Time to punch a ticket to the national championship
GEAUX!!!
Lineups
Arkansas
- LF Davalan
- S W. ALoy
- RF Maxwell
- C Helfrick
- 2B Lozeal
- DH K. ALoy
- 1B Robinett
- 3B Iredale
- CF Thomas Jr.
- SP Beidelschies
LSU
- LF Curiel
- DH Frey
- SS Milam
- C Hernandez
- 1B Jones
- RF Pearson
- CF Stanfield
- 2B Dickinson
- 3B Braswell
- Cowan SP
I don’t think it’s at all hyperbolic to say this is the most important game of LSU’s season.
Tonight’s obviously a huge game: it’s Omaha and you’re one win away from the national championship series, all that goes without saying.
But no matter how badly LSU wants this game, Arkansas, obviously, wants it more. There ain’t a tomorrow for Arkansas if the Hogs lose this one, while LSU’s got an extra game in their back pocket. Arkansas is the more desperate team and they’re just as talented as LSU. That’s a really precarious spot for the Tigers to be in. And Jay Johnson knows better than anyone you can come out of the loser’s bracket to advance.
Maybe I’m looking too far ahead, but it feels like LSU’s eighth national championship hangs in the balance tonight. LSU could lose tonight, and throw Kade Anderson out there to pitch the Tigers into the national championship series…but then he almost certainly wouldn’t be available for said championship series. That’s a no-go for me, especially against Coastal Carolina’s pitching. Maybe LSU could find a way to win, after all the Tigers won it all in 2023 against the Gators without Paul Skenes throwing a single pitch, but this time around it feels like Anderson has to play a role in a championship series.
But we can’t worry about tomorrow while there’s still today to be played. How much pitching does Arkansas have left in the tank? Who from LSU’s side steps up and pitches themselves into Tiger lore? Tonight feels like a night where either Arkansas wins by one or LSU wins by four or five, and both scenarios feel equally likely. Here’s hoping for the latter and Jay Johnson and his team can take the next two nights off.
The Bracket
Today’s Score
- #13 Coastal Carolina 11, Louisville 3 (Coastal Carolina to CWS Championship Series)