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The 2025 college baseball tournament started off with a bang Friday night when the regional round delivered four opening-night host upsets and several tightly contested high-major showdowns.
Here are 10 takeaways from Day 1 of the NCAA Tournament:
Vanderbilt Is Vulnerable
The same qualities that have made top-seeded Vanderbilt great this year are also what leave it exposed. Tim Corbin’s team dominates on the mound with JD Thompson and Cody Bowker leading the rotation and a deep bullpen ranking among the nation’s best behind them. But the Commodores lack offensive firepower, leaning heavily on contact hitting and athleticism to manufacture runs.
That formula nearly backfired Friday night against Wright State. Thompson struck out 12 and allowed three runs over eight innings, but Vanderbilt’s offense was stagnant until a Brodie Johnston solo homer in the seventh finally broke up a no-hit bid. Mike Mancini added another solo shot in the eighth, followed by a controversial two-run home run from Riley Nelson that was initially ruled foul before being overturned after a brief umpires meeting on the field.
Vanderbilt’s elite arms can keep it competitive in low-scoring games—and probably will. But Friday was a clear reminder of the risk in relying so heavily on that approach.
The Commodores entered the postseason ranked outside the top 150 teams nationally in runs per game, strikeout rate, batting average, on-base percentage and slugging. Teams that fit that profile have had a tougher time in the NCAA Tournament in recent years.
A Historic Night For Four Seeds
Selection Monday this year underscored the widening gap between college baseball’s high-major powers and its mid-major programs. Just four at-large bids went to mid-majors—the fewest since the NCAA adopted the super regional format in 1999.
But Friday’s opening day proved parity in the sport isn’t dead. Four regional four seeds upset their hosts, the most since 2008. Murray State beat Ole Miss 9-6, Utah Valley edged Oregon 6-5, Saint Mary’s topped Oregon State 6-4 and Columbia stunned Southern Miss 11-4.
After an unpredictable regular season, some postseason chaos was expected. Four top seeds losing on opening night still exceeded those expectations and sent several super regional favorites to the brink.
It Was Also A Rough Night For Fringe Hosts
This year’s selection committee largely got it right. There were no glaring snubs (perhaps outside of omitting a second Big East team) and no obvious mistakes above the host line. The consensus fringe host group—Alabama, Florida, TCU and Georgia Tech—had strong cases but ultimately didn’t earn the nod. Based on Friday night’s results, the committee’s judgment looks sound.
Alabama stumbled against Miami, managing just four hits outside of a three-run fourth inning, even with the Hurricanes starting AJ Ciscar instead of ace Griffin Hugus.
Florida was routed in Conway, as No.3 East Carolina chased Liam Peterson in the second inning and piled up 11 runs. Ethan Norby dominated the Gators, striking out 10 over 7.1 innings.
TCU was blitzed, as well, falling 13-1 to Southern California despite starting ace Tommy LaPour (3.0 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 5 K).
Georgia Tech was the lone fringe host that impressed, cruising past Western Kentucky 9-2 to reach the winner’s bracket, where it will face Murray State.
Stetson Is A Three Seed To Watch
We pegged Stetson as a three seed to watch entering the postseason after a 40-20 overall record and 24-6 mark in the ASUN. On Friday, the Hatters backed that up with an emphatic 11-2 win over NC State in the Auburn Regional.
Ace lefthander Jonathan Gonzalez fired six shutout innings with four strikeouts, while the offense provided enough cushion that head coach Steve Trimper could rest bullpen workhorse Ty Van Dyke, who owns a 1.25 ERA with 65 strikeouts over 43.1 innings.
With Auburn ahead, the path remains steep. But if Stetson’s bats continue to produce like they did against Dominic Fritton and the Wolfpack, the Hatters have enough pitching to stay dangerous.
They entered the postseason ranked No. 20 nationally in team ERA, which was easily among the best for non-one and two seeds.
Arizona State’s Win Over UC Irvine Had Big Implications
Arizona State head coach Willie Bloomquist and his team waited anxiously on Monday to find out if they had been selected to the NCAA Tournament after missing the field in each of their skipper’s first three seasons at the helm, the longest drought in program history.
Had the Sun Devils missed the field for a fourth straight year, it was a near certainty that they would have parted ways with Bloomquist and opened up a national search to fill the vacancy, according to multiple sources. And while tournament entry dramatically decreased the odds of a coaching change, it didn’t totally eliminate them. Friday’s 4-2 win over UC Irvine, however, likely did.
