The Preview: LSU Baseball at Ole Miss Rebels in Pivotal SEC Series Showdown

Jay Johnson and the defending National Champion LSU Tigers return to action on Friday night at Swayze Field for an SEC showdown against the Ole Miss Rebels.

In what will be a critical series for Johhson and Co. in Oxford, the Fightin' Tigers will look to bounce back after a midweek loss to Bethune-Cookman on Tuesday night.

“We structure our program around consistency – mentally, physically, training, and we haven’t gotten that consistency yet. We’ve got to keep pushing forward; there are some programs similar to ours that are going through some of the same things. We’re going to keep chopping wood, get ready for Ole Miss and help our guys along," Johnson said.

"We’re going to keep going; that’s always served me well in getting our teams out of these types of things. We have some guys that have been through some tough things within the season, and I want to them to draw from that experience and hopefully become more consistent.”

The Preview: LSU Fighting Tigers (22-12, 6-6) at Ole Miss Rebels (23-11, 5-7)

DATES/TIME
• Friday, April 10 at 6:30 p.m. CT (SEC Network +)

STADIUM
• Oxford-University Stadium, Swayze Field in Oxford, Miss. (10,323)

RADIO
• LSU Sports Radio Network affiliates
• Live audio at www.LSUsports.net/live; Live stats at www.LSUstats.com

RANKINGS
LSU – No. 24 (D1 Baseball)
UM – No. 25 (D1 Baseball)

LSU Tigers Baseball: Derek Curiel — Courtesy of LSU Tigers Baseball.

LSU SERIES RECORD VS. OLE MISS
LSU leads Ole Miss, 185-160, in a series that began in 1906 … LSU has captured nine of the past 13 regular-season series with Ole Miss, including three-game sweeps over the Rebels the last two times the teams met in the regular season (2023 in Oxford and 2024 in Baton Rouge) … the teams matched up in the semifinals of the 2025 SEC Tournament in Hoover, Ala., where the Rebels posted a 2-0 win over the Tigers.

PITCHING MATCHUPS
Game 1
LSU – So. RH Casan Evans (2-1, 4.97 ERA, 41.2 IP, 21 BB, 59 SO)
UM – Jr. LH Hunter Elliott (3-1, 3.79 ERA, 40.1 IP, 26 BB, 60 SO)

ABOUT THE TIGERS
• LSU is 22-12 overall, 6-6 in the SEC, and the Tigers are in a four-way tie for seventh place in the league standings … LSU won two of three SEC games at Tennessee last weekend, and the Tigers dropped a 10-7 decision to Bethune-Cookman on Tuesday night in Baton Rouge … LSU is No. 6 in the SEC with a .288 team batting average, and the Tigers are No. 13 in the league with a 4.58 team ERA.

• Catcher/DH Cade Arrambide was named SEC Co-Player of the Week on Monday after he batted .600 (6-for-10) in three games last week with four homers, eight RBI, six runs, three walks and a .692 on-base percentage … he led LSU to a series victory at Tennessee, establishing the school single-game home runs record by smashing four homers Sunday in the Tigers’ series-clinching 16-6 win over the Vols … Arrambide became just the fourth player in SEC history to hit four homers in a game … he was 5-for-6 on the day with seven RBI, three solo homers and a grand slam that highlighted LSU’s 10-run outburst in the top of the 12th inning.

• Arrambide’s first homer on Sunday came in the fifth inning with LSU trailing 5-0 and began the Tigers’ comeback from the deficit … his second homer in the seventh inning reduced Tennessee’s lead to 5-3, and his third homer gave LSU a 6-5 advantage in the top of the 11th … after Tennessee tied the game in the bottom of the 11th, Arrambide’s grand slam provided LSU with an 11-6 lead and highlighted a 10-run uprising in the 16-6 victory.

• Centerfielder Derek Curiel is hitting .500 (11-for-22) in his last five games with one triple, two homers, 11 RBI and eight runs scored … he hit grand slams in back-to-back games on March 31 versus Southern and last Friday at Tennessee, becoming the first LSU player to hit grand slams in consecutive games since Sean Ochinko accomplished the feat on March 4 and 5, 2009, versus New Orleans and Mississippi Valley State.

