The Projected Rotation for Ole Miss in NCAA Baseball Regional Tournament

The one, two, three starters for the Rebels heading into the Nebraska regional

May 31, 2025; Oxford, MS, USA; Mississippi Rebels starting pitcher Hunter Elliott (26) reacts after a strike out to end the sixth inning against the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images | Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

The Ole Miss baseball team, ranked No. 18 in the nation, was selected this past Monday by ESPN to head down to Lincoln, Nebraska, for the Nebraska regional. Ole Miss is joined by Arizona State, ranked 22nd in the nation, South Dakota State, and, of course, Nebraska, ranked 20th in the nation, this upcoming weekend.

Ole Miss got the bottom half of the bracket during regional play, facing off against Arizona State starting Friday, May 29, at 8:00 pm CT. Coverage of the game will be on ESPN 2. The Sun Devils went 37-19 overall and 19-11 in BIG 12 play, good for third in the conference.

How Bianco will rotate the starters

Ole Miss head coach Mike Bianco talks with members of the press after a college baseball game between Ole Miss and Southern Miss at Trustmark Park in Pearl, Miss., on Tuesday, April 14, 2026. Ole Miss defeated Southern Miss 10-3. | Ayrton Breckenridge/Clarion Ledger / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Head coach Mike Bianco has yet to pick a starter for this weekend's battle. Most likely, as it's been all year, the ace of the squad, Hunter Elliott, will get the nod Friday versus the Sun Devils. When asked if he has made a decision yet, Bianco said, "Nah."

“We’ll decide that probably later tonight or tomorrow. (Pitching coach) Joel (Mangrum) didn’t get a chance to see too much. And, so we’ll reconvene again. We talked a little bit about it right before practice, but we’ll talk more about it and promise to try to get it out to everybody as soon as we can.”

The rotation all year has been Elliott, Townsend, and then Rabe, and it looks like little will change.

Day 1 - Hunter Elliott

May 31, 2025; Oxford, MS, USA; Mississippi Rebels starting pitcher Hunter Elliott (26) pitches during the second inning against the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images | Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

Elliott has been the ace for the Rebels since he stepped on campus back in 2022. The senior captain has been in this situation before and is one of the most experienced pitchers in the NCAA. Though having a down year with a 5-3 record and an ERA just above five across 14 starts, Elliott still should be the day one guy.

ASU hasn't matched up the best against left-handed starters, having a record of 8-7 when lefties start on the mound compared to 29-12 when facing righties. Elliott has had some command issues this spring, and ASU walks a lot. The Sun Devils have 126 walks across 2026, 4.34 walks a game, and a team OBP of .415. When 42 percent of the time your lineup is getting on base, the pitcher is always going to have problems.

If Elliott can find his command early, ASU is going to have problems hitting the lefty veteran. Elliott is the safest big game option as he has the experience and talent to give the Rebels five to six quality innings to keep the bullpen fresh.

Day 2 - Cade Townsend

Ole Miss pitcher Cade Townsend (10) celebrates a strikeout during a NCAA baseball game between Tennessee and Ole Miss at Lindsey Nelson Stadium on April 18, 2026. | Angelina Alcantar/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Townsend, numbers-wise, has been the ace for Ole Miss all spring. Up until recently, the sophomore has been electric. He creates tons of swings and misses, averaging 6.2 strikeouts per game. His last two starts have been rocky, giving up six earned runs to Texas A&M and five earned runs to Alabama.

Before these starts, Townsend's ERA was at 2.42, giving him the best ERA amongst Rebel starters. Townsend, in these recent starts, hasn't had the same command issues as Elliott; he's actually been pounding the strike zone. He keeps his walk count low; the most walks he has given up this year is three, and that was to Texas back in March.

The problem for Townsend was keeping the ball too high in the zone. In his start on May 9th against the Aggies, where he gave up six runs, all those runs came on pitches high in the zone that were taken for extra base hits. He also had four strikeouts that game, and those came on low and away sliders or changeups.

Day 3 - Taylor Rabe

University of Mississippi baseball player Taylor Rabe (50) pitches a ball during the Governor’s Cup played against Mississippi State University at Trustmark Park on April 22, 2025, in Pearl, Miss. | Sarah Warnock/Special to Clarion Ledger / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Rebels' day three guy had a fantastic end-of-the-season outing against Alabama. Taylor Rabe went six scoreless innings, giving up just one walk and one hit on 13 strikeouts. His start before that against Texas A&M, he struck out 14 hitters across six innings.

A great sign for the Rebels when your day three starter is striking out batters in the double digits. Rabe has had an interesting season up until this point. The Sophomore finished the regular season with a 4.08 ERA, but that is no way to judge his season. In that start against Texas A&M, he indeed struck out 14 hitters, but he also gave up five earned runs.

Rabe, throughout the year, has had similar outings, like when he faced Georgia, he allowed three runs, but he complemented it with six strikeouts, or against Arkansas, where he struck out seven but still allowed three to cross the plate. Like his teammate Townsend, he has electric fastballs that need proper location or hitters will take them out of the park.

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