The gauntlet of the SEC baseball event and what to understand entering into

There was once the Siege of Constantinople in 717. There was once the Philadelphia Election Riot bar brawls of 1742. There was once the National Wrestling Alliance Bunkhouse Stampede of 1988.

And now, we have now the SEC baseball event of 2025.

After 3 many years of permitting a restricted selection of groups to take the sphere in Hoover, Alabama, this yr’s overhauled SEC bracket will likely be bursting at its baseball seams. For the primary time within the event’s just about 50-year historical past, all 16 individuals of the convention will take part and the entire bracket will likely be unmarried removing, with 4 groups receiving a bye and every other 4 receiving a double bye.

In overwritten metaphorical phrases, it is a very crowded top twine that has been strung over Hoover Metropolitan Stadium and not using a protection internet. But for the final group nonetheless placing on after 5 days and 15 video games performed, there will likely be a number of large time, large best, hardball glory.

The box that starts play Tuesday morning comprises the country’s best two groups (LSU and Texas), 3 of the highest 5 (No. 5 Arkansas), six of the highest 10 (Nos. 8-10, Auburn, Vanderbilt, Georgia), 10 of the highest 25 (Florida, Tennessee, Ole Miss, Alabama), the previous 5 Men’s College World Series champions and likewise 4 of the previous 5 runners-up. A whopping 8 of Kiley McDaniel’s best 30 MLB first-year draft potentialities will likely be in Hoover this week, in addition to 8 of the just-announced 25-player checklist of semifinalists for the Golden Spikes Award. At the shut of the steady season, our pals at D1Baseball.com projected that the SEC would ship a document 13 groups to the NCAA event — 13 of 16 groups.

How stacked is that this deck? The protecting SEC and MCWS champion is on this box … because the No. 8 seed.

“It is no coincidence that all of these champions in Omaha have come from the SEC because honestly, by the time we get the NCAA tournament, we’ve all already been through a wringer that in a lot of ways is tougher,” mentioned Tennessee’s Tony Vitello, the trainer of that reigning champ. “There isn’t much you’re going to see in June, no matter where you play, that you haven’t been prepared for by the roller coaster of the SEC, in Hoover or in all the games leading up to it.”

The guy is aware of of what he speaks. The Volunteers began convention play 11-4 however completed the steady season by means of dropping their ultimate 5 SEC weekend collection. Perhaps they may be able to in finding some Big Orange solace in the truth that the auto in their amusement park experience was once extraordinarily crowded.

Texas opened its convention season 19-2, tied for the most efficient document after 21 video games in SEC historical past … after which dropped six of its final 9 convention video games. Whee!

Mississippi State was once 7-14 in SEC play on April 28 when it fired head trainer Chris Lemonis, the person who led the Bulldogs to their mythical MCWS identify in 2021. Since the alternate, they have got posted a document of 9-1, 8 of the ones being convention wins. Whee!

Arkansas began 11-1 in SEC play after which misplaced 3 immediately collection … after which went 6-3 towards ranked warring parties to near out the steady season. Woo!

The group that Tennessee defeated to win in Omaha final summer season was once Texas A&M. The Aggies entered 2025 as the preseason No. 1 group, in spite of shockingly dropping head trainer Jim Schlossnagle to archrival Texas once final yr’s MCWS was once finished. But the Aggies tumbled from that high spot after dropping 9 in their first 10 SEC video games … then gained seven out in their subsequent 9, together with collection wins over then-No. 1 Tennessee and then-No. 2 Arkansas … then ended the steady season being swept by means of Missouri, the convention’s last-place group and the Tigers’ handiest 3 SEC wins all season. Now, they arrive to Hoover desperately placing onto hopes of profitable their method onto an NCAA event variety bubble.

“I think that’s the scariest part of the SEC tournament is that you could make a case for every team in it being dangerous, from the No. 1 team in the nation to the team at the bottom of the conference standings,” mentioned Mike Bianco, a former LSU champion participant and Ole Miss head trainer since 2000. “Every team, all 16, have shown you at some point that they can beat you in one game. And that’s all it takes now. Single elimination. You don’t have to dig deep to find something that scares you.”

For instance, that Mizzou group that swept the Aggies two weekends in the past to shove them off of that bubble. Or South Carolina, a promising group that fell aside in May, being led by means of Paul Mainieri, who as soon as led LSU to Omaha glory. Or, Kentucky, which made its first shuttle to Omaha a yr in the past and is bouncing atop a Big Blue bubble with an SEC document of 13-17 however a countrywide power of time table rating of 9th.

Or, sure, Ole Miss itself.

The Rebels are the one SEC program that was once in a position to trot out the similar weekend rotation all season. Hunter Elliott, Riley Maddox and Mason Nichols began 14 video games every in as many 2025 weekends. In this present generation of school sports activities this is ruled by means of transfers, the Ole Miss dogpile in 2022 feels as though it had been a decade in the past. But bet who had been all 3 key individuals of the pitching lineup that helped lead the Rebels to that MCWS identify? Hunter Elliott, Riley Maddox and Mason Nichols.

“Everyone is dangerous for a varying list of reasons,” Vanderbilt head trainer Tim Corbin, a two-time MCWS champion, mentioned final month, his Commodores having simply misplaced two of 3 to that very same Ole Miss group. “We lost a series to Auburn in March, the team that finished last in the conference one year ago and are certainly not that team again. We had to fight our way through Georgia, a team that is hitting home runs like they are the 1927 Yankees. There are no weekends off and in Hoover there are no games off.”

But there is a lovely just right likelihood there will likely be walk-offs. Vandy ended 3 of its final 4 regular-season house video games by the use of walk-off homers. It has finished that 5 instances this season, tied for tops within the SEC with … Georgia.

Whee! Indeed.

“Is it fun? The SEC tournament? Yeah, it’s fun,” LSU head trainer Jay Johnson stated. His Tigers are in quest of their 10th event identify however first since 2017. Johnson is aware of all about threat lurking from the decrease reaches of the SEC bracket. In 2023, his group made it to the identify sport after arriving in Hoover because the No. 11 seed in a 12-team box. “But it’s also stressful. Your brain doesn’t stop. It can’t.”

And that makes Hoover’s newly expanded force cooker the easiest warmup to get in a position for the even larger bracket that starts subsequent week.