With the College World Series under way in Omaha, beat writers from across the country largely converge on a championship matchup — but their winner picks split, setting up a finals series that could hinge on pitching matchups and timely offense.
The scoreboard pressure won’t be the only thing on the line in Omaha this weekend. For the College World Series championship series. one matchup shows up again and again in predictions from beat writers covering the teams left in the NCAA tournament — and nearly everyone agrees on who they expect to be standing at the end.
Most of the attention is on West Virginia fans and Rocco’s Jell-O shot leaderboard chatter, but the predictions tell a different story for who reaches the title series.
A series of predictions asked of the remaining teams points to UNC and Georgia meeting in the championship series — with just one beat writer breaking from the crowd.
North Carolina and Georgia picked to reach the final (and UNC or Georgia to win)
Chase Goodbread of Tuscaloosa News predicted North Carolina beats Georgia. saying the Tar Heels bring a 3.86 ERA into the College World Series. He said it’s one of only 11 teams at the D-1 level under 4.00. He also framed Georgia’s offense as a serious threat. pointing to what Mississippi State learned in super regionals. but he expects UNC’s pitching to win out in Omaha.
Rodd Baxley of Fayetteville Observer also forecast North Carolina over Georgia — this time in three games. Baxley emphasized that UNC is the only team in Omaha with top-10 marks in runs, ERA and fielding percentage. He added that 20 years after coming up short in the CWS championship series. North Carolina “will finally get over the hump” and win its first national championship after a thrilling three-game series against the Bulldogs.
Craig Meyer of USA TODAY Network leaned the other way, picking Georgia to beat North Carolina in three. His prediction focused on the idea that Georgia’s offense leads the field. scoring the most runs per game with the best batting average. and he centered the matchup around catcher Daniel Jackson — with the key question whether Georgia can match UNC pitch-for-pitch.
Other beat writers also lined up UNC and Georgia for the final, with Georgia favored
Colton Sulley of The Oklahoman picked Georgia to beat North Carolina in three games. He cited Georgia’s offense as the top in the field, saying Daniel Jackson is a star and framing the series as a pitching-to-pitch test.
Marc Weiszer of Athens Banner-Herald also went with Georgia over North Carolina in three. saying the prediction is “chalk” with the two highest seeds from each four-team bracket reaching the finals. In his view, No. 3 Georgia beats No. 6 North Carolina as Daniel Jackson and Georgia’s bats overpower the Tar Heel pitchers Jason DeCaro and Caden Glauber.
Craig Meyer’s USA TODAY Network prediction mirrored that confidence in Georgia, adding a second storyline: for the first time 2018, he expects the national champion to come from a league other than the SEC.
The one major deviation: Texas over Ole Miss
While UNC vs. Georgia dominates the list, Sam Hutchens of The Clarion Ledger broke the pattern. He predicted Texas beats Ole Miss in three. Hutchens said Ole Miss relies on elite pitching and timely home runs to emerge from its side of the bracket. From there, he argued that Texas survives Georgia and advances from its side stacked with heavy-hitting teams.
He then drew a parallel to the SEC regular season: he predicts Texas takes two out of three from Ole Miss in the national championship series, repeating that outcome in the title set.
A schedule that turns predictions into a timeline
Games begin Friday, June 12, with Game 1: No. 16 West Virginia vs. Troy at 2 p.m. on ESPN (Fubo), and Game 2: No. 5 North Carolina vs. Ole Miss at 7 p.m. on ESPN (Fubo).
Saturday, June 13 follows with Game 3: No. 7 Alabama vs. Oklahoma at 3 p.m. on ESPN (Fubo), and Game 4: No. 3 Georgia vs. No. 6 Texas at 8 p.m. on ESPN (Fubo).
Sunday, June 14 continues with Game 5: Game 1 loser vs. Game 2 loser at 2 p.m. on ESPN (Fubo), and Game 6: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner at 7 p.m. on ESPN (Fubo).
Monday, June 15 has Game 7: Game 3 loser vs. Game 4 loser at 2 p.m. on ESPN (Fubo), and Game 8: Game 3 winner vs. Game 4 winner at 7 p.m. on ESPN (Fubo).
Tuesday, June 16 features Game 9: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 loser at 2 p.m. on ESPN (Fubo), and Game 10: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 loser at 8 p.m. on ESPN (Fubo).
Wednesday, June 17 brings Game 11: Game 6 winner vs. Game 9 winner at 2 p.m. on ESPN (Fubo), and Game 12: Game 8 winner vs. Game 10 winner at 7 p.m. on ESPN (Fubo).
Thursday, June 18 includes Game 13: If necessary at TBA, and Game 14: If necessary at TBA.
The championship series begins Saturday, June 20 with Game 1 at 8 p.m. on ESPN (Fubo). Game 2 is Sunday, June 21 at 2:30 p.m. on ESPN (Fubo). If needed, Game 3 (if necessary) is Monday, June 22 at 7 p.m. on ESPN (Fubo).
One question still hangs over Omaha: whether the series that nearly every beat writer is converging on — UNC vs. Georgia — can hold up once the first pitches are thrown.
College World Series Omaha North Carolina Tar Heels Georgia Bulldogs Texas Longhorns Ole Miss Rebels CWS championship series NCAA baseball