, so we've that in the past and we'll continue to do that this season," Boss said.
The Spartans' B1G home opening series is Friday-Sunday, March 29-31, welcoming Rutgers to McLane Stadium at Kobs Field, as the Scarlet Knights make their first visit to East Lansing since 2018.
Michigan State plays at Notre Dame on Tuesday, April 2, before taking on the Lansing Lugnuts in the 2024 Crosstown Showdown at Jackson® Field™ on Wednesday, April 3.
The Spartans then host Niagara in a three-game series, Friday-Sunday, April 5-7. Niagara is making a return trip to East Lansing after playing a four-game series in 2018 at McLane Stadium at Kobs Field.
"The rest of the non-conference games are against teams that we have traditionally played here in the past, with the exception of Niagara. They were out here a few years ago and our bye weeks matched up again this year, so they'll be back out here this season," Boss said.
MSU then opens a stretch of five-straight home midweek contests, starting with Central Michigan on Tuesday, April 9.
The Green & White play at Purdue, Friday-Sunday, April 12-14 in a B1G series. MSU resumes the home midweek match-ups with Bowling Green on Tuesday, April 16; Western Michigan on Wednesday, April 17 at Jackson® Field™, then hosts Penn State, Friday-Sunday April 19-21.
Michigan State makes its penultimate road weekend trip to Columbus, Ohio to face the Buckeyes of Ohio State in a three-game series, Friday-Sunday, April 26-28.
The Spartans then open up another five-game homestand at McLane Stadium at Kobs Field starting with Notre Dame on Tuesday, April 30, then hosting in-state rival Michigan Friday-Sunday, May 3-5.
"We certainly enjoy playing at our home stadium and to host our rivals there is something that's pretty exciting for our guys. We draw really well anyway, from an attendance standpoint, and to be able to have Michigan come to our place, it will make for a really good atmosphere for all three games, which is why you come to play in a place like Michigan State," Boss said.
MSU concludes its five-game overall home stretch and its five home midweek game stretch against Eastern Michigan on Wednesday, May 8.
The Green & White's final regular-season road trip takes them to Minneapolis, Minnesota for a three-game series with the Golden Gophers of Minnesota, Friday-Sunday, May 10-12.
MSU's final non-conference game is Tuesday, May 14 at Western Michigan, before the regular-season home finale series, welcoming Nebraska to McLane Stadium at Kobs Field, Thursday-Saturday, May 16-18 for the Spartans' Senior Celebration.
The 2024 B1G Tournament is at Charles Schwab Field in Omaha, Nebraska, May 21-26.
The NCAA Regional dates are May 31-June 3, while the NCAA Super Regionals are June 7-9, with the College World Series slated for June 14-23 at Charles Schwab Field in Omaha.
Further game, promotional and ticket information will be announced at a later date on msuspartans. com.
Release courtesy of MSU Athletics.
