@RazorbackBSB on X
By Chris Marler
The final day in Hoover is upon us. The Georgia Bulldogs and Arkansas Razorbacks will face off in the SEC Baseball Tournament championship game.
How we got here
Georgia won the regular season by a whopping 3.5 games, finishing 23-7 in regular season conference play. The preseason No. 9 team in the league according to the media is now one game away from winning the regular season and conference tournament. It is the fourth time the Bulldogs gave reached the championship game and first since 1989.
𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐃𝐀𝐖𝐆𝐒 𝐀𝐑𝐄 𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐃𝐄𝐃 𝐓𝐎 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐌𝐏𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒𝐇𝐈𝐏‼️
Georgia wins the SEC Tournament semifinal game against Florida to advance. The Bulldogs will face the winner of tonight’s Arkansas/Auburn game tomorrow at 2 p.m. ET.#GoDawgs | @WellsFargo pic.twitter.com/B0zAPY3Tpl
— Georgia Baseball (@BaseballUGA) May 23, 2026
The Dawgs got here by doing what they’ve done all year, finding ways to win. Their opening game against Mississippi State showed off their pitching and timely hitting. Saturday’s win over Florida was a direct result of their offense fighting until the very last out and a little bit of help from mother nature as well. Georgia was down 7-3 to Florida when a weather delay hit. When the lightning and rain stopped, and the feral kids of Hoover were done slip ‘n sliding down the left field line, Georgia stormed back and won the game 8-7 to advance.
For Arkansas the road hasn’t been as easy, but they’ve made it look like it. The Hogs came in as the No. 7 seed and opened play on Wednesday against Tennessee. They then had to face the tournament favorite, Texas, on Friday and beat the daylights out of both of them.
On Saturday, their pitching that was dominant in a 2-1 win over Auburn to advance to the finals.
Shortstop Camden Kozeal has led the way hitting .600 on the week with seven RBIs. The MVP of the week may still be the rally moth they captured Saturday night during the rain delay that was apparently the catalyst in their go ahead home run and win after the rain delay.
https://x.com/NCAABaseball/status/2058375705918890388?s=20
What’s at stake
Georgia has definitely solidified their case as a top eight national seed. That should have been the case weeks ago, but there were still some prognosticators that felt like they needed to advance deep into the tournament to etch their name in the top eight for the NCAA tournament. Now the question becomes can they potentially get the No. 1 overall seed for the tournament. They would have to jump UCLA and Georgia Tech for that to happen which will be tough considering both of those teams have been slotted for those spots for most of the season.
For Arkansas a win would guarantee them a regional host site. They’re currently projected to be the No. 16 seed and host the Fayetteville Regional. A loss shouldn’t necessarily change that, especially since they knocked off two top eight national seeds to get here in Texas and Auburn. Still, a win would leave no doubt and add another trophy to the case.
Prediction
Arkansas’ bats have made the most noise so far this week, but the pitching staff has stolen the show in Hoover. The Hogs have allowed just six runs in three games including just one in each of their last two.
These two faced off in a weekend series in Fayetteville earlier this year and the Dawgs beat the Hogs 2-1. Georgia’s bats went off that weekend scoring 34 runs in three games with 26 of those coming in the Sunday finale.
I like how well Arkansas is playing right now, and they have much more experience in this setting. But they’ve had to use at least three pitchers in every game. Georgia has only had to play two games and is better rested. They’re the favorite to win and have done nothing to give anyone pause to how elite of a team they continue to prove to be.
So, give me the Hogs. Where’s the fun in picking favorites?
Arkansas 7, Georgia 5
List of animals/insects (that I know of) that Arkansas baseball has wrangled up over the years:
– massive moth
– opossum
– racoon
– cat
– squirrel
Any others I’m forgetting?Honestly wild the amount of wild creatures hog baseball attracts. pic.twitter.com/t47ImpSpow
— Random SEC (@therandomsec) May 24, 2026
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