Globe Life Field is a college baseball mecca this weekend with six of the top 10 teams in the country coming to town for the State Farm College Baseball Showdown.

Day One on Saturday saw thousands of socially-distanced fans in the ballpark, almost a surreal sight following the devastating winter storm throughout the region earlier in the week.

Don Gibson was among those in attendance. The 77-year-old Arkansas fan thought the winter storm could cancel the tournament but, when he learned the plans were to push forward with the event, he made the trek from Fayetteville, Arkansas on Friday.

“Baseball is a great game and this is fun to just come and hang out at,” said Gibson, who has traveled to a number of baseball tournaments Arkansas has played in over the years.

“Every team here today is ranked in the top 10. You can’t get any better than that. I watch college baseball all the time, and it’s about Double-A caliber at this level.”

Gibson wasn’t alone in enjoying the action. Capacity is capped at roughly 15,000 each day due to COVID-19 protocols, and the Rangers expected around 15,000 attended the first day. It brought a sense of normalcy to many as well and marked the start of the season with Big 12 and SEC programs playing in a three-day, round-robin format.

TCU, Texas Tech and Texas are the Big 12 participants, while the SEC is represented by Mississippi, Mississippi State and Arkansas.

Several fans were in midseason form, including the Mississippi faithful as it faced TCU in the afternoon contest.

Rebels fans proudly and loudly chanted their signature “Throw it in the dirt!” whenever a Frogs pitcher had a three-ball count. Of course, TCU had a strong fan presence as well. In fact, every program had its share of fans on Opening Day.

The environment felt as expected despite the region’s issues amid the storm.

There were questions in the days leading up to the tournament whether it would go on with the power outages and boil advisories in the region, as well as potential travel issues for out-of-town teams.

But the tournament was pushed back one day, which proved to be enough time to get things in line to host the event and get all the teams to town safely.

The City of Arlington lifted its boil advisory about an hour before the first game started between Mississippi State and Texas at 11 a.m. On the field, that game had plenty of highlights as Mississippi State pulled away for an 8-3 victory.

The Bulldogs’ star was right-hander Landon Sims, who threw four perfect innings with 10 strikeouts in relief. Offensively, the Bulldogs’ Luke Hancock made history as the first college baseball player to homer at Globe Life Field with a solo shot in the fourth inning.

The tournament continues Sunday and Monday. Games on Sunday are scheduled for 11 a.m. (TCU vs. Miss. State), 3 p.m. (Texas Tech vs. Mississippi) and 7 p.m. (Texas vs. Arkansas) and on Monday at 11 a.m. (Texas Tech vs. Miss. State), 2:30 p.m. (Mississippi vs. Texas) and 6 p.m. (TCU vs. Arkansas).

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