Super Regional Superheroes: 10 Players Who Propelled a Record 5 SEC Teams to the College World Series

This was not a regular season highlighted by SEC dominance.

Sure, the 2026 season has been littered with intriguing storylines surrounding the top conference in college baseball, but for a majority of the spring, it felt like this was a golden chance for another league to conquer Omaha. The consensus top two teams in the land resided in the Big Ten and ACC, after all.

Neither UCLA nor Georgia Tech will be playing at Charles Schwab Field this weekend, however. The ACC, still clearly the league capable of consistently rivaling the SEC, will have one representative — North Carolina — in this year’s College World Series. The Big Ten came up empty once again.

And here we are. Eight teams are left standing, and five are from the SEC. It’s the first time ever that a league has sent five teams to Omaha.

The SEC accounts for 62.5 percent of the 2026 CWS field as it eyes a seventh-straight national championship. That’s a tough pill to swallow for those who have grown tired of the “it just means more” crowd reigning supreme every June.

This comes despite a parity-filled regional weekend that saw seven hosts get knocked out, two of which were SEC teams. Seven SEC teams in total have been eliminated over the last two weeks, yet five still stand tall. The impressive depth in the conference remains on display.

Georgia, the SEC regular season and tournament champ, knocked out Mississippi State in an all-time two-game slugfest, while Ole Miss went on the road and beat Auburn twice. Two cases of SEC-on-SEC crime.

Oklahoma was unfazed by a raucous environment in Lawrence, steamrolling Kansas in two games. Texas fended off Oregon in a two-game sweep at home. Alabama handled St. John’s twice in Tuscaloosa.

This is a unique blend of teams breaking through. Alabama is back in Omaha for the first time since 1999. Georgia’s last trip was in 2008. Texas, Oklahoma and Ole Miss all last made it in 2022 — the Rebels defeated the Sooners to win it all that season.

Some expected, some unexpected, but nothing is that surprising when you consider the sheer talent that resides in the conference. The only thing that may astound the SEC at this juncture is the fact that it’s still able to set new records in the game that it’s owned as of late.

Some historic swings and pitches have been made and thrown over the last few days. Let’s hone in on the heroes of super regional weekend and highlight 10 players that are partially responsible for the five SEC teams advancing to the College World Series.

Alabama

After sweeping through the Tuscaloosa regional, Alabama did not get caught up in the moment of playing a super at home with everything to lose against a Big East program.

St. John’s certainly looked the part as it blitzed through the Tallahassee regional as the four seed, but it had no extra juice as the Tide overpowered the Red Storm to the tune of 8-0 and 7-2 victories. It’s Alabama’s first trip to the CWS in 27 years, a herculean accomplishment for head coach Rob Vaughn in his third year at the helm.

RHP Tyler Fay

G1: 7.1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 9 K

The trip to Omaha will be a homecoming of sorts for the Grand Island, Neb. native who’s done nothing but carry the torch on the bump for Alabama this season.

Saturday’s start was his 59th career appearance for the program, and while it was also the most important, Fay was as unflappable as always. His 7.1 innings accounted for his second-longest start of the season, behind, of course, his no-hitter vs. Florida on March 20. One thing is for certain when Fay gets the ball: you’re getting everything he’s got.

3B Jason Torres

G2: 2-for-5, HR, 4 RBI

It has not been easy at the plate for Torres (.239/.360/.418) this season, but his seventh-inning grand slam on Sunday night was the swing for Alabama. It was a 3-2 game with bad weather on the horizon. St. John’s had life, but the Tide loaded the bags and up stepped the senior third baseman, who rifled a 1-0 fastball the other way over the wall and into a sea of Right Field Ragers.

That’s the kind of moment that etches your name into program history. An incredible scene for another veteran that means far more to his team than whatever his numbers suggest.

Georgia

The phrase “slugfest” can be overused at times in baseball, but try these numbers on for size: 45 runs on 46 hits, 21 of which were home runs. That’s what the Georgia and Mississippi State offenses combined for across 19 innings of baseball over the weekend.

Somehow, UGA came out on top in both games in front of an incredible crowd at Foley Field in Athens, first winning 13-12, then 11-9 in 10 innings in game two. It was a true heavyweight clash, and Georgia emerged the victor, punching its first ticket to the CWS since 2008, continuing an all-time season for Wes Johnson.

3B Michael O’Shaughnessy

G1: 2-for-5, 2 HR, 5 RBI
G2: 2-for-4, RBI

When star third baseman Tre Phelps was ejected in Georgia’s regional-clinching win vs. Liberty, it quickly set in that the Bulldogs would be without him for game one of supers. That put a spotlight on O’Shaughnessy, who had previously made nine starts at third. He rose to the occasion — and then some.

His first of two home runs on Saturday officially erased a 7-0 deficit in the fifth inning. His second was a three-run bomb in the bottom of the eighth that ended up being the game-winning swing, putting UGA ahead 13-12. Both were mashed. He then slid back to the DH spot for game two and had two more knocks. That’s some weekend for the senior Davidson transfer.

