5 Big Takeaways from Southern Miss Fall Baseball: Intriguing Prospects, Offensive Style Change and More

With the Fall World Series in the books, here’s what stood out about the 2027 Golden Eagles, from a faster, more aggressive offense to a freshman class that looks every bit as good as advertised.

A scene from Pete Taylor Park during Monday's Fall World Series Game 5. | Dalton Trigg

HATTIESBURG, Miss. – On a cool, clear, 70-degree Monday night at Pete Taylor Park, the Black squad beat the Gold 5-1 in a winner-take-all Game 5 to capture the 2026 Southern Miss Fall World Series. Cade Baker’s two-run triple broke a scoreless tie in the fourth, and Cade Adams’ two-run single put it away in the fifth.

And just like that, fall ball came and went in the blink of an eye.

And look, I'm not saying anyone needs to finalize any Nebraska travel plans for mid-to-late June based on a handful of intrasquad scrimmages in November, but there’s good reason the hype for 2027 keeps building. Southern Miss is coming off a 44-17 season in which it won both the Sun Belt regular-season and tournament titles. The program has also reached 40 wins in 10 straight full seasons, the longest active streak in the country.

Pete Taylor Park was rocking during Friday night's 2026 season opener between Southern Miss and UC Santa Barbara. | Clark Webster

And then, after all of that, head coach Christian Ostrander revamped his staff and roster in all phases as the Golden Eagles look to take the next step.

After spending a good chunk of the fall at The Pete, we came away genuinely excited about what this group could become. Plenty of fans walked across the street to Reed Green Coliseum for the men’s basketball opener right after the final out Monday night as college basketball season began, but the yearning for baseball in Hattiesburg never really goes away.

With that being said, here are five big takeaways from Southern Miss fall baseball.

Style Change: Ostrander, Rhodes Implementing "More Dynamic" Offense

Southern Miss baseball head coach Christian Ostrander during Tuesday's Pete Taylor Park renovation plans press conference. | Josh House

The biggest change this fall wasn’t a new face in the lineup. It was a new mindset at the plate and on the bases.

When longtime hitting coach Travis Creel left over the summer to become Jacksonville State’s head coach, Ostrander promoted recruiting coordinator Ladd Rhodes to take over the offense. The two go way back. Rhodes played for Ostrander in junior college and for a year in high school before coaching alongside him.

“He’s earned it,” Ostrander told Southern Miss Golden Eagles On SI in October. “... when Travis left, it was pretty evident that, ‘Hey, man, it’s your turn. This is your opportunity to create your legacy as a hitting coach, as an offensive coach.’”

Southern Miss baseball assistant coach Ladd Rhodes looks on from the Golden Eagles' dugout. | Southern Miss Athletics

Even before Rhodes' promotion, though, the style change was coming either way. As good as Southern Miss was in 2026, that roster didn’t have a ton of speed and sometimes leaned on the long ball a little too much. Coach Oz saw a chance to change that with the athletes he was bringing in, and Rhodes’ convictions happened to line up perfectly with what he was already thinking of changing.

“I’m a pitching defense guy, right? I love the three-run home run. I love offense. But I also want to be able to be dynamic,” Ostrander said. “... It looks like there’s going to be opportunity for some more athleticism, being a little bit more dynamic offensively instead of just station-to-station. So that was by design anyway, and then now the [coaching] change ... it all lines up with his convictions and beliefs.”

That’s not to say the Eagles are abandoning power altogether. For example, Drey Barrett, the hero of that walk-off grand slam in Montgomery, is back, and Coach Oz believes he’s poised to take the next step. Davis Gillespie, one of Southern Miss' top sluggers from last year, is also back. But this offense now looks like it’ll have more than one way to beat you.

Golden Eagles Show Off Great Speed

Southern Miss freshman infielder Justin Word steals second base during a fall scrimmage. | Russ Cloy Photography

If you watched any of the fall scrimmages, the new approach jumped out right away. This roster can fly.

Guys were getting out of the box in a hurry after contact, turning routine ground balls into bang-bang plays at first and taking the extra base whenever the defense gave them an inch. And with Rhodes encouraging aggressiveness on the basepaths, the Golden Eagles stole a lot more bases this fall than we’re used to seeing at The Pete.

Even Dustin Dickerson, the former Golden Eagles standout shortstop who returned this offseason as an infield player development coach, noticed it right away, especially with the newcomers.

Southern Miss infield player development coach Dustin Dickerson during a Golden Eagles fall scrimmage. | Russ Cloy Photography

“The freshmen are bigger than ever. They’re strong, physical, faster than I ever was as a player,” Dickerson told Southern Miss Golden Eagles On SI. “It’s pretty cool to see.”

For a program that set a school record for home runs the season before last, adding that kind of speed and pressure could make this lineup a nightmare for opponents to navigate come February.

Intriguing Prospects: Freshman Class Living Up to the Billing

Southern Miss freshmen Gavin Smith (29) and Bankston Walters (33) during a fall scrimmage. | Russ Cloy Photography

When I spoke with Coach Oz in early October, he didn’t hold back about this group of newcomers.

