‘Back on the map’: How Florida State baseball clinched first College World Series berth since 2019

Omaha, Nebraska, is a place that Florida State baseball hasn’t been since 2019. Until now. The Seminoles clinched a berth in the 2024 College World Series with an NCAA Super Regional sweep over UConn.

Florida State baseball is returning to a place it hasn’t been for half a decade.

Omaha, Nebraska.

The Seminoles (47-15) clinched a spot in the College World Series with a sweep over the UConn Huskies (35-26) in the NCAA Tournament’s Tallahassee Super Regional, ending with a 10-8 win in 12 innings in Saturday’s game two.

Since FSU’s last College World Series appearance in 2019, reaching the eight-team tournament in Omaha was only a dream in the Seminoles locker room.

Now, it’s a reality.

“Just being able to be part of putting Florida State baseball back on the map has been a wild ride,” said FSU’s James Tibbs III, who slammed three home runs against UConn Saturday.

“We’ve had conversations about being the next Omaha team. Words can’t describe how thankful I am and how cool this is. It’s perfect. It’s exactly how I want it to be.”

FSU baseball coach Link Jarrett last reached the College World Series in 2022, leading the Notre Dame Fighting Irish to the second round. His success at Notre Dame parlayed him into getting the coaching job at his alma mater, FSU, ahead of the 2023 season, which saw the Seminoles miss the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1977.

“As you move to different programs, they need different assets and tweaking to get the roster and the program how you want to construct it,” Jarrett said. “I reflect on how challenging that is ― especially in this day and age. There’s a lot that goes into it.

“And I’m proud. It’s not easy to go there. I’m so excited for these guys.”

The College World Series begins on Friday, June 14, at Charles Schwab Field in Omaha, Nebraska.

FSU will meet the NCAA Super Regional series winner between Tennessee and Evansville in the first round of the eight-team double-elimination College World Series tournament. Tennessee and Evansville will play a winner-takes-all game on Sunday at 6 p.m.

“[FSU’s] a very good team and going to make some noise in Omaha,” said UConn’s Matt Malcom, who homered at the bottom of the ninth inning to force extra innings.

FSU baseball’s experience at the College World Series matches up with top sports environments

Jarrett went to Omaha thrice (1991, 1992, 1994) as the Seminoles’ starting shortstop.

As a head coach, Jarrett is entering his second College World Series.

Jarrett didn’t hoist the trophy in any of his five appearances.

However, his experience with the double-elimination tournament has provided him with knowledge as he leads his Seminoles to where only eight teams in the nation get to go.

“There’s a lot of things that come at you in Omaha,” Jarrett said of the College World Series. “The opening weekend in Omaha is right up there, with an experience at an NFL Super Bowl, playoff-type game, the Final Four, and Augusta ― it’s that.

“And they’re going to feel it. And I’m probably more prepared for it now because of what I had to go through.”

To open the FSU-UConn series on Friday, the Seminoles scored the most runs ever in an NCAA Super Regional game in their 24-4 win. FSU and UConn went down to the wire on Saturday in extra innings.

The two games gave UConn head baseball coach Jim Penders an idea of how FSU can fare in the College World Series, regardless of who they match up with.

“They should feel very confident heading to Omaha. It’s something to have to do in front of those people. There’s pressure there,” Penders said of FSU.

“Congratulations to Florida State. We hope they go on to win it all.”

Experiencing loss moves FSU baseball to its 24th College World Series appearance

Last season, FSU endured one of its worst seasons in recent memory, finishing 23-31 and missing the entire postseason.

However, the Seminoles’ success this season was something the Omaha-bound squad envisioned when preseason camp began.

“It’s so surreal,” said FSU relief pitcher Conner Whitaker, who notched the save in the Seminoles win over the Huskies Saturday.

“From day one, when we got here in the fall, you could feel the new vibe and the culture we needed here. We have such good chemistry and compete for each other and our coaches. We love being together every single day.

“We just want to win at the end of the day.”

As Jarrett coached his Seminoles to their first College World Series appearance since 2019, he always recalled lessons learned from his college coach, Mike Martin.

Martin, the last to coach FSU to the College World Series before Saturday, passed away from Lewy body dementia last February.

Now Jarrett, standing where Martin once stood, looks to finish the story in capturing FSU’s first national championship at the College World Series.

“He means so much to me. I think about him all the time and how he would handle a situation in a game,” Jarrett said of Martin. “He was a remarkable man — Father figure. I’m proud of what he helped me learn along the way.

“There’s one more thing that I want to do. And we all know what that is. This is a step towards that ultimate quest. The mindset is to go finish it off for him.”

Gerald Thomas, III covers Florida A&M University Athletics for the Tallahassee Democrat. Contact him via email at gdthomas@tallahassee.com or on the app formerly known as Twitter @3peatgee.