RHP Caden Aoki

G2: 5.2 IP, 8 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 9 K

With both offenses scorching hot, it was going to take a mighty effort from whoever took the ball on Sunday to duck another shelling. Enter Aoki, Georgia’s surefire strike-thrower. The fifth-year senior was given a long leash and ended up throwing 121 pitches, giving it all he had with a trip to Omaha on the line. He threw up zeroes in four of the first five innings.

While the bullpen did stumble right after his exit, if not for Aoki’s gutsy performance, it could’ve gotten ugly if Wes Johnson had to dip into his available crop of relievers far earlier in the game. UGA will need another big outing or two from the USC transfer in Omaha.

Oklahoma

After stunning No. 2 overall seed Georgia Tech twice in Atlanta, Oklahoma continued its impressive postseason run by making the trek to Lawrence and bludgeoning Kansas to the tune of 8-1 and 13-2 wins. It was frankly never in doubt.

The pressure mounted quickly for the Jayhawks on their home field, and Skip Johnson’s Sooners took advantage, playing smooth, fundamental baseball while leaning on a newfound power kick. OU, picked to finish 14th in the preseason SEC coaches poll, is back in the College World Series for the first time in four years.

LHP Cord Rager

G1: 6 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 6 K

The freshman lefty took the ball 12 times in the regular season, and while he didn’t always offer consistent length, he allowed more than 4 earned runs in just one start. It’s natural for someone like Rager to fade down the stretch in his first college campaign, but he instead opted to author his best start of the season vs. Kansas. The Just Baseball SEC All-Freshman selection has been a tone-setter for Oklahoma in the postseason, delivering in a big way.

C Deiten Lachance

G2: 2-for-5, HR, 4 RBI

Figure this out: Lachance did not hit a home run in his first 31 games this season. His knockout-blow homer vs. Kansas on Monday afternoon was his 15th in his last 28 games. That’s an 80-grade surge for the Québec native who has remained an integral piece to the puzzle for the Sooners all season. Lachance drove in the first run of game two vs. KU and also had a two-run single before weather forced the game to finish on Monday. His latest bomb in the sixth inning was essentially the nail in the coffin for the Jayhawks.

Ole Miss

The Rebels came out of the Lincoln regional, easily one of the toughest of the tournament, unscathed and was quickly faced with making a trip to The Plains to take on Auburn, the No. 4 overall seed. Ole Miss did what it’s done all season — hit homers and pitched it well. Silencing Plainsman Park, Mike Bianco’s club hit a pair of bombs in both games and held AU to 7 total runs in 6-4 and 5-3 victories. The last time Ole Miss made it to Omaha, it won the College World Series in 2022.

OF Brayden Randle

G1: 2-for-3, 2 RBI

A lifetime middle infielder, Randle made his first career start in the outfield for Ole Miss in game one against the Tigers. Needing to keep his bat in the lineup, the Rebels moved him to right field. That proved to be a great decision as the junior slapped a pair of RBI singles to get his team on the board in the second and fourth innings. That level of versatility is crucial this time of year. Randle later moved to left field in that game and then started there in game two. He added another single as the Rebels swept Auburn.

RHP Taylor Rabe

G2: 7 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 8 K

A midseason injury to starter Cade Townsend led to Rabe moving into the weekend rotation. He had mixed results throughout SEC play, but the 6-foot-6 sophomore has really found his footing as of late, leaning on a high-90s heater and big breaker.

Over his last four starts, he’s struck out 44 over 25 IP. He’s now allowed just 3 ER in his pair of tournament starts. He surrendered a pair of runs in the fourth vs. Auburn but faced the minimum in four innings and retired the last eight batters he faced. It’s the only time an Ole Miss starter has completed seven innings this season.

Texas

Texas flexed its muscle as it swept through the Austin regional. Up stepped Oregon, a worthy challenger out of the Big Ten that also held serve on its home field the previous weekend. The Longhorns coasted in game one en route to an 11-3 win, then survived a 6-5 battle in game two to return to the College World Series for the first time since 2022.

Jim Schlossnagle’s team is 5-0 in the NCAA Tournament and continues to show that it can win games in multiple ways with the stakes as high as ever.

SS Adrian Rodriguez

G1: 2-for-3, 2B, 5 RBI
G2: 2-for-5, 2B, 2 RBI

Texas has received major contributions up and down its lineup, but Rodriguez has done it every game so far this postseason. He’s notched at least two hits in each of the Longhorns’ last five wins.

In game one vs. Oregon, the sophomore came in clutch from the get-go with a two-run double in the bottom of the first. He then had an RBI single and a pair of sacrifice flies as UT ran away with the series opener. His biggest swing came in the top of the eighth in game two. Down by a run with two outs and the bases loaded, Rodriguez sliced another double down the left-field line to score a pair and put his team in front for good.

RHP Sam Cozart

G2: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K (S)

The towering 6-foot-6, 260-pound freshman began the season as Texas’ midweek starter. He has evolved into its clear No. 1 reliever, and he shoved once more to send the Longhorns to Omaha on Sunday night in Austin. Leaning on his heater, Cozart worked a breezy six-out save. Facing the top of Oregon’s order in the most important high-leverage ninth inning of his young career, he needed just 12 pitches to work a groundout and two strikeouts, slamming the door shut. Cozart was a Just Baseball All-SEC Team selection for a reason.