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By Olivia Sayer
Scenes during the first round of the 2024 SEC Baseball Tournament between LSU and Georgia at the Hoover Met Stadium in Hoover, Alabama, on Tuesday, May 21, 2024. Georgia lost 9-1. (Photo/Mady Mertens; MadyMertensPhotography)
No. 6 Georgia baseball will face No. 11 LSU to open the 2024 SEC Baseball Tournament, the conference announced Saturday evening. The game is set for Tuesday at 10:30 a.m. and will be ‘win or go home.’
The connections run deep with the Bulldogs and the Tigers, as head coach Wes Johnson won the College World Series as LSU’s pitching coach last season. Johnson coached the Tigers’ to a 4.47 ERA, with three pitchers having an ERA under two. Johnson also helped recruit and develop No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft Paul Skenes.
According to MLB.com, Skenes transferred to LSU so he could learn under Johnson.
“Skenes ultimately chose to transfer to LSU, because he felt they had the best pitching and hitting coach in the country,” Alex Stumpf wrote after the season. “That pitching coach, Wes Johnson, would help him take that next step to more fully realize his potential.”
Although Johnson was only with the Tigers for a season, his impact was largely felt throughout a program whose season ended hoisting a trophy.
“I love him like a brother,” LSU head coach Jay Johnson said in June. “I can’t imagine only spending 11 months with somebody and connecting the way that we have. I love working with him, and he’s made a big impact on our guys.”
When he accepted the job offer from Georgia, Johnson brought current first base coach Josh Simpson and sports performance director Derek Groomer with him from the Tigers.
Now, Johnson is making an impact in the Classic City. The Bulldogs finished with their best record since 2019 at 39-14 and 17-13 in conference play. Georgia’s bats are also hot heading into Hoover, as the Bulldogs scored at least 10 runs in seven of their past nine games.
Georgia’s scorching offense will be opposed by an LSU pitching staff that ranks fifth in the conference in ERA. The Tigers surrendered double digit runs in only seven of their 56 games this season.
LSU finished with a 36-20 overall record but was 13-17 in conference play. Despite the down year, a late season-surge has the Tigers riding momentum into the postseason. LSU won four of its last five conference series to conclude the season as well, including against Texas A&M.
As for the other dugout, the Bulldogs rode an eight-game winning streak into their final series of the season. After shutting down Florida in the opening game, Georgia surrendered 26 runs over its final two matchups to lose its first series at home.
The winner of game one will advance to face No. 3 Kentucky in double elimination Wednesday morning, while the loser will watch from the bleachers. The Bulldogs began conference play getting swept in three games at Kentucky prior in the season.
If Georgia is to advance, it has familiarity with the Wildcats as well. Hitting coach Will Coggin, who oversees an offense that is ranked top-five in the NCAA for home runs, slugging percentage and on base percentage, was a member of Kentucky’s coaching staff for four seasons before coming to Georgia.
Other teams in the top half of the bracket include No. 2 Arkansas, No. 7 Alabama and No. 10 South Carolina. The first day of the Tournament will conclude with in-state rivals No. 5 Mississippi State and No. 12 Ole Miss going head-to-head.
Georgia last faced LSU in its final series of the 2023 regular season, where the Tigers took the series 2-1 at Foley Field. The Bulldogs will attempt to flip the script in the SEC Tournament.