The Diamond Heels will host an NCAA Super Regional at Boshamer Stadium for the third consecutive year this weekend. And for a fifth consecutive time, UNC’s Super Regional opponent will be an unseeded team. The USC Trojans (47-16, 20-10 Big Ten) emerged out of their region the hard way, losing Friday to fall into the loser’s bracket but then earning wins against Lamar and Texas State (which had beaten the Trojans Friday) to advance to the regional final against host and No. 12 overall seed Texas A&M. There, USC dominated the Aggies on back-to-back nights to punch its ticket to the Super Regional round.
Here’s more on Carolina’s opponent this weekend:
Season Recap
Though USC began the season unranked in national polls, the Trojans quickly proved themselves to be contenders with a 19-0 start, not taking their first loss of the season until March 14. A stumble in April – which included two separate four-game losing streaks – knocked the Trojans down from their season-high ranking of No. 12, but they followed that up with wins in 12 of their next 13 games.
USC’s season was on the ropes following a gut-wrenching loss to Texas State in the opening game of the College Station Regional last Friday, which was the Trojans’ fourth defeat in five games. USC led entering the top of the ninth inning, but a fielding error followed by a go-ahead two-run home run sent them to a 5-4 loss and the loser’s bracket of the regional. The Trojans’ four most recent losses had come by a combined five runs, and two were walk offs.
But the setback proved to be a temporary one, as USC came back to obliterate every opponent in its path across the next three days. The Trojans won their next four games by a combined score of 55-14, including a doubleheader on May 31 which saw them exact revenge on Texas State 15-4 and then beat Texas A&M 14-3 later that night. USC is red hot entering this weekend’s Super Regional.
Trojan Horses
Under head coach Scott Forbes, UNC has built its brand on pitching and defense. This year, that formula has been working beautifully: Carolina ranks in the top 10 nationally in fielding percentage (.982, ninth) and earned run average (3.87, seventh). USC clearly subscribes to the same methodology: not only are the Trojans also an excellent defensive team – their fielding percentage of .980 ranks 17th in Division 1 – but they are one of the few pitching staffs with better numbers than Carolina. USC’s team ERA of 3.52 is third-best in the nation and the best of any team remaining in the NCAA Tournament.
That success starts at the top, as the Trojans a fearsome weekend rotation which may be the nation’s best. Ace Mason Edwards is 8-0 this season with a 1.85 ERA, the best of any qualifying pitcher remaining in the tournament. After Edwards, Grant Govel and Andrew Johnson wait in the wings, who have a combined 17-4 record and each have an ERA below 3.50. Govel’s WHIP (walks and hits per innings pitched) of 0.88 is the best of all pitchers remaining in the field. Johnson and Govel started USC’s final two games of the regional round against Texas A&M.
Southern California pitcher Grant Govel (95) throws to home against Texas State during an NCAA regional baseball game on Friday, May 29, 2026, in College Station, Texas. (AP Photo/Sam Craft)
If USC’s pitching staff does have a weakness, it could be in the bullpen. The Trojans’ Adam Troy took the loss in Game 1 of the regional against Texas State, and USC’s struggles in close games late in the season have already been touched on. Troy’s 4.09 ERA and 1.39 WHIP are certainly higher than desired for a top relief option. It hasn’t affected his usage, though; Troy has appeared in 30 games, the second most of all USC pitchers.
Seeding vs. Metrics
USC’s metrics case is a curious one, and one which seemed to befuddle the NCAA Tournament’s selection committee. The Trojans entered the tournament ranked No. 9 in RPI, comfortably within regional host range were the tournament seeded solely based on that metric. All the teams around the Trojans – Alabama, Georgia and Florida State, to name a few – earned host spots, while USC was sent to College Station as a No. 2 regional seed.
So what gives? In the end, the Trojans lack of high-end victories and lack of success away from home likely hurt them (USC is 32-1 at home but only 12-13 on the road). Prior to the tournament, USC had just one Quad 1 win to its name: a road victory at Oregon in the final series of the regular season. The Trojans had opportunities to earn more quality results, but road sweeps at UCLA and Nebraska – both of whom became regional hosts – lowered that ceiling significantly.
Now, of course, USC has earned back-to-back Quad 1 victories with its dominant performance against Texas A&M in College Station. And while it may be relegated to Quad 2, the Trojans’ four-game road sweep of Cal Poly early in the season has become quite an impressive result. The Mustangs punched their Super Regional ticket last weekend by emerging out of No. 1 UCLA’s region following the Bruins’ stunning early exit.
A Return to Glory?
Once upon a time, USC was quite simply the college baseball program. A national championship win in 1998 was USC’s 12th as a program, which is still the most among any American college program at any level. To put that into perspective, UNC has appeared in the College World Series 12 times in total.
Since that championship win, though, the Trojans have been caught in a relative dry spell. They haven’t reached the College World Series since 2001, and their Super Regional berth this weekend is their first since 2005. Between 2005 and 2025, the Trojans somehow only made the NCAA Tournament field one time, a stunning drought for a college baseball blue blood.
This year, the Trojans look primed to recapture their past glory. Their 47 wins are already their most in a single season since 1998 — the last time USC won the national title.
Recent History
There isn’t much in the way of recent games between UNC and USC, which isn’t particularly surprising given their positions on opposite coasts (though what does that matter in the modern ACC?). The most recent meeting saw the Trojans visit Boshamer Stadium for a three-game series in March 2012, and UNC won the first two games 11-1 and 1-0 before dropping the series finale 5-2. Carolina’s last visit to Los Angeles saw it beat USC 11-7 as part of an early-season tournament in 2011, which UNC swept on its way to another College World Series appearance. The two teams have not faced off since Scott Forbes became the Carolina head coach in 2021.
Featured image via Associated Press/Sam Craft
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UNC Baseball 2026 NCAA Super Regional Opponent Preview: USC Chapelboro.com.
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