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College  | Story  | 12/23/2024

Year in Review: College

Craig Cozart     
Across the Country

Vols Put Together Historic Run to the National Title

Since Tony Vitello took the reins of the Tennessee Baseball Program in 2018, he has set his club on a meteoric rise to the top of college baseball. By infusing the roster with a seemingly endless supply of blue-chip prospects, instilling an ultra-aggressive style of play and executing the game at an elite level fundamentally, Vitello’s program has averaged almost 53 wins per year over the last four seasons. However, heading into the 2024 season, most prognosticators had his club just outside the top-10 in their pre-season projections. They started off the season by rolling through mostly inferior opponents in their non-conference segment, winning 17 of their first 18 contests. But it left the nation a bit unsure as to how good this team really was, especially when they opened up SEC play by losing 2-out-of-3 on the road at Alabama. That would be the only series they lost, of course, as they rolled to a (60-13) overall record, (22-8) in the SEC and an incredible 40 wins at Lindsey Nelson Stadium. The Vols showed their toughness as they were one game from elimination on three different occasions during the postseason. In the SEC Tournament, they lost their first game to Vanderbilt 13-4, then had their backs against the wall in the Super-Regional when Evansville won game two 10-8 and they lost game one of the Men’s College World Series championship series to Texas A&M by a score of 9-4. All of these circumstances just galvanized a team that would go on to become just the second No. 1 national seed to win the MCWS since the current format was adopted in 1999. They were also the first SEC team to win 60 games in a single season and just the 4th SEC club to win the regular season, conference tournament and national title. With the No. 1 recruiting class of freshman already on campus and the No. 2 class in 2025, as well as the No. 3 class in 2026, the Vols aren’t going away any time soon.



Kentucky Claws Their Way to First Trip to Men’s College World Series

They have been playing baseball on campus in Lexington, KY since 1896, and after 128 years the Wildcats finally broke through with a trip to the pinnacle of the college game. The path to this moment hasn’t always been linear for Nick Mingione and staff but there is no mistaking that they have the program in a great place. Mingione has been the head coach at Kentucky for 8 seasons and has accumulated 262 wins, good for second on the all-time with at UK. It was only four short years ago that his team limped to a 29 win season with a rough (12-18) conference record and were eliminated in Hoover after one game in the SEC Tournament. Fast forward to 2024 and the Wildcats reeled off a program record 46 wins, winning the first 5 SEC series of the year and finished with a sparkling (22-8) good for a tie for the regular season SEC Title. The season was a gauntlet with a top-5 strength-of-schedule nationally as they swept through the Lexington Regional and then hosted a Super Regional for another program first. They welcomed three-time national champion Oregon State in the Supers and eliminated them in two-straight games allowing only 2 runs in 18 innings of play. Once they finally took the field in Omaha for the first time ever, they played an epic 10-inning battle against NC State where they won (5-4) on a dramatic walk-off home run. The magical run ended abruptly over the next two days as they fell to Texas A&M and Florida. Regardless, Mingione and staff have found the formula for what it takes to win in Lexington and beyond. This has the feel that the Wildcats are here to stay for a while on the national stage.

Ducks Continue to Knock on the Door

While it seems like he has been a fixture in Eugene for quite some time, Mike “Waz” Wasikowski has only been at the helm for four full seasons. During his time there, the program has methodically gone about their business of winning games and pushing towards another trip to college baseball’s promised land. In 2021, Waz took a team that went (27-29) in 2019 and after COVID led them to 39 wins as they would make the programs first NCAA appearance since 2015 hosting the Eugene Regional. Since then, the Ducks have averaged 39 wins per season, made 4-consecutive NCAA Regional appearances and have quietly gone to back-to-back Super Regionals. The whole college baseball world remembers, of course, the incredible run Oral Roberts made in 2023 when they defeated Oregon in a 3-game Eugene Super Regional battle. Then in 2024 the Ducks had to do it all on the road as they were sent to the Santa Barbara Regional where they swept three games over San Diego and UCSB twice. From there, they made the trek to the College Station Super Regional where they lost two, high scoring, offensive affairs that would leave them short of their ultimate destination one more time. The Ducks have made one appearance in the Men’s College World Series way back in 1954. This program has all the pieces in place to contend for a national championship and they just need that magical moment where someone steps up to deliver the goods.

Evansville Purple Aces Went All-In for Groundbreaking 2024

Wes Carroll has been the face of the Evansville Purple Aces baseball program for 16 years as the head coach but has been around the program for most of his life. He grew up in the shadow of the UE campus and his older brother, Jamey Carroll, was a star for the Purple Aces before he went on to become a Major Leaguer. Carroll himself was a four year starter for UE and would participate in their NCAA Tournament appearance back in 2000. These experiences have given him a deep sense of what it takes to be successful not only in the Missouri Valley Conference but on a national level. His clubs play with unbridled enthusiasm and a hard-nosed approach that resonates with players in the Midwest and beyond. The culture of toughness really came to light in 2024 as a mature roster of talented players led them to 39 wins, their second all-time MVC Tournament championship and the first NCAA Regional championship in program history. The Purple Aces were not in position for an at-large bid, so they had to make a run through the MVC Tournament. They did just that, going (4-0) as they run-ruled the first three games needing only 21 innings to punch their ticket to the championship game where they upset top-seeded Indiana State for the title. From there they would head to Greenville, NC as the 4-seed, taking down ECU by a score of (4-1), winning a high-scoring affair against VCU (17-11) and ultimately, they took regional crown by defeating the homestanding Pirates (6-5) in the second championship game. It was Evansville’s offensive engine that drove this team all year, finishing in the top-50 nationally in team BA, SLG, OBP, doubles, home runs and walks. The university is fully committed this program, Charles H Braun Stadium is a unique ballpark that went through significant upgrades in 2020. Big Leaguer Kyle Freeland and his wife Ashley recently made a $3M donation for the creation of the new Freeland Clubhouse and multiple sports share a quality indoor space. In other words, Evansville baseball is here to stay and will be a fascinating program to watch in the coming seasons.

