OMAHA, Neb. — Tennessee will enter the final game of the 2024 college baseball season the way it entered the postseason — as the heavy favorite to claim the program’s first College World Series title.
The Volunteers’ vaunted offense drove a comeback win in Game 2 to force Monday’s series finale at 7 p.m. ET at Charles Schwab Field. Texas A&M (53-14) dominated Game 1, held the lead for much of Sunday’s game and has proven to be more than a worthy adversary as the Aggies also seek their first CWS title.
Tennessee (59-13) is the +170 favorite at BetMGM as the Vols attempt to become the first No. 1 seed in a quarter-century to win the title. They’re already the first No. 1 national seed in 15 years to reach the CWS finals, and needed a comeback win to avoid being swept.
A first-inning home run by Jace LaViolette provided Texas A&M a lead it was able to hold until the seventh inning on Sunday afternoon. The bullpen surrendered a pair of two-run homers to provide the eventual final score of 4-1, and the Aggies now find themselves as the +115 underdogs entering Monday night’s final showdown.
The public has been split, with Tennessee backed by 64 percent of the spread-line money while Texas A&M has drawn 52 percent of the total bets. However, the Vols’ -135 moneyline has received one-sided action with 79 percent of the money and 71 percent of the total bets wagered.
With the teams playing for the third time in as many days, the public is expecting a high-scoring finale. The 10.5-run Over/Under has seen the Over backed by 54 percent of the money.
Tennessee’s powerful offense, which had been 0-for-16 with runners on base and 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position, finally came to life with two massive homers on Sunday. The first one, belted over Tennessee’s bullpen in right field, sent Texas A&M to its first deficit in this year’s CWS.
KEY STAT
Tennessee is averaging 9.0 runs per game during the postseason while Texas A&M is averaging 10.5.
THEY SAID IT
“There is something I guess, poetic, about a season that starts in February and a postseason that started a month ago, players who have worked for this their whole lives, and all these years of our fans waiting for a chance to win it all, that all of that would come to a Game 3 tomorrow.” –Texas A&M coach Jim Schlossnagle following Game 2.
–Field Level Media