Southern Miss Great Carson Paetow Talks About Right Field Traditions and More

On the latest episode of Nasty Bunch and Beyond, former Southern Miss baseball star Carson Paetow talks about the upcoming season, his confidence in his successor in right field, what makes right field so special at USM, and more.

Carson Paetow joins the Nasty Bunch & Beyond podcast to talk about the upcoming season for Southern Miss baseball. / Dalton Trigg

With Opening Day for the 2026 NCAA baseball season just a few days away, excitement continues to build for a Southern Miss baseball program that is already ranked in the Top 20 to start the year. The Golden Eagles will start things off by facing UC Santa Barbara at Pete Taylor Park on Friday at 4 p.m.

Although many familiar faces are returning for the Black and Gold, the change in right field this year will take fans some time to adjust to. For the first time in four years, former Southern Miss baseball slugger and outfielder Carson Paetow, who ranks fifth all-time in program history in both home runs and RBIs, won't be in right field at The Pete, as he graduated last spring. Instead, the former player-turned-fan will be taking in USM baseball from the 16 oz. Lounge adjacent to right field this year.

Paetow, who is also affectionately known as "Tuna" by the Southern Miss faithful, joined the Nasty Bunch & Beyond podcast this week to talk about his excitement for USM baseball, what makes right field at The Pete so special, his confidence in his potential successor in right field, a new sophomore addition to the USM baseball leadership council, and more.

With a new USM baseball season about to start, I caught up with @CarsonPaetow to talk about what makes right field so special at The Pete, his confidence in his successor & more on @NastyBunchPod. #SMTTT

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— Dalton Trigg (@dalton_trigg) February 10, 2026

"Obviously, Ben Higdon's a good baseball player. I think anybody on that roster right now could play right field, but in terms of it being as special of a spot as it is, the fans definitely want interaction," Paetow said of redshirt senior Ben Higdon potentially taking his spot in right field this year. "(The fans) love when the players interact with them, and I, maybe sometimes more than I should have, I focused on interacting with the fans during the game. I think they enjoyed that.

"So I think Hig has a good personality to fill that right-field position. I think (the fans out there) are going to love him. He loves some good chirps and loves jokes. He loves interaction. Like I said, it really is a special spot out there. A lot of fun memories (for me) out there."

It will be bittersweet for fans to see someone new in right field this year. Yes, it's a little sad that Paetow will no longer be out there, but it's also encouraging that he has so much faith in the guy who could be stepping into that spot. That's part of what makes the Southern Miss tradition of excellence so special. When one guy leaves, another guy who has put in a ton of work is ready to step in and produce at a high level.