• Right-hander Zac Cowan delivered another outstanding SEC relief outing last Sunday at Tennessee, limiting the Vols to two unearned runs on just one hit in 4.0 innings with no walks and three strikeouts … in his four SEC relief appearances this season versus Vanderbilt, Oklahoma, Kentucky and Tennessee, Cowan has worked a combined 12.1 innings, posting a 0.00 ERA with three hits, one walk, 16 strikeouts and an .071 opponent batting average.

• Right-hander Gavin Guidry earned a relief win last Sunday at Tennessee with the longest outing of his career … he worked 5.1 innings, limiting the Vols to one run on two hits with one walk and one strikeout … right-hander Deven Sheerin picked up his second save of the season last Friday night at Tennessee, working the final 2.0 innings and limiting the Vols to one run on two hits with one walk and four strikeouts.

• LSU hit seven home runs in last Sunday’s win over Tennessee, marking the first time the Tigers hit seven dingers in a game since March 7, 2009, when they homered seven times against Illinois in Baton Rouge … Sunday’s home run output included three solo shots and a grand slam by catcher/DH Cade Arrambide, solo homers by third baseman John Pearson and by second baseman Seth Dardar, and a two-run blast by shortstop Steven Milam.

• LSU has recovered from deficits of three runs or more – including a seven-run deficit and two five-run deficits – in each of its last four wins … the Tigers trailed Kentucky, 7-0, entering the bottom of the third inning on March 29 before rallying for a 17-10 victory over the Wildcats … the comeback win over UK marked LSU’s largest since May 24, 2024, when the Tigers overcame an 8-0 deficit in an SEC Tournament game against South Carolina to record a 12-11 victory … LSU trailed Southern, 6-1, entering the bottom of the third inning on March 31 and rallied for a 16-6 victory … the Tigers trailed Tennessee, 4-1, last Friday night entering the top of the eighth inning and erupted for five runs in the eventual 7-5 win … LSU trailed Tennessee, 5-0, last Sunday entering the top of the fifth inning, fought back to send the game into extra innings, and secured a 16-6 victory by scoring 10 runs in the top of the 12th inning.

• LSU’s 10 runs in the top of the 12th inning last Sunday at Tennessee are the most in an extra-inning frame in LSU Baseball history … the previous high was seven runs in an extra-inning frame, which LSU had accomplished twice – on May 6, 1994, at Auburn (top of 10th inning), and on May 25, 1997, versus Long Beach State (top of 11th inning, LSU was the visiting team in an NCAA Regional in the original Alex Box Stadium).

ABOUT THE REBELS
• Ole Miss is 23-11 overall, 5-7 in the SEC … the Rebels, who are in a three-way tie for 11th place in the league standings, won two of three SEC games last weekend over Florida in Gainesville, Fla., and they defeated Alcorn State, 11-1, on Tuesday night … Ole Miss is No. 15 in the SEC with a .256 team batting average, and the Rebels are No. 5 in the league with a 3.70 team ERA.
• The Rebels are led at the plate by outfielder Tristan Bissetta, who is hitting .331 with six doubles, 14 homers and 38 RBI … infielder Judd Utermark is batting .298 with seven doubles, 13 homers and 32 RBI, and infielder Will Furniss, the son of former LSU All-American first baseman Eddy Furniss, is hitting .297 with six doubles, two homers and 22 RBI.
• The Ole Miss pitching staff has recorded 390 strikeouts in 294.2 innings while allowing 32 home runs and a .235 opponent batting average.

More LSU News:

LSU Football 'Making Major Push' for No. 1 WR in America Committed to SEC Rival

Lane Kiffin's Take: This Position Group On Offense Will Brew Significant Competition

Lane Kiffin Reveals Definitive Statement on Will Wade Returning to LSU Tigers

Join the Community:

Follow Zack Nagy on Twitter: @znagy20 and LSU Tigers On SI: @LSUTigersSI for all coverage surrounding the LSU Tigers.