Individual Highlights

Bazzana Makes History for Himself and His Country

Traveling halfway across the country is a big deal for most people, but traveling halfway around the world is a whole different situation. Making the trek from Australia, over 7,500 miles from home, Travis Bazzana knew that Corvalis, OR was the place for him the moment he stepped foot on campus at Oregon State University. Three years later, he turned himself into the No. 1 overall pick by the Cleveland Guardians in the 2024 MLB Draft. While he was not the first Beaver to go No. 1 overall, Adley Rutschman did that in 2019, he is the first Australian born player and first second baseman to take that honor. Bazzana was a tremendous athlete growing up playing cricket, rugby, soccer, basketball, as well as track and field but it was baseball that held his full attention. He challenged himself against older competition in the Australian Baseball League when he was just 15 years old and set a goal of doing whatever it took for become a Major League Baseball player. He took the college game by storm starting his freshman year at Oregon State batting .306 with 6 home runs and 44 RBI. This would give him the chance to go to the Cape Cod league but passed on that to dedicate his summer to strength training and refining his swing. He reaped the rewards quickly as he slugged .374/.622/.500 as a sophomore and ended up going to the Cape where he won the batting title and earned the league MVP award. All of this led to his legendary 2024 where he slashed .407/.911/.568 with 28 home runs, 66 RBIs and had an insane BB:K ratio of 76-to-37. Ultimately, Bazzana hopes that he is part of a trend that will turn Australia into a baseball powerhouse, and he finds a permanent home in the Big Leagues.

Jac Caglianone Rejuvenates the Fascination of Two-Way Players

The list of legitimate two-way prospects through the years isn’t very extensive. The path was set by John Olerud and was followed by studs like Brooks Kieschnick, Mark Kotsay, Todd Helton, Brendan McKay, Joe Savery and Sean Doolittle to name a few. However, none of them accomplished some of the raw, eye-popping feats that Jac Caglianone did with his time in Gainsville as he starred for the Florida Gators. In his freshman year, “Cags” as he is universally known, only saw time in 28 games for a total of 104 at bats. He hit a respectable .288 with 7 home runs but it was his sophomore season that put him in the national spotlight. Earning 1st Team All-American and National Position Player of the Year honors, he slashed .323/.389/.738 while setting single season program records with 33 HRs and 90 RBIs. Solidifying himself as a legit, two-way prospect, Cags made 18 starts on the mound going 7-4 with a 4.34 ERA all told. He also reportedly did something that may have never been done before in the history of the game by a lefty, when in the same inning he hit a home run with an exit velocity of 118 mph and threw a pitch at 100 mph as well. All of this left the baseball world wondering exactly where his ceiling was and in 2024, he made an even larger jump in performance than in the previous years. With a slash line of .419/.544/.875, breaking his own single season home run record with 35, Cags would become the all-time career home run leader at UF with 75 total round trippers. He would also homer in an incredible 9-straight games on his way to 1st Team All-American, John Olerud Two-Way Player of the Year and eventually the 6th pick in the MLB Draft to the Kansas City Royals. There may never be another two-way talent to rival Jac Caglianone at the collegiate level, and it was fun while it lasted.

Happy Trails to Another Batch of Legendary Head Coaches

John Anderson – University of Minnesota, 38 seasons (1982-2024)

· Record (1,390-1,021) NCAA Tournament (20-38)
· 4 – Big Ten Western Division Championships
· 7 – Big Ten Regular Season Championships
· 9 – Big Ten Tournament Championships
· 18 – NCAA Tournament Championships
· 8 – Big Ten Conference Coach of the Year
· ABCA Hall of Fame Inductee (2008)


Gary Gilmore – USC Aiken (1990-1995) and Coastal Carolina (1996-2024)

· Record (1,371-699) NCAA Tournament (37-35)
· 2 – Division Regular Season Conference Championships
· 12 – Conference Regular Season Championships
· 14 – Conference Tournament Championships
· 21 – NCAA Tournament appearances
· 2 – NCAA Super Regional appearances
· 1 – National Championship
· 8 – Big South Conference Coach of the Year
· 2 – Sun Belt Conference Coach of the Year
· USC Aiken Athletic Hall of Fame
· ABCA Hall of Fame (2022)


Keith Guttin – Missouri State (1983-2024)

· Record (1,396-929)
· 5 – Missouri Valley Conference Tournament Championships
· 3 – Missouri Valley Conference Division Regular Season and Tournament Titles
· 1 – Missouri Valley Conference Division Regular Season Titles
· 2 – Missouri Valley Conference Regular Season and Tournament Championships
· 4 – Missouri Valley Conference Regular Season Titles
· 12 – NCAA Tournament appearances
· 1 – College World Series appearance (2003)
· 7 – Missouri Valley Coach of the Year


Randy Mazey – Charleston Southern (1994-1995) East Carolina (2003-2005) and West Virginia (2013-2024)

· Record (542-425)
· 1 – Big South Regular Season Championship
· 1 – Conference USA Regular Season Championship
· 1 – Big 12 Conference Regular Season Championship
· 8 – NCAA Tournament appearances
· 2 – NCAA Super Regional appearances
· 1 – Big South Conference Coach of the Year
· 1 – Conference USA Coach of the Year
· 2 – Big 12 Conference Coach of the Year
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