USA TODAY Sports Network 2025 All-SEC baseball team, individual honors
As the college baseball regular season closes, it's clear the SEC is still the conference that wears the crown.
Ahead of this week's SEC tournament, 11 of the conference's 16 members are nationally ranked, and 13 teams are projected to make the NCAA tournament. Many of those programs, such as Arkansas and LSU, remained near the top of the SEC through much of the season, but it was newcomer Texas that won the conference title.
Advertisement
Each of them are represented in the USA TODAY Sports Network's 2025 All-SEC team, which was voted on by a panel of nine writers who cover the league.
Arkansas' Wehiwa Aloy won SEC Player of the Year, leading the league's best offense in batting average (.358), slugging (.677), hits (82), runs scored (72) and home runs. (18) Jim Schlossnagle, who took over at Texas after leading Texas A&M to last year's Men's College World Series championship, won SEC Coach of the Year.
Tennessee's Liam Doyle, who was top two in the SEC in ERA, opponent batting average and strikeouts, won SEC Pitcher of the Year. Texas' Dylan Volantis and Georgia's Robbie Burnett were named SEC Freshman and Newcomer of the Year, respectively.
Doyle was one of just two unanimous selections to the All-SEC team, along with Mississippi State third baseman Ace Reese. Auburn, Tennessee and Texas were the lone SEC programs with multiple All-SEC players.
USA TODAY Sports Network's 2025 SEC individual honors
Texas Longhorns head coach Jim Schlossnagle stands in the dugout ahead of the Lone Star Showdown against Texas A&M at UFCU Disch-Falk Field on Friday, April 25, 2025.
SEC Player of the Year: Wehiwa Aloy, Arkansas
SEC Coach of the Year: Jim Schlossnagle, Texas
SEC Pitcher of the Year: Liam Doyle, Tennessee
SEC Freshman of the Year: Dylan Volantis, Texas
SEC Newcomer of the Year: Robbie Burnett, Georgia
USA TODAY Sports Network's 2025 All-SEC baseball team
Tennessee's Liam Doyle (12) points to Tennessee's Hunter Ensley (9) after Ensley made a home run-robbing catch at the wall during a college baseball game between Tennessee and Vanderbilt at Lindsey Nelson Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn., on May 9, 2025.
Catcher: Rylan Galvan, Texas
First base: Andrew Fischer, Tennessee
Second base: Chris Rembert, Auburn
Shortstop: Wehiwa Aloy, Arkansas
Third base: Ace Reese, Mississippi State*
Outfield: Ike Irish, Auburn; Robbie Burnett, Georgia; Kade Snell, Alabama
DH/Utility: Ryland Zaborowski, Georgia
Starting pitcher: Liam Doyle, Tennessee*; Kade Anderson, LSU; Kyson Witherspoon, Oklahoma
Relief pitcher: Dylan Volantis, Texas
Advertisement
*Unanimous selection
The 2025 All-SEC baseball team was selected by a panel of nine writers who cover the league for the USA TODAY Network: Adam Cole (Montgomery Advertiser), Aria Gerson (The Tennessean), Corey Diaz (The Daily Advertiser), Gentry Estes (The Tennessean), Jackson Fuller (Southwest Times Record), Marc Weiszer (Athens Banner-Herald), Mike Wilson (Knoxville News Sentinel), Sam Hutches (The Clarion-Ledger), and Sam Sklar (The Clarion-Ledger).
Adam Cole is the Auburn athletics beat writer for the Montgomery Advertiser. He can be reached via email at acole@gannett.com or on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, @colereporter.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: USA TODAY Sports Network 2025 All-SEC baseball awards
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
Houston's Ime Udoka finishes third for 2024-25 NBA Coach of the Year
One year ago, the Houston Rockets were 41-41 and No. 11 in the Western Conference standings. In the 2024-25 season, they finished at 52-30 while securing the No. 2 seed. That type of year-on-year improvement drew attention around the league, and it made Ime Udoka one of three finalists for the NBA's 2024-25 Coach of the Year Award. Other finalists are Cleveland's Kenny Atkinson and Detroit's J.B. Bickerstaff. Advertisement Alas, it's Atkinson — after guiding the Cavaliers from 48-34 in 2023-24 to a 64-18 and the best record in the Eastern Conferece this season — who was the ultimate winner. Like Udoka and the Rockets, Cleveland didn't have significant roster turnover in the preceding offseason, which would seemingly make the year-on-year growth a greater reflection of coaching and development. Out of 100 voters, Udoka finished in third place with seven first-place votes, 13 second-place votes, and 39 third-place votes (113 total points). Atkinson had 59 first-place votes, 33- second-place votes, and seven third-place votes (401 total points). Atkinson and the Cavaliers are still playing in the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs, while Udoka and the Rockets were recently eliminated after a tough first-round series in the West against the Golden State Warriors. However, because votes were taken after the regular season, playoff results were not factored in. Advertisement Bickerstaff finished just ahead of Udoka in second place, while those immediately behind Udoka included Mark Daigneault of the Oklahoma City Thunder; Tyronn Lue of the Los Angeles Clippers; and JJ Redick of the Los Angeles Lakers. For Udoka and the Rockets, it's an honor to be listed among those elite coaches, and it reflects the significant progress made during year two of his stint leading the Rockets. 'He should definitely be Coach of the Year,' veteran guard Fred VanVleet said recently of Udoka. 