Rivalries in sports aren’t born overnight.
They take many years, many games and many heartbreaks to fully develop.
But when No. 1 LSU (35-6, 12-5 Southeastern Conference) and No. 2 Texas A&M (36-5, 12-5 SEC) clash in a weekend series beginning at 6:30 p.m. tonight at Alex Box Stadium, it’ll have the feel of a deep-rooted conference rivalry.
“We’ve had competitive games against [the Aggies] the few times we’ve played them,” said LSU junior shortstop Alex Bregman. “They’re a very good team, and it’s going to be treated like a rivalry game.”
Calling the series “competitive” may be selling it short. One-run games, ninth-inning rallies and highlight reel plays have characterized the first two seasons of LSU and Texas A&M battling as conference foes.
Though it’s not recognized nationally as a rivalry yet, LSU senior second baseman Jared Foster said that’s slowly changing.
“Maybe it’s becoming one,” Foster said.
Things are different this time around. The Tigers were the heavy favorites in the last two series, each time taking a top-five billing against an unranked Aggies club searching for its niche in a new conference.
That carried over to this season. LSU started the season ranked No. 2 behind defending-champion Vanderbilt in Baseball America’s initial rankings while Texas A&M was left out.
That quickly changed. The Aggies’ worked up the polls week by week until obtaining the top spot in early April, thanks mostly to a 24-0 start.
Now the Tigers will face a squad equal in talent and experience, not a seemingly lesser opponent. But LSU coach Paul Mainieri said his club rises to the challenge when pitted against a comparable foe, and his club’s record backs up that claim.
Since the start of the 2012 campaign, the Tigers are 18-8 in top-10 showdowns during the regular season, including a perfect 9-0 at home.
“We approach it all the same, and because of that, our players have a tendency to play very well in the biggest games,” Mainieri said.
The budding rivalry will also get a change of scenery this season. LSU had to travel to College Station, Texas, for the first two series against the Aggies as members of the SEC, something that irked Mainieri.
Now, the Aggies will make the 363-mile trip while the Tigers can sit back and wait.
“I can’t tell you how excited I am to have them come to Alex Box Stadium finally,” Mainieri said.
LSU and Texas A&M have provided plenty of fireworks during their first six battles as conference opponents with five games decided by a single run.
In 2013, Texas A&M stunned LSU in its first SEC clash with a 2-1 upset. The Tigers, ranked No. 3 at the time, responded by winning the next two games to take the series.
In 2014, it was the Aggies who rallied from behind. Texas A&M stole Games 2 and 3 after LSU — this time ranked No. 5 in the nation — had won the series-opener in extra innings on May 2, 2014.
And few can forget the game’s conclusion. 
With the bases loaded and two outs in the bottom of the ninth, Aggies then-junior infielder Blake Allemand roped a potential game-winning hit to left field.
Foster, who was playing left field, then lept and extended across his body for a highlight-reel grab that halted the Aggies’ four-run ninth inning and landed SportsCenter’s top play of the night.
Then-sophomore outfielder Andrew Stevenson later scored in the top of the 10th to give LSU a thrilling 5-4 win, it’s only one of the crazy series. Foster said he hopes the craziness that’s surrounded the series travels to The Box, even if it doesn’t come from the players.
“I want to see people with their shirts off in the outfield and [wearing] face paint,” Foster said jokingly. “Being able to be a part of that one-versus-two matchup in the regular season is going to be fun and exciting. This place is going to be electric.”
Bragging rights aren’t all that’ll be on the line in tonight’s one-versus-two showdown.
Both the Tigers and Aggies are tied atop the SEC-Western Division standings with less than half the conference schedule remaining. With 4.5 games separating them from the next closest team, it appears the division will remain a two-team battle the rest of the way, making this a potential do-or-die series for a developing rivalry.
Alex Box Stadium will be the center of the college baseball world this season, and it’ll also be where LSU and Texas A&M add the next chapter to their young rivalry.
“If you love college baseball, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, is the place to be this weekend,” Mainieri said.
You can reach David Gray on Twitter @dgray_TDR.