Georgia Bulldogs
The 2026 SEC Champions arrive at the postseason with a nation-high 142 home runs, a historically rare catcher anchoring the lineup, and a bullpen built to win in June — the program’s most complete team in years under third-year head coach Wes Johnson.
Los Angeles – UCLA | Atlanta – Georgia Tech | Athens – Georgia | Auburn – Auburn | Chapel Hill – North Carolina | Austin – Texas | Tuscaloosa – Alabama | Gainesville – Florida | Hattiesburg – Southern Miss | College Station – Texas A&M | Tallahassee – Florida State | Lawrence – Kansas | Eugene – Oregon | Morgantown – West Virginia | Lincoln – Nebraska | Starkville – Mississippi State
Georgia is the 2026 SEC Champion, winning the conference title for the first time since 2008 and for just the eighth time in program history. The Bulldogs clinched the crown with four games remaining in the regular season, finished with a program-record 22 SEC wins, and enter the postseason ranked No. 5 nationally with a 41-11 record. Head coach Wes Johnson has assembled the most power-oriented lineup in the country, with a nation-high 142 home runs led by one of the most historically remarkable individual seasons from any catcher in the modern era of college baseball.
The roster is a masterpiece of portal construction. Johnson added 13 portal pitchers and nine portal position players in the offseason to supplement a returning core of seven position players and eight pitchers, and the results have been exceptional. Georgia posted back-to-back road sweeps of No. 5 Mississippi State and No. 4 Auburn during a nine-game winning streak, and has won 11 of their last 13 series entering the postseason.
The Nation’s Most Dangerous Power Lineup
Georgia leads the country in home runs and it isn’t close. The Bulldogs have hit 142 as a team — powered by a lineup that has five players with 13 or more home runs — and have recorded seven grand slams this season. The engine of the entire offense is junior catcher Daniel Jackson, who has accomplished something never done before in SEC history: 20 home runs and 20 stolen bases in the same season. Jackson’s combination of elite power and premium speed from behind the plate is genuinely unprecedented in modern college baseball, and he has been a Golden Spikes Award and Howser Trophy semifinalist as a result.
Jackson is hardly alone. Junior third baseman Tre Phelps — ranked second nationally in hit-by-pitches with a program-record 30 — is a .361 hitter with 17 home runs and is a Howser Trophy semifinalist alongside Jackson. Senior shortstop Kolby Branch has 13 home runs and is approaching the school record for career grand slams. Sophomore center fielder Rylan Lujo leads the SEC in batting average in conference games. The lineup attacks from every angle.
First SEC player ever with 20 HR / 20 SB in same season · Golden Spikes & Howser Trophy semifinalist · SEC Player of the Week
Howser Trophy semifinalist · Golden Spikes Watch List · #2 nationally in HBP · 27-game hitting streak dating from 2025
T-7th in Georgia career HR history · 6 career grand slams (1 shy of school record) · SEC Community Service Team
SEC batting leader in conference games · .670 SLG% in SEC play · key portal addition who has excelled in the biggest games
51 career home runs · delivered multiple HR games four times this season · clutch presence in the middle of the order
A Reliable Bullpen Anchors a Solid but Unspectacular Rotation
Georgia’s pitching staff is not the reason they win games — the offense is. But the Bulldogs have been good enough on the mound to complement the power production, holding opponents to a .233 batting average and posting a 4.36 team ERA. The rotation is fronted by junior right-hander Joey Volchko (7-2, 4.41 ERA), who gives Georgia a dependable Friday option, and right-hander Dylan Vigue (4-1, 2.79 ERA) has been excellent in the Saturday role. The real strength of the staff, however, is the bullpen.
Coach Johnson has built a four-man relief corps that he trusts in any high-leverage situation. Graduate right-hander Caden Aoki, redshirt junior Justin Byrd, and senior Matt Scott form the backbone of the group, combining for a 2.98 ERA and eight saves across 84.2 innings of relief. Senior right-hander Paul Farley has provided a fifth dependable option. This is a bullpen built like a June pitching staff — experienced, versatile arms who have all started at various points in their careers.
| Pitcher | W-L | ERA | K | Role | SV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Joey Volchko RHP · Jr. · Friday Starter | 7-2 | 4.41 | 67 | SP | — |
Dylan Vigue RHP · Jr. · Saturday Starter | 4-1 | 2.79 | 53 | SP | — |
Caden Aoki RHP · Gr. · Bullpen Anchor (Transfer — USC) | 6-0 | 3.19 | 63 | RP | 6 |
Justin Byrd RHP · R-Jr. · High-Leverage Relief | 4-0 | — | 49 | RP | — |
Matt Scott RHP · Sr. · Multi-Inning Relief | 6-0 | — | 50 | RP | — |
Paul Farley RHP · Sr. · Swing / Long Relief | 6-1 | — | — | RP | 5 |
“Georgia’s trio of Aoki, Byrd and Scott are a combined 8-1 with a 2.98 ERA and eight saves across 84.2 innings of relief — a bullpen built for the postseason.”