“I’ll say it, I think it’s the best in... I’ve been here 10 years now, and it’s, I think, the best one that I’ve seen from top to bottom, pitching and offense,” Ostrander said.

That’s a bold statement, given how much talent has come through this program over the years, but after watching this fall, it’s hard to argue with him.

Freshman first baseman Gavin Smith had a great fall, which shouldn’t come as much of a surprise. The 6-foot-1, 238-pound Vestavia Hills, Ala., product hit .473 with five home runs as a senior and earned Alabama Sports Writers Association Class 7A First-Team All-State honors. Grand Canyon transfer Cannon Peery is expected to start at first, but Smith could work his way into the lineup, possibly at designated hitter.

Southern Miss freshman first baseman Gavin Smith during a fall scrimmage. | Russ Cloy Photography

Another note on Smith: it's hard not to see a little bit of Matthew "Bull" Russo in him when he's at the plate as a lefty or over at first base. He's got a long way to go to reach that kind of stature, but you can certainly see the potential. During the Golden Eagles' Fall World Series, Smith hit an outstanding .545 with three doubles, one triple and four RBI.

He’s far from the only fantastic freshman. Hometown kid Bankston Walters, Henry Abt, Justin Word, and Shaun Cover, among others, all flashed this fall.

Southern Miss freshman infielder Justin Word fields a ball from the shortstop position during a fall scrimmage. | Russ Cloy Photography

From what I observed, I was especially impressed with Word's elite athleticism, speed and versatility in the infield. Whether he was at shortstop, second base, or third base, he consistently made tough plays look routine. And he's got a solid bat to go along with it, too. The infield competition will be high going into the winter and spring, but it wouldn't surprise me at all to see Word getting some run from day one.

“The freshman class, man, is really cool,” Dickerson said. “They’re strong, and we’re really excited.”

Weekend Rotation Looks Ready to Roll

Southern Miss ace Grayden Harris looked as sharp as ever during the fall. | Russ Cloy Photography

Coach Oz may be embracing a more dynamic offense, but he’ll be the first to tell you he’s a pitching-and-defense guy at heart. Good news on that front: Southern Miss returns its entire weekend rotation.

Grayden Harris, Camden Clark and Camden Sunstrom all spent part of the summer at USA Baseball’s Collegiate National Team camp, and all three looked sharp in the Fall World Series. Harris allowed one hit with five strikeouts over three innings in the opener. In Game 5, Sunstrom and Clark traded three scoreless frames apiece before either offense could get going.

There’s depth behind them, too. Ostrander believes Southern Miss landed the two best junior college pitchers in Mississippi: Drew Harrison, a junior from Pearl River Community College with starter potential, and Luke Williams, a sophomore from East Central Community College who profiles as a possible closer.

Williams showed potential as the Eagles' new closer throughout the fall, striking out batters with a fastball that touched 97 mph and a good changeup as well.

"He wants to be a closer," Ostrander said. "It was documented in the communication, and that's what he wants. That's what he wants to be, and I'm like, 'Good. That's what I want you to be.' So that's what he's chasing, and he's got plenty of stuff to do it."

And even with those guys mentioned, that's just scratching the surface on Southern Miss' pitching depth, which will return experienced arms like Thomas Crabtree and Josh Och, as well as a number of younger guys looking to take that next step in Bruce Littleton and Teague Broadhead.

Competition Everywhere You Look

Southern Miss outfielder William Tonsmeire at the plate during a fall scrimmage. | Russ Cloy Photography

Perhaps the most encouraging thing about this fall was how many spots still feel up for grabs. There is more competition than ever before for Southern Miss baseball, which bodes well for how sharp this team could be come spring.

“I think there’s enough returners that had opportunities last year, some a little more than others, that maybe they weren’t everyday starters, that they’re chasing something,” Ostrander said in October. “Man, there’s a ton of competition on that field this fall for [many] spots, for [many] positions. That’s really cool to see.”

Outfielder William Tonsmeire is one returner Coach Oz specifically mentioned as having improved. Then there are the newcomers. Outfield transfer Cade Baker delivered the biggest hit of Game 5. Brady Waugh, the Hattiesburg-born UAB transfer battling for the starting job at second base, capped his fall with an RBI single in the clincher. It was just one of a handful of good moments Waugh had over the last few weeks.

Southern Miss infielder Brady Waugh gets a hit during a fall scrimmage at Pete Taylor Park. | Kendal Hedrick, USM Creative

“There’s a ton of competition," Dickerson said.

More times than not, a roster that pushes itself this hard in the fall is ready when the lights come on in February.

The Countdown to Opening Day Begins

A look at the beautiful sunset at Pete Taylor Park from the 16oz Lounge. | Clark Webster

With fall ball wrapped up, the Golden Eagles will open the 2027 season Feb. 17 at Pete Taylor Park against North Dakota State. You can check out our full breakdown of the 2027 season schedule here.

It’s going to be a long winter filled with anticipation, but if this fall was any indication, this team has a chance to be special, and there are plenty of chapters yet to be written.

Stay tuned to Southern Miss Golden Eagles On SI for more Southern Miss baseball coverage throughout the offseason.