College World Series History: Every Champion Since 1947

The Men’s College World Series begins on Friday, June 13, with eight teams in Omaha vying for the national championship.

So as history is about to be made, let’s take a look back at the last 70+ years of college baseball’s finest.

From dynasties to underdogs, this is the complete history of the College World Series.

The College World Series began in 1947 due to emerging pressure to crown a ‘true’ national champion in baseball. The NCAA basketball tournament (which began in 1939) was already quite popular, so the idea to take multiple teams into the field likely stemmed from what fans were seeing on the hardwood.

The first College World Series took place in Kalamazoo, Michigan, where Cal defeated Yale in the championship series to win the inaugural event.

Wichita, Kansas would host the event in 1949 before the College World Series would find its permanent and iconic home in Omaha, Nebraska. Thanks to the efforts of the NCAA, alongside local business and political leaders in Nebraska, the state embraced the tournament and helped build it into the spectacle that it is today.

The event has only been cancelled once, in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

USC Trojans (12)

The Trojans were the undisputed kings of collegiate baseball during the 1970s. USC won five-straight national championships from 1970 to 1974, something no other program has accomplished.

Head coach Rod Dedeaux is one of the most prolific coaches in history, with 60 College World Series wins (the most all-time), 10 College World Series titles (the most all-time) and a 45-year tenure with USC.

LSU Tigers (7)

One of just three head coaches in history with five national championships, Skip Bertman turned the Tigers into a baseball powerhouse. Over a 10-year stretch (1991 to 2000), LSU won five titles, including going back-to-back in 1996 and 1997.

The Tigers’ most recent championship came in 2023, where they were led by Paul Skenes on the mound and Dylan Crews in the outfield. Those two would go on to be selected No. 1 and No. 2 in the MLB draft.

Texas Longhorns (6)

No team has reached Omaha more than Texas (38) and the Longhorns have plenty of hardware to show for it .

Texas won the first CWS in Omaha in 1950, then returned to prominence again in the 1970s and 1980s under Cliff Gustafson. The Longhorns rose again in the 2000s under the leadership of Augie Garrido, the only coach with multiple CWS titles with multiple schools (he won three with Cal State Fullerton and two with Texas).

Arizona State Sun Devils (5)

Arizona State’s rise to championship prominence began in the 1960s under Bobby Winkles, likely the greatest coach in program history.

Winkles led the Sun Devils to three championships in five years (1965, 1967 and 1969) before leaving to coach the Los Angeles Angels and Oakland Athletics. During his tenure, Winkles turned ASU baseball from a glorified club team to a national powerhouse.

The late 1970s and early 1980s also featured some incredibly talented Arizona State teams, which came away with a handful of deep postseason runs and two more titles.

And while nearly every program on this list has a rich history of sending players to the Major Leagues, one has to highlight the top-end talent that came from Arizona State. Reggie Jackson, Dustin Pedroia, Bob Horner, Sal Bando, Paul Lo Duca and the home-run king himself, Barry Bonds are among the most-famous Sun Devils alumni.

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