Movers and shakers within the ASU athletic department wanted to see how competitive the Sun Devils would be in the Los Angeles Regional before marrying themselves to any one course of action on Bloomquist’s future.
An All-American for the Sun Devils as a player who also spent time as a professional with the Diamondbacks, Bloomquist has done as good a job as any coach in his region—if not the nation—at acquiring standout talent. ASU entered the 2025 season with more top 200 draft talent than any other Big 12 team, but was one of the last four teams to make the field of 64.
If they play to their potential in Los Angeles this weekend, they’re surely capable of reaching a super regional for the first time since 2011.
Player Of The Day
Plenty of players made strong cases. Wright State’s Cam Allen threw six no-hit innings against top-seeded Vanderbilt. Tre Phelps fell a triple shy of the cycle with two home runs in Georgia’s 20-4 rout of Binghamton. Caden Aoki spun eight innings of one-run ball in Southern California’s blowout win over TCU. But, for me, the standout was North Carolina righty Jake Knapp, who earned the first win of the 2025 NCAA Tournament against Holy Cross.
North Carolina stuck to its normal rotation order, aiming to shut down its regional’s four seed and save its bullpen. The 97 mph-throwing Knapp delivered 8.1 shutout innings with just four hits allowed on 119 pitches.
Knapp has been dominant atop the Tar Heels’ rotation all season, posting a 1.98 ERA with 85 strikeouts and just 16 walks over 95.1 innings. Opponents are hitting just .186 against him. He’ll turn 25 in August, which limits his draft stock, but his performance this year makes him a clear senior sign candidate if not a middle-round money-saver.
Oklahoma Pitched Off & Won Big
Skip Johnson took the opposite approach from North Carolina, adjusting his rotation based on matchups to open the tournament. Instead of going with usual weekend ace Kyson Witherspoon, Oklahoma started his twin brother, Malachai Witherspoon, on Friday against Nebraska.
Malachai delivered: nine strikeouts over six shutout innings in a 7-4 Sooners win, setting up Kyson to face a much tougher North Carolina lineup on Saturday.
It’s a fascinating strategy test. North Carolina stuck to its rotation, allowing Knapp to dominate a four seed while saving the bullpen. Oklahoma shuffled the deck, holding its ace for the marquee matchup. Saturday will offer an interesting datapoint in how the approach plays out.
The NCAA Tournament Always Sets Up For Early Litmus Tests
One of the best parts of the NCAA Tournament is how it inevitably pits standout mid-major automatic qualifiers against major conference powers—an early litmus test for those lower-seeded teams’ true potential.
Here are three that I’m eager to watch on Saturday:
- Texas vs. UTSA
- LSU vs. Dallas Baptist
- Arkansas vs. Creighton
UTSA knocked off Texas in a midweek meeting earlier this season, while LSU already holds a win over Dallas Baptist. Arkansas and Creighton will meet for the first time this year, with the Blue Jays entering at 42 wins.
UTSA, coming off one of the best seasons in program history, now looks to take the inside track to its first-ever super regional berth.
Michael Earley Will Remain Head Coach At Texas A&M
This takeaway isn’t about an on-field result, but it may have been Friday’s most significant development: Michael Earley is staying at Texas A&M.
After missing the NCAA Tournament as the preseason No. 1—the first coach to do so since 1991—and finishing with just 11 SEC wins despite a highly-touted, NIL-fueled roster, many believed Earley was headed for dismissal. That speculation ended abruptly when athletic director Trev Alberts issued this statement:
“Earlier today I met with Coach Earley to discuss the state of our baseball program. I appreciate Mike’s work in taking a holistic view of what changes need to be made so that we have a baseball program that meets our high standards. Baseball success is critically important to Texas A&M. I am confident in Mike’s ability to execute the needed change and fully support his vision going forward.”
What those “needed changes” entail remains to be seen. The Aggies pitched well for much of the season under pitching coach Jason Kelly and were undeniably talented, but their offense—Earley’s domain—often struggled.
Texas A&M will continue to pour resources into its baseball program, giving Earley a clear path to right the ship. But two consecutive failures? It’s hard to imagine the job wouldn’t open after that. He’s the early leader on the 2026 hot seat.
One More Non-Division I Tournament Note
I’m going to break the rules one more time because this deserves acknowledgment as one of the most unbelievable feats of the 2025 baseball season. It’s a run so ridiculous we may never see it again.
LSU-Shreveport secured the NAIA national championship Friday night, capping off a perfect 59-0 season, playoffs included. It marked the program’s first-ever national title and completed a season that will be nearly impossible to match.
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