Tarleton State Baseball Is Here

In the town of Stephenville, Texas, located just under an hour and a half southwest of Fort Worth, there is something special going on. The Cowboy Capital of the World is home to one of the fastest-growing higher education institutions in the nation, Tarleton State University.

Anyone who hasn’t been on campus or around town in the last five-plus years would find things much different than before. All of the sports facilities have been redone or built brand new, including the baseball complex.

At a baseball game a few weeks ago, I mentioned to athletic director Steve Uryasz that I sometimes have to pinch myself while I sit and take in high-quality events and look around at all of the growth.

His response was perfect. With a smile, he simply said, “Isn’t it fun?” Yes, yes it is!

And while all of the sports teams at Tarleton State have been having unprecedented success, the baseball program has been one of the highlights for the athletic department.

This year marks only the sixth season that the Tarleton baseball team has played in Division I. And yet, you wouldn’t be able to tell as they go toe to toe with the best of the best.

It wasn’t all smooth sailing. As with any transition up the ranks, there can be some rough patches. But those struggles seemed to come to an end with the arrival of first-time head coach Fuller Smith. Smith took over the reins of the program in the summer of 2023, making this season his third guiding the Texans.

Tarleton’s 2026 Success Thus Far

With less than a month left in the regular season, the Texans are having a memorable year. All wins are important, but some do carry a little extra weight.

Coming into the season, the Texans could claim just a single win over a Power 4 school. That came in Waco against Baylor on April 25, 2023.

Along with that win, there had been numerous close games that easily could have gone the Texans’ way against much bigger programs. Those close games over the last few years started to show the guys that they could hang with top competition.

The Monday after opening weekend, Tarleton traveled to Globe Life Field in Arlington and took on Arkansas, which was ranked #7 in the nation at the time. After giving up three runs in the first, the boys in purple settled down and finished the game strong.

Another loss, 1-3, but it opened this particular group’s eyes that they shouldn’t back down from anyone.

The home crowd was loud and energized the first part of March when Baylor rolled into town. Looking for that first Power 4 win on home turf, the boys didn’t disappoint. Gutting out a one-run victory, Tarleton made a statement that they were not to be taken lightly.

Two weeks later, Tarleton would shock the college baseball world with perhaps the upset of the year. Taking on #2 Texas, at Disch-Falk Field in Austin, in front of a crowd of 6,915, the Texans played a near flawless game.

After giving up a bomb to the second batter in the Longhorn lineup, the Tarleton pitching staff would hold Texas to just one more hit the entire game. That second hit came in the ninth inning.

Timely hitting, exceptional defense, and that outstanding pitching performance propelled Tarleton to the 6-1 victory. As Coach Smith likes to say, “In baseball, sometimes the best team doesn’t win, but the team that plays the best a lot of times does.”

When I asked Smith about the win over Texas, he downplayed it a bit. But he did acknowledge that it was a big win for the program. Most would label it the biggest win in program history, and they probably wouldn’t be wrong.

But when you are building a program that you expect to compete at the highest stages, as Smith and his staff do, yes, it was a huge win, but it was also just another W in the win column.

Another win over Baylor at their place would follow two weeks later. That would make Tarleton’s third Power 4 win of the season.

Centrally located within Texas, Tarleton is able to play the likes of Texas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, TCU, and Baylor in any given mid-week game. Those games help in recruiting as well as energize the fan base.

The 2026 team has been led offensively by sophomore Rayner Heinrich and senior Slade McCloud (more on him in a bit). Heinrich, who had an impressive freshman campaign, has taken his game even higher this season. Through Sunday, April 26, he is hitting .361/.424/.639, with 17 doubles, one triple, eight home runs, 40 runs scored, 38 RBI, and eight stolen bases.

Tarleton’s Journey

With a current record of 28-15 (8-4 in the WAC) and an impressive 10-5 record on the road, the Texans have surpassed last year’s win total of 24. It wasn’t all that long ago, 2019 in fact, that Tarleton was still in Division II and had a 15-36 overall record.

As I said earlier, things are changing in Stephenville, and at a rapid pace.

Going from Division II to Division I is quite a jump. There are some great players and baseball that is played at the Division II level, but there is a massive step up in competition at the next level.

Part of the deficiency in the program stemmed from the lack of quality facilities. First, state-of-the-art turf and new lights were installed before the 2022 season. That was followed up the very next season by new stands and a press box.

Under the direction of president Dr. James Hurley, Tarleton has not been known to do things halfway with any of its academic or athletic ventures. After the 2024 season, a first-class ticket office, concessions, souvenir shop, and bathroom facility were constructed.

The finishing piece of the property will be the new locker room and training facility, which should be done in the next year or two. With the baseball, softball, and tennis complexes sharing the same property, it is a hub of activity, especially during the spring on game days.

2024 WAC Champions

Tarleton found itself in an interesting situation at the end of the 2024 season. For the first time in NCAA history, a team that was within its four years of not being eligible to play in the NCAA tournament because of reclassification won its conference tournament.

It was bittersweet for the Texans, but they still relish the WAC championship.

McCloud, the current second baseman for the Texans, expressed what his favorite moment thus far in a Tarleton uniform has been. “Dog piling my first year here. I love dog piling. We did it at Seminole [State College – Oklahoma], my sophomore year. Dog piling is really fun. Hopefully, we can dog pile again.”

Tarleton would kind of stumble into the conference tournament that year. As the #5 seed, the Texans dug deep and put on a performance to be proud of. By going 5-1 over the course of a five-day stretch, they were able to indeed do that dog pile and hoist the WAC trophy.

