Super Regional Primer: 1 thing to know about every SEC team’s series
By Adam Spencer
Published:
The SEC once again leads the way, with 6 teams advancing to the Super Regional round of the NCAA Baseball Tournament.
How many will make it to Omaha for the College World Series? We’ll find out starting this weekend, with Super Regional games starting Friday.
Vanderbilt, Arkansas, Mississippi State, Ole Miss, LSU and Auburn are still alive, and all but Ole Miss and Auburn host their Super Regional.
What do you need to know about each best-of-3 series? We break it down:
No. 2 Vanderbilt vs. Duke
Game 1: 6 p.m. Friday (ESPN2)
Game 2: 9 p.m. Saturday (ESPN)
Game 3 (if necessary): 3 p.m. Sunday (ESPN2)
The Commodores cruised through their regional in Nashville, winning all three games by a combined score of 28-8. Superstar OF JJ Bleday didn’t even live up to his own lofty standards, going 3-for-11 with a double, four walks, an RBI and 3 runs scored.
Duke was the No. 3 seed in the Morgantown regional, getting past top seeds West Virginia and Texas A&M to advance to Nashville. In this best-of-3 series, the Commodores will likely need a better performance from Bleday.
He has a huge weight off his shoulders, though, as he was chosen No. 4 overall in the 2019 MLB Draft on Monday night and will play in the Miami Marlins’ system. Now that he has that stress off his plate, he’ll be free to do what he can to lead Vanderbilt to Omaha.
No. 5 Arkansas vs. No. 12 Ole Miss
Game 1: 12 p.m. Saturday (ESPN)
Game 2: 3 p.m. Sunday (ESPNU)
Game 3 (if necessary): 4 p.m. Monday (ESPN2)
This all-SEC Super Regional means the league is guaranteed to keep its impressive streak of College World Series appearances going. This will mark the 27th consecutive year that at least one SEC team reached Omaha:
With Arkansas and Ole Miss meeting in the super regionals, the #SEC is guaranteed to have a team in the College World Series for the 27th consecutive year.
The next longest streak is the ACC, which is trying to make it for the 14th straight year with four teams in the supers.
— Andrew Hutchinson (@NWAHutch) June 4, 2019
Arkansas was there last year, coming painfully close to win a title. However, the Rebels are one of the hottest teams in the country. They made it all the way to the SEC Tournament title game after only earning the No. 7 seed. That was thanks in large part to some stellar pitching.
Freshman LHP Doug Nikhazy stands out in particular. In his past two outings, Nikhazy has thrown 16 innings, striking out 11 batters and allowing only 1 run. If he can shut down the Hogs in Fayetteville in front of what is sure to be an insane playoff crowd, the Rebels will have a chance to make it to Omaha.
If he struggles, the Hogs should comfortably advance. No pressure, freshman.
No. 6 Mississippi State vs. No. 11 Stanford
Game 1: 3 p.m. Saturday (ESPN2)
Game 2: 9 p.m. Sunday (ESPNU)
Game 3 (if necessary): 7 p.m. Monday (ESPN2)
Stanford needed to go through the loser’s bracket to advance out of its own regional, but its offense is ferocious. In 5 games, the Cardinal scored 42 runs.
However, they’ve yet to face a pitching staff like Mississippi State’s. LHP Ethan Small, the SEC’s Pitcher of the Year, made his way into the first round of the 2019 MLB Draft on Monday night, going No. 28 overall to the Milwaukee Brewers. That was due, at least in part, to his outstanding efforts down the stretch.
Add in RHP JT Ginn, the SEC’s Freshman of the Year, and the Bulldogs will have a major advantage. Small and Ginn will likely get the first two starts, but if the Bulldogs lose one of those games, Peyton Plumlee might get the ball for the deciding game. It’ll be strength vs. strength in this series, so it’ll come down to whether the Mississippi State pitchers or the Stanford hitters have the better series.
No. 13 LSU vs. Florida State
Game 1: 3 p.m. Saturday (ESPN)
Game 2: 6 p.m. Sunday (ESPN2)
Game 3 (if necessary): 8:30 p.m. Monday (ESPN)
The Tigers could have been heading to Athens for the Super Regional, where they lost 2 of 3 games this season. However, No. 4 seed Georgia lost to the Seminoles, so now the Super Regional will be played in Baton Rouge.
As crazy as this sounds, the key to stopping the Seminoles might be to slow down the bat of OF Tim Becker. Becker entered the regional round with only 4 RBI and 0 home runs. He then hit 3 homers and drove in 7 runs in the first two games in Athens — big wins over FAU and Georgia.
Becker is red-hot and is leading the FSU offense, which scored 35 runs in 3 games in Athens. LSU’s pitching staff, which has dealt with more than its fair share of injuries this year, will have its hands full.
No. 14 Auburn at North Carolina
Game 1: 12 p.m. Saturday (ESPN2)
Game 2: 11:30 a.m. Sunday (ESPN)
Game 3 (if necessary): 1 p.m. Monday (ESPN2)
Auburn is the lone SEC team left that didn’t host its own regional. Instead, the Tigers made the short trip to Atlanta and knocked off host Georgia Tech (the No. 3 overall seed in the tourney) to advance to the Super Regional in Chapel Hill.
As the No. 14 overall seed in the tournament, North Carolina is the lowest remaining national seed in the tournament, so the Tar Heels could be vulnerable, even on their home field. They won all 3 games in the regionals, allowing only 3 total runs in the final two games.
However, they haven’t met a hitter as hot as Auburn sophomore OF Steven Williams yet. Williams, despite hitting seventh and eighth in all three games in Atlanta, went 6-for-13 with 2 home runs and 10 RBI. If he can take his hot hitting to Chapel Hill, the Tigers could move on to Omaha.
Adam is a daily fantasy sports (DFS) and sports betting expert. A 2012 graduate of the University of Missouri, Adam now covers all 16 SEC football teams. He is the director of DFS, evergreen and newsletter content across all Saturday Football brands.