— Georgia Athletics, April 2026- 2026 SEC Champions — first title since 2008, 8th in program history
- Program-record 22 SEC wins in a single season
- Nation-high 142 team home runs — 5 players with 13 or more
- 7 grand slams on the season — O’Shaughnessy with 2
- Daniel Jackson: first SEC player ever with 20 HR / 20 SB in one season
- Tre Phelps: school-record 30 hit-by-pitches, 27-game hitting streak
- Road sweep of #5 Mississippi State and #4 Auburn in back-to-back weeks
- Won 9 straight games during SEC title run (11 of last 13 series)
- Kolby Branch: 43 career home runs at Georgia, T-7th in program history
- Bullpen (Aoki/Byrd/Scott): 2.98 ERA and 8 saves across 84.2 IP combined
Georgia enters the 2026 NCAA Tournament as one of the most genuinely dangerous teams in the field. The offense is historically powerful — 142 home runs leads the nation, five players with double-digit long balls, and a catcher delivering the most remarkable individual season at the position in SEC history. When Daniel Jackson is locked in, this lineup can score runs in chunks off anyone in college baseball, and Tre Phelps gives them a second threat capable of carrying a game on his own.
The pitching is where things get complicated. Volchko has been a reliable Friday arm but the 4.41 ERA suggests he can be had. Vigue has been significantly better and gives the Bulldogs a legitimate edge in Game 2. The bullpen is the equalizer — Aoki, Byrd, and Scott have been as dependable a back-end trio as any team in the SEC this year, and Georgia’s strategy of winning the first two games and letting the bullpen handle Sunday is a time-tested postseason formula.
The Rest of the Regional Field
LIU draws the toughest possible 4-vs-1 assignment in the field: opening against the No. 5 overall seed Georgia and the nation’s home run leader. The Sharks are NEC conference tournament champions — their third bid in recent years under coach Dan Pirillo, who has built LIU into the standard-bearer of the conference. Their pitching staff generates consistent soft contact and their lineup has the professional hitting approach that makes them harder to put away than their seed suggests. Nicholas Finarelli gets the ball in Game 1 against the Bulldogs’ power lineup.
Liberty finishes 37-18 and earns an at-large bid after a strong second half that included a midweek win over ACC opponent Wake Forest — the kind of result that separates a C-USA at-large from a pure conference-only resume. Bradley LeCroy’s second-year program significantly exceeded preseason expectations (picked seventh in C-USA) and arrives with a pitching-first identity that limits walks and generates soft contact. Ben Blair gets the ball in the opener against Boston College, and his command-based approach gives the Flames a realistic chance to advance past the first game of the bracket.
Boston College finishes 36-19 in a season defined by two distinct halves — early series wins over UNC and Wake Forest followed by three consecutive series losses that dampened their seeding. First-year coach Chris Pollard’s Eagles have the pitching to make Georgia uncomfortable in a potential Saturday matchup, and their lineup has shown the ability to produce against quality ACC pitching all year. A.J. Colarusso gets the opener against Liberty, and the Eagles need to win that game to avoid an early loser’s bracket descent in the Athens bracket.
Game 1 Matchup Projections
Game 1 — LIU vs. Georgia
| RPI | Team | Projected Starter | Line / Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 199 | LIU | Nicholas Finarelli | 17.64 |
| 7 | Georgia ★ | Joey Volchko | -282.22 |
Game 2 — Liberty vs. Boston College
| RPI | Team | Projected Starter | Line / Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 32 | Liberty ★ | Ben Blair | -173.91 |
| 34 | Boston College | A.J. Colarusso | 12.68 |
Stadium Wind Conditions
Foley Field Wind Map → Windy.comRegional Pick: Georgia is one of the few Regional hosts that is underpriced in the market. The Bulldogs would be a minimum -290 in every pitching matchup against Boston College, as that number inflates against LIU and Liberty. While the offense is unmatched nationally, LIU may be able to provide some thump for an Over in the first game. The Sharks are 5th nationally in runs and 11th in OBP. Pending the wind at Foley Field, there could be an opening play on the total.
Liberty is the sleeper here in terms of seeding, supporing much better numbers than Boston College. The Flames had a winning record against Quad 1 and Quad 2 teams, also generating better pitching numbers across the board versus the Eagles.
- Regional: Georgia -370
- Game 1: Liberty -170 or Better v Boston College
- Game 1: Georgia/LIU Over 17 or Better
