Everything Rob Vaughn said following Alabama's season-ending loss at Southern Miss

USA Today

2 days ago

Everything Rob Vaughn said following Alabama's season-ending loss at Southern Miss
On Saturday afternoon in Hattiesburg, the Alabama Crimson Tide's 2025 season officially came to an end with a 6-5 loss to Southern Miss in the NCAA Tournament.
An elimination game in the 2025 Hattiesburg Regional, Alabama went back-and-forth with Southern Miss in hopes of keeping their season alive to Sunday, but unfortunately suffered a disappointing loss in which the Crimson Tide blew a two-run lead in the final innings.
With the result, Alabama's season ended with an overall record of 41-18 overall This is also the second consecutive season that Alabama has gone 0-2 in a regional, with their last win in the NCAA Tournament coming back in 2023.
After the game, Alabama head baseball coach Rob Vaughn also commented on the loss during his postgame press conference. Here is a look at everything Vaughn said following the season-ending loss:
Rob Vaughn opening statement after loss vs. Southern Miss
"Man, these journeys are fun. Every year is different. Every year has its' ups-and-downs. Every year you've got a different group, a different mentality, a different culture really that's building, and I got a lot of kids hurting out there right now because it meant a lot to them, and they poured their heart and soul into Alabama baseball. I came here two years ago now, and there's guys, especially in the world we're in right now, that could cut-and-run, could have gone found bright, shinier things, and they chose to stay. There's guys that came in like Bryce (Fowler) that believed in what we were doing, and wanted to be a part of it, and there's a lot of kids that laid the foundation for what Alabama baseball is going to be. I remember standing in center field after a game like this in East Carolina when I was at the University of Maryland, and I told that group the same thing I told this group out here is we are going to dogpile. We're going to be the one standing in the end at some point, and we don't get there without the group that laid the foundation first, and that's the group that toed the rubber for us last year. That's the group that showed up and punched the time card every single day. These journeys are always so hard when they end. They're so hard because you do love these kids, and there's guys that will move on to professional baseball. We have plenty of draft picks running around on the field out there. What I am most proud of, and I told them this at the end, is the men that they are, and who they are as people. I get that our job is to go develop baseball players and win games, and it's my job to get us to that next step. What we did this year, as good as it was, wasn't good enough, and we're going to be better. But at the end of the day, I've got a group of 40 guys in there that are going to be unbelievable husbands one day, unbelievable dads one day, and at the end of the day, that's what our job's all about is helping young people grow. I've got a special group of them, and it's been a really fun ride with them. It's crazy. I feel like they just got here in August, and now we're sitting up here kind of at the end. It goes fast, but I love them, and we'll be back."
Rob Vaughn on Alabama's staff preparation for Hattiesburg Regional
"No, I mean nothing we'd do differently. I thought the guys were ready. Thought they competed hard. I think people may underestimate how hard it is, and that's just the world we're in now, but how hard it is for a guy like Bryce (Fowler) to come to a place that his career started, and not make it more than it needs to be. I mean he played his heart out this weekend, played his heart out today, was incredible today. He was absolutely incredible today, and that's toughness man. We got a tough group of kids. We weren't good enough, and ultimately that is my responsibility to make sure that we get better, that we prepare them better, that we coach them better, that we do all that stuff. But what I can tell you is they gave me every tiny thing of who they had. I thought my staff, I mean, Paps up at 1:00 in the morning watching video trying to prepare for how we're going to go up against Middleton, and I thought gave our guys a great game plan. I thought as good as that dude is, and he is elite, I thought we hit him just as good as anybody did in the country, which that tells you how good he is that it wasn't enough. Wouldn't change a thing about any of that. Ultimately, it's my job to get this program to the next step, and we're going to do it."
Rob Vaughn on decision to DH Will Plattner
"We have a sign that hangs in our dugout that says just be tougher than they are, and Will Plattner might be the toughest dude on this team. When you look up and you look at your season on the line, and look at trying to fight one more day, I'm going to ride with toughness all day long, and he did that. Gave us a great at-bat there in the first, got the first homer, got the first run on the board, and Will Plattner is going to be right in the middle of what we're doing next season. When push comes to shove, I'm going to go with toughness, and Will Plattner is toughness."
Rob Vaughn on decision to load the bases
"Yea, no hesitation. I thought, as weird as that inning was, you get the leadoff homer and go to Oz (Carson Ozmer) who should be the stopper of the year. I mean, that guy led the country in saves, was incredible. He goes hit-by-pitch and walk, very uncharacteristic, but goes hit-by-pitch and walk. We execute a perfect crash play, get the lead out. You're sitting there first-and-second again, and you get to two outs there with a base open and the left-right matchup. Stockman had good at-bat's all day, that's not a knock on Stockman at all, but Paetow's got serious power, like there's some real, real power in there, and you like the right-right matchup with Oz. He is tough on righties, and you've got to credit Stockman. Got to two strikes and didn't panic. Slider, I'll have to see it on video, probably stayed up just enough, and he put a great swing on it so you've got to credit him for beating up there. But zero hesitation, I'd do it again."
Rob Vaughn on how he'd want 2025 Alabama team to be remembered
"I'm going to remember the people on this group for a really long time. Will Hodo is going to be a guy that I talk about for the rest of my career. There's seven-or-eight guys throughout the course of my coaching career that just stick with you, and Will Hodo is one of them. Kade Snell is another one. We have No. 3 as our captain every year, and that's something that we were very selective with, and he led this team as good as anyone I've ever seen. It was unbelievable the way he blended being able to communicate with absolute immense toughness while also having a career-year. There's just some special, special people on this group, and that's what you remember. Right now it hurts because we all want to raise a trophy at the end. Alabama deserves that. We got to be better, and give them that. At the end of the day, it's all about relationships. When you get those wedding invitations and baby announcements and all that stuff, at the end of the day, as much as we all want to win, when my time on earth is done, I want to be remembered as somebody that helped build people and relationships and we did that. Now, it's turned to continue what we're building. This group won 40 games for the first time since 2002. Everybody talks about "yea it's fine," and I get the fans want more. We all want more, and we're going to get more, I can promise you that. But this group laid that foundation, and if you want a strong program and culture, everybody likes the microwave. We're in a microwave society where it's immediate. I want it now, quick fix here-and-there. Quick fixes blow down when things get rough. This thing isn't going to blow down I can promise you that. We're going to build this thing the right way, with the right people, and the last two years have been the foundation of that. Now it's time to keep moving forward."
Rob Vaughn on both Hattiesburg Regional games going down to wire
"I know sometimes when you get run out of the yard, and you're never in it, it's like a slow painful death, whereas that one you kind of get it ripped away from you late. I told every one of those kids that went up in the ninth inning and said just be present. Just be in this moment and be present. Win, lose, or draw, just go send it in this moment. We've talked about that from the rip. We've talked about the man in the arena. It's not the critic who counts. I get that there is a lot of voices, especially in our league. There's a lot of people with opinions and thoughts and all that. Those people don't matter. What matters is the 40 dudes out here. We feel defeat and it hurts and it sucks, but it's not because these kids didn't send it, and they will be able to put their head on their pillow at night and know they emptied the tank for us. Now it's my job to take us to the next level."
Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion.