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No. 8 FSU baseball to face No. 1Tennessee to open 2024 College World Series

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Florida State baseball knows its opening opponent in the 2024 College World Series.

The Seminoles (47-15) will meet top-seeded Tennessee (55-12) Friday at Charles Schwab Stadium in Omaha, Nebraska, following the Volunteers’ 12-1 victory over Evansville in Game 3 of their home super-regional Sunday.

FSU and UT will play either at 2 p.m. or 7 p.m.

The NCAA will announce the schedule of all eight teams that clinched the CWS Monday night.

FSU swept UConn in in its super regional at Howser Stadium, beating the Huskies 24-4 Friday and 10-8 in 12 innings Saturday. The Seminoles are 5-0 this postseason and have advanced to the CWS for the first time since 2019.

The Vols went 3-0 in the Knoxville Regional and won two-of-three against Evansville.

It will be the first time the Seminoles and Volunteers have played since FSU swept visiting UT in a three-game series to open the 2007 season.

What should we know about Tennessee?

Tennessee was the SEC regular season and Tournament champion.

The Vols have 173 home runs in 78 games, ranking them No. 1 in home runs nationally. The Volunteers also ranked sixth with a 3.90 earned run average.

The Volunteers have four players who made All-SEC honors.

UT is led by Christian Moore. Moore is ranked second with 102 hits. He leads the team with 32 home runs (5th nationally), 71 RBI, and a .796 slugging percentage.

A.J. Causey leads the Volunteers with 117 strikeouts, ranking No. 15 nationally. Causey is Tennessee’s top relief pitcher and is 13-3 on the mound.

Head coach Tony Vitello is in his sixth season with Tennessee. The Volunteers made the College World Series in the 2023 and 2021 seasons.

Link Jarrett’s connection to Tennessee

FSU coach Link Jarrett is familiar with the Volunteers.

In his last tenure at Notre Dame, his Fighting Irish beat Tennessee in the Knoxville Super Regional in 2022.

Even then, Tennessee was the No. 1 seed. Notre Dame went on to advance to the CWS.

What should we know about the College World Series?

All eight teams will be split into two double-elimination brackets. Virginia and North Carolina are in the same bracket as FSU and Tennessee.

Both ACC teams also swept their super regional to advance to the CWS.

FSU played Virginia once this season, beating the Cavs 12-7 in the ACC Tournament. FSU and UNC have not played this season.

The CWS best-of-three championship is set for June 22-24.

How can I watch FSU baseball vs. Tennessee Friday?

  • TV: ESPN (Channel 206 on DirecTV, Channel 140 on Dish)
  • Streaming: ESPN+ ($10.99 per month), WatchESPN and the ESPN app (TV provider subscription needed), fuboTV (7-day free trial), YouTube TV (2-week free trial), Hulu + Live TV (7-day free trial)

How can I listen to FSU baseball on the radio?

  • Radio: WFLA FM 100.7
  • Streaming: Seminole Sports Network

Peter Holland Jr. covers Florida State athletics for Tallahassee Democrat. Contact him via email at PHolland@Gannett.com or on X @_Da_pistol

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