Speaking on that championship run, Smith said, “It was the players; they just refused to lose. They refused to give in. People don’t realize that the belief and mental fortitude, a lot of times, will outweigh your limitations as a team, as a player.”

Tarleton and national champion Tennessee would end up being the only two Division I schools to dog pile and win their final game of the season. “I will never forget that group,” said Smith

The Leader: Coach Fuller Smith

Every great team and every great program has a great coach. Leading a group of young men is a calling that Smith realized he had for his life as he was finishing up college.

A numbers guy, Smith received his accounting degree from Ole Miss, where he also excelled as a player. He could have easily taken an office job where job security and more financial wealth would have been easier to attain.

But the drive to make an impact on the lives of people, specifically young men who shared a passion for the game of baseball, is what drew him into the profession. He wanted to make an impact for the Kingdom, and for him, the typical 9-to-5 career path wasn’t where it was at.

McCloud describes Coach Smith as a “mental wizard, he is good with his words.” Anyone who spends any amount of time with Smith would concur.

Most coaches are good motivators. But with Smith, it goes beyond that. He is a man who looks after the well-being of his players. There is time and effort put into each individual in the program to become the best player that they can be on the field.

Beyond that, he looks to build and grow men who will be successful husbands, dads, and community members. And it’s not just lip service.

There has been a large group of the team that has been meeting this year in a player-led Bible study. When I spoke to Smith before the season, he wanted to talk as much about that as the upcoming season, and rightly so.

He truly loves his players and wants the best for them. In the world of NIL, it is refreshing to see a relational coaching staff with a group of players who have bought in. The brotherhood that the team has formed is a direct result of the leadership that Smith exhibits.

Slade McCloud: A Tarleton Baseball Success Story

Sometimes the guy that ends up being one of the best players on the team isn’t the guy that comes in that way. McCloud showed up at Tarleton in the fall of 2023 not because he was a highly recruited player, but because he didn’t have a ton of options and wanted to play closer to home.

Growing up around the Waco area, a chance to play ball in Stephenville, which is only about an hour and a half away, was appealing.

Smith and McCloud showed up at Tarleton the same year. Recruited by previous head coach Aaron Meade, there was a learning curve for both coach and player.

I describe McCloud as an extremely aggressive player. Smith backs that up. “He came in here like a wild mustang. And he still is in a way; he’s not bridled. He has matured, and what impressed me the most [that first year] was that he was the best teammate when he wasn’t playing. Still a great teammate.”

It would have been easy for McCloud to jump ship after his first year at Tarleton. When he wasn’t getting as much playing time as he felt he deserved, the two had what Smith describes as a “heated” conversation in his office.

As Smith laid out clearly what was expected and what McCloud needed to improve upon, the air was cleared, and the runway was set for what has turned into a fantastic two years. After the meeting, Smith told his assistants that McCloud was going to be their best player the following year (2025), and boy, did he deliver.

Named to the 2025 WAC first all-conference team, McCloud slashed .358/.415/.541, recorded 12 doubles, two triples, and eight home runs, scored 45 runs, had 45 RBI, and stole 20 bases. This year has been more of the same.

Despite frequently being pitched around this season, through the April 26 game, he is hitting .366/.447/.590 with 11 doubles, five triples, five home runs, 32 runs, 43 RBI, and 18 stolen bases.

Add in his highlight reel defense at second base, and there is little doubt that McCloud will be able to play beyond his time at Tarleton.

This season has also been special for McCloud, as he has been able to share the field with his brother, first baseman Cage McCloud. Slade loves his teammates and sees them as brothers. So with Cage joining the party, it was a nice bonus.

He said that he wants to leave the Tarleton baseball program better than when he got there. I would say that he is doing his part.

The Future of Tarleton Baseball

The immediate future of the program will be played out over the next few weeks. Despite being riddled with injuries at the moment, the Texans were able to claim a 2-1 series win over conference favorite California Baptist two weekends ago.

After being run-ruled on Friday night, Tarleton bounced back and took the next two games by one run each. It was CBU’s first series loss on the season and showed that this Texans team is truly a gritty group that will fight until the end.

Obviously, a WAC conference tournament title and the school’s first trip to a regional would be fantastic this year. That is the goal and the focus. And whether that happens this season or not, a trip to the Division I postseason appears to be in the cards for the Texans in the near future.

Shining a light on what he thinks the future for Tarleton baseball might look like, Smith had this to say: “In a job, this, that, and another, you can always kind of see where the ceiling is. I don’t know where the ceiling is here; there’s no telling what it could be. And so that’s the exciting part about this place.”

One thing is certain: Things are going to keep changing, and for the better for Tarleton baseball. Next season will find them heading into a new conference. The United Athletic Conference, which has been the home for the football team, will be the new home for baseball and most sports as well.

That probably won’t be the last stop for Tarleton, as it has been garnering lots of buzz as a favorite to move into an FBS conference sooner rather than later.

The baseball program has proven that it can handle whatever is thrown at it and whatever the competition is. Coach Smith and his staff will continue to show up and show out.

Uryasz had this to say about the baseball program: “Tarleton State baseball is in great shape right now, and that starts with our head coach, Fuller Smith. Coach Smith has a keen eye for talent, knows how to develop, and with his personality and relationship building, we have great players and staff throughout the program, on and off the field. Tarleton State has some of its best wins ever in Coach Smith’s first few years here, and it’s a great time to be a Texan.”

The future for all things Tarleton State is bright, and one of the most exciting is the baseball program. We can all look forward to enjoying some quality ball out of a program that is heading on a clear upward trajectory. The Texans are here.