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Who has the easiest road to Omaha? Breaking down the College World Series bracket

The NCAA Tournament field is set. Who has an easy path to Omaha, and which top seeds will be sweating it out?
ByWynston Wilcox|
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The College World Series is set, now who has an easy path to Omaha this season and which teams will keep it interesting?
The College World Series is set, now who has an easy path to Omaha this season and which teams will keep it interesting? | Jay Biggerstaff/GettyImages

Key Points

Bullet point summary by AI

  • The College World Series field is set, and the bracket reveals a mix of predictable favorites and potential underdog runs.
  • With SEC schools dominating the regionals, the path through the tournament remains wide open for surprise contenders.
  • One team’s region stands out as the least challenging, setting up a potential shortcut to Omaha that could redefine the postseason.

The NCAA baseball tournament field is finally set, and we know not only who’s hosting a regional but which teams could make it to the super regionals and get one step closer to the ultimate goal of the College World Series in Omaha. While some things may feel certain when looking at this year's bracket, we know this tournament is always hard to predict — heck, Coastal Carolina made a Cinderella run to the championship series just last year.

With LSU missing the field and guaraneeting us a new national champion, here’s a look at the teams that could surprise some college baseball fans this postseason thanks to their specific path to Omaha. And part of what makes this year’s bracket so fun is that there’s more than one team that could make an underdog run.

Breaking down the NCAA baseball tournament bracket

The only thing I keep thinking about when looking at this bracket is SEC dominance. Of the 16 regions, 12 feature at least one SEC school. Of course, just because there are a lot of SEC schools in the field doesn’t mean they’re going to run the tournament; that said, it will be interesting to see how many of them survive their respective regions. Power 4 conferences comprise roughly half of the tournament field. 

Just because you're a power-conference team doesn’t mean much, though. Coastal Carolina reached the College World Series title game last year, the first non-Power 4 team to do so since Fresno State back in 2008. I personally think UCLA and Mississippi State will ultimately play each other for a championship, but anything can happen. 

Which college baseball contenders have the easiest roads to Omaha?

UCLA Bruin
UCLA Bruins against Mississippi State Bulldogs during the Amegy Bank College Baseball Series at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Dustin Safranek-Imagn Images | Dustin Safranek-Imagn Images

UCLA Bruins

UCLA is the No. 1 overall seed in the College World Series for a reason; the Bruins were able to reach the CWS last year and come back this year as the team to beat after rampaging through the regular season. Though Georgia Tech has had an equally strong year, you can’t argue with Roch Cholowsky is and Co. Cholowsky is one of the top stars on this team, with more than 20 home runs and a .329 batting average. The Bruins shouldn’t have too much trouble getting out of a region that also features Virginia, Cal Poly and St. Mary's, although Wake Forest and Kentucky loom as dark horses in the Morgantown regional.

Auburn Tigers

What makes Auburn’s path to the College World Series easy isn’t necessarily the opponents they could play, but rather the ones they don’t have to worry about playing. Nebraska is hosting a region and is probably the toughest team the Tigers would have to face (along with possibly Ole Miss). Auburn didn’t play the Rebels this year and beat Nebraska in an early-season series.

Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets

Georgia Tech might be the strongest team in the field outside of Los Angeles. Not only did the Yellow Jackets run through the ACC slate in the regular season, they won the ACC Tournament as well. Their No. 2 seed proves just how good they are. Kansas and Arkansas won’t be easy by any means, but the Jackets shouldn’t have too much trouble. 

Dark horse teams with the easiest Cinderella runs to the College World Series

Coastal Carolina basebal
Coastal Carolina Chanticleers second baseman Blake Barthol (7) drops a fly ball against the LSU Tigers during the seventh inning at Charles Schwab Field. Mandatory Credit: Steven Branscombe-Imagn Images | Steven Branscombe-Imagn Images

Coastal Carolina Chantelceers

Don’t sleep on Coastal Carolina. Remember, they did just play in the College World Series title game a year ago and could make a second straight Cinderella run to Omaha this year. They’ve won 50 percent of their Quad 1 games this year; that’s a team that knows how to play against top competition. They have Florida State in their region and could play Alabama in the super regional. Outside of that, it’s teams the Chants shouldn’t struggle too much against. 

Cincinnati Bearcats

Don’t sleep on the Cincinnati Bearcats. They did get a win over Wake Forest last year before losing their final two games to get eliminated from their regional. This year they were 10-9 against Quad 1 opponents, including a season sweep over regional host Kansas in the Big 12. Mississippi State won’t be an easy opponent at all, but in a way, this year’s region is very similar to the region they were in last year with Miami (OH), Tennessee and Wake Forest. The Bearcats could be the Cinderella team no one saw coming. 

Jacksonville State Gamecocks

There might not be a stronger mid-major team in this field than Jacksonville State. It's a shame Southern Mississippi has the Gamecocks in their region, despite being a region host. The Gamecocks were 2-2 against SEC teams this year, sweeping Auburn and getting swept by Alabama. Being able to go toe-to-toe with the SEC is a good sign.

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