After much debate and resume analysis, Ole Miss secured its first home regional since 2021. The Rebels have since won a national championship, but the Rebels' program appears to be moving in the right direction following three straight losing records in conference play. Here are the four participants in the 2025 Oxford Regional:
Postseason baseball is finally back at Swayze Field, and all seems right in the world. The Rebels secured a home regional with 20 conference wins, including the Governor's Cup against Mississippi State and the SEC Tournament. In Hoover, Ole Miss beat 17-RPI Florida, 5. Arkansas, and 10. LSU, giving them a third SEC Tournament Championship appearance in six years. Ole Miss will be at full strength this weekend, as SP Mason Nichols and RF Ryan Moerman are expected to return from injury. The regional will feature three outstanding visiting offenses, making pitching a premium this weekend.
The Yellow Jackets won the ACC regular season championship. Still, they failed to secure a hosting opportunity after falling short against Clemson in the conference tournament and seeing their RPI fall outside the top 20. ACC Coach of the Year Danny Hall will bring a powerful offense to Oxford, hitting .315 with .538 slugging and .954 OPS. They are led by Drew Burress, who is tied for the conference lead with 18 home runs and ACC Freshman of the Year Alex Hernandez.
Ole Miss fans may skip this section, but the Hilltoppers are making their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2009 when they knocked off Ole Miss in the Oxford Regional. WKU finished second in the conference but beat regular-season champion Dallas Baptist in a road series. They received the auto-bid by winning the conference tournament on a thrilling extra-inning walk-off. Statistically, this is the most impressive team in the region, as they match Georgia Tech's .315 team batting average, but they also bring the best pitching numbers to the region. Starting pitchers Jack Bennett and Drew Whalen lead the staff and rank third in the country with a 3.35 ERA. Ryan Wideman, Carlos Vasquez, and Kyle Hayes are the three leading hitters in conference play. C-USA Coach of the Year Marc Rardin's squad looks like a significant threat to win the regional and make a deep run in the tournament.
Murray State brings an offense that may lead Mike Bianco to pitch ace Hunter Elliott in Friday's opening game. The Racers batted .299 with a team OPS of .912, led by Ole Miss transfer Tim Simay and Co-Freshman of the Year Conner Cunningham. C Will Vierling, OF Jonathan Hogart, and pitchers Nic Schutte and Isaac Silva were named to the all-MVC first team. Coach of the Year Dan Skirka leads Murray State to their first regional since 2003.
The Rebels only lead their regional opponents in home runs and strikeouts but should be able to use their experience and home-field advantage to advance. Ole Miss was nearly unbeatable at home, with their only non-conference home loss coming against Little Rock in a midweek game. Prediction: Ole Miss wins the regional 3-0, defeating Western Kentucky in the championship.