SEC dominates Day 1 of MLB Draft
But as good as the SEC is in football, it's even more dominant in baseball. Sunday's first round of the Major League Baseball Draft provided even more evidence.
The draft kicked off July 13 with the first three of a scheduled 20 rounds. A total of 105 players were selected by MLB franchises. Of those 105 players, 31 played their college baseball in the SEC. That total is more than every other power conference combined with the Atlantic Coast Conference seeing 12 players drafted, the Big 12 having seven and the Big Ten seeing six selected.
OU saw three players taken, but even the Sooners' solid day wasn't quite up to some of their brethren.
Arkansas and Tennessee carried the way with four players each taken in the first round alone. Volunteers left-hander Liam Doyle went fifth overall, followed by shortstop Gavin Kilen at No. 13, third baseman Andrew Fischer at No. 20 and right-hander Marcus Phillips at No. 33. Gage Wood, a right-handed pitcher, was Arkansas' first selection at No. 26, followed by shortstop Wehiwa Aloy (No. 31), left-hander Zach Root (No. 40) and outfielder Charles Davalan (No. 41).
Two SEC teams made the College World Series, with LSU ultimately capturing the national championship. The Tigers' win marked the sixth straight season an SEC school had won the title. Dating back to 2009, Southeastern Conference teams have won the crown nine different times.
The draft is set to conclude Monday as rounds 4-20 take place on MLB Network.
Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
USA Today
2 hours ago
- USA Today
Three Longhorns earn spots on Walter Camp Player of the Year watch list
Walter Camp Player of the Year watch list includes three Longhorns With the start of the 2025 college football season less than a month away, three Longhorns stars have found themselves on a prestigious watch list. On Monday, Arch Manning, Anthony Hill Jr., and Colin Simmons were named to the Walter Camp National Player of the Year preseason watch list. The award is given annually to the national player of the year. While the Longhorns trio will face competition, they have each shown flashes of brilliance, starting with Manning. In 10 games last year, he showed why his future is bright in Austin. The New Orleans native completed 61 of 91 passes for 939 yards and nine touchdowns. His stellar play earned Manning the SEC's Co-Freshman of the Week on Sept. 16. While he thrived under center, the Longhorns got a boost from Simmons on defense. During his freshman campaign, Simmons led the team in sacks with nine. The talented edge also ranked second in tackles for a loss with 14. As Simmons made life difficult for offensive coordinators, he etched himself into the history books. He was rewarded for his stellar play with the Shaun Alexander National Freshman of the Year Award. Simmons is the only player in program history to take home the honors. On defense, Texas also got a boost from Hill. He led the Longhorns in total tackles with 103 and tackles for a loss with 16.5. In his second year in the Forty Acres, the Texas native was a model of consistency, appearing in all 16 games. As the talented linebacker was a human highlight reel, he added three double-digit tackling performances to his resume. Although the Longhorn trio is focused on winning a national title, they will be keeping a close eye on the award. The list will be narrowed to 10 semifinalists in early November. Then, a month later, the finalists will be revealed in early December. The winner will be announced on December 12th. Regardless of who wins the award, the Longhorns are in a good position to build on their success from last year. That is partly due to the trio of Manning, Hill, and Simmons, who are in a great position to do special things during the 2025 campaign.
Yahoo
7 hours ago
- Yahoo
ESPN's Analytics Has One SEC Program as Long Shot to Make College Football Playoff
ESPN's Analytics Has One SEC Program as Long Shot to Make College Football Playoff originally appeared on Athlon Sports. The Florida Gators are 19-19 in three seasons under head coach Billy Napier, who just went 8-5 in 2024. Now, the Gators have something else in their sights. Since its introduction to college football in 2014, Florida has never made the College Football Playoff. The format changed to allow 12 teams last season. ESPN's Analytics predicted each team's chances of making the CFP and gave Florida the lowest odds in the SEC, at 14.5%. While Florida appears to be taking a step in the right direction under Napier, it has been a challenging ride recently. The Gators' last 11-win season was in 2019 under former head coach Dan Mullen. Florida's path to the CFP is not an easy one either. The Gators have the most challenging schedule in college football again, much like last season. The program opens with Long Island and USF in its first two games before facing the LSU Tigers in Death Valley for its conference opener. Florida is then back on the road again, taking on in-state rival the Miami Hurricanes. Other crucial games for the Gators will be against the Texas Longhorns and the Georgia Bulldogs. Another potential problem could be the health of starting quarterback DJ Lagway. Lagway began training camp in a boot after a minor calf injury. He was eventually seen without the boot a few days later. If Lagway's injury problems persist during the season, it could be a long year for Florida. ESPN's Matt Barrie issued a warning about Lagway's health on a recent episode of "Always College Football." In recruiting, Florida has impressed with four-star edge rusher Mekai Brown, who hopes to return to Gainesville for a visit soon. Florida's season opener with Long Island is set for August story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Aug 2, 2025, where it first appeared.
USA Today
7 hours ago
- USA Today
Duke's Manny Diaz addresses new ACC availability reports in 2025
College football is moving toward a model of increased transparency when it comes to injuries. After the SEC instituted weekly availability reports last season during conference play, several other leagues have followed suit this offseason. Among them is the ACC, and commissioner Jim Phillips announced that the conference will begin publishing availability reports in football, basketball and baseball during the upcoming athletics season. As the Duke Blue Devils begin fall camp, coach Manny Diaz said that he's fairly ambivalent about the prospect of sharing availability reports. He pointed out that the league did something similar previously, as it mandated private injury sharing between teams during his stint as the head coach at Miami, though the practice has since been discontinued. 'When I was at Miami, we had it and then it went away,' Diaz said on Monday, per On3. 'You know, I don't spend a whole lot of time thinking about that. We'll do what they tell us to do.' The reports will mark a departure from Duke's previous injury policy under Diaz, however. In 2024, Diaz opted to avoid going into much detail about injuries beyond those that were season-ending. Now, the Blue Devils will be required to submit availability reports two days before games with those reports being updated in the days that follow as leagues around the country look to, among other things, curb the influence of sports betting within facilities. Follow us @DukeWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Duke news, notes, and opinions.