'I don't know how many people are talking about that, but to take this group from where we were two years ago to where we are today... one thousand percent, he should be Coach of the Year.' In the 2022-23 season immediately preceding Udoka's April 2023 hiring, the Rockets were 22-60 and finished in last place in the West. VanVleet and fellow veterans Dillon Brooks and Jeff Green then signed with Houston that offseason. Advertisement Much of the success for Udoka's Rockets is due to their top-five defense, and second-year guard/forward Amen Thompson appears likely to earn All-Defensive First Team honors in the coming weeks. All of the league's annual awards are voted on by a diverse media panel representing in-market, national, and international voices who follow and cover the NBA. While the macro of the 2024-25 season for the Rockets was clearly positive, considering their performance relative to expectations and recent seasons, the micro ended with a bitter playoff loss to a rival. Udoka said after Sunday's Game 7 loss that he wants everyone in the organization to use that as fuel for 2025-26, including the coaching staff. 'We said no moral victories, or whatever,' Udoka concluded. 'We had our chances in this series. It's going to sting now, but use it as motivation. The growth that you've showed and learned this year, let's all come back better, coaches included.' 'That was the message: 'Don't be satisfied.' The experience is out of the way. Everybody will take it, look internally, and see how we can all improve. Come back better, not settle for making the playoffs, and advance.' Advertisement More: 'Head of the snake': Jalen Green credits Ime Udoka for building Houston's culture This article originally appeared on Rockets Wire: Houston's Ime Udoka finishes third for 2024-25 NBA Coach of the Year
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
Reports: With sudden coaching vacancy, Knicks intrigued by Houston's Ime Udoka
In the aftermath of the New York Knicks relieving Tom Thibodeau of his duties, multiple media reports named Houston Rockets head coach Ime Udoka as a desired candidate. As things stand, Udoka is midway through a four-year contract that he signed in April 2023 to coach the Rockets. Advertisement Ian Begley, a longtime Knicks reporter with SNY, adds more: Marc Stein reported late Tuesday that Ime Udoka and Jason Kidd are two coaches who are said to intrigue the Knicks. Udoka is a name that I'd heard as well. To hire Udoka, the Knicks would have to get permission from Houston and give the Rockets compensation to let Udoka out of his deal. Short of Udoka openly campaigning for the New York job, and there has been no indication of that, there's no reason to think the Rockets would consider such an arrangement. The Rockets have improved significantly in Udoka's two seasons with the team, and he just finished third in 2024-25 Coach of the Year voting. He's under contract for multiple seasons moving forward and is viewed internally as a foundational piece. Thus, there is zero interest from the team in parting ways. Granted, if the Knicks were willing to pay a high price via trade and Udoka was to indicate that he'd be looking elsewhere upon the expiration of his deal, it could make sense to take the assets — as opposed to the risk of eventually losing him for no compensation. But, again, there is no indication of that being the case. Udoka is a Portland native, so New York is actually further from his West Coast roots than Houston is. Advertisement More realistically, the interest from the Knicks could perhaps be used by Udoka and his representatives in eventual talks regarding a contract extension. Salaries for NBA coaches have risen in the two-plus years since Udoka signed his initial deal with the Rockets, and coaches rarely enter the final 'lame duck' year of their contracts. Thus, at some point prior to the 2026-27 season, it's likely that Udoka and the Rockets will enter into a new round of negotiations. In that context, interest from other teams around the league can be useful for Udoka's market, and it helps to be publicly viewed as desirable. More: Houston's Ime Udoka finishes third for 2024-25 NBA Coach of the Year This article originally appeared on Rockets Wire: Report: With coaching vacancy, Knicks intrigued by Houston's Ime Udoka
USA Today
5 hours ago
- USA Today
Josh Heupel, two former Vols on 2026 College Football Hall of Fame ballot
Josh Heupel, two former Vols on 2026 College Football Hall of Fame ballot Tennessee football head coach Josh Heupel and two former Vols are on the 2026 College Football Hall of Fame ballot. Heupel, Larry Seivers and Deon Grant are on the ballot, which was released Monday. Heupel is appearing on the ballot for a sixth consecutive year. As a quarterback at Oklahoma, he was a first-team consensus All-American and won the 2000 BCS national championship. Seivers was a two-time first-team consensus All-American from 1975-76. In 1975, he became the first Tennessee wide receiver to eclipse 800 receiving yards in one season. Seivers was a two-time All-SEC standout for the Vols. Grant, a safety, played for the Vols from 1997-99 under head coach Phillip Fulmer. He was a member of Tennessee's 1998 BCS national championship team. Grant was a 1999 consensus First Team All-American and Jim Thorpe Award finalist. He helped the Vols win two SEC championships, and was named the SEC Defensive Player of the Year by the Associated Press in 1999. Grant was a first-team all-conference performer as a junior after leading the SEC with nine interceptions. Following his career with the Vols, Grant was selected in the second round of the 2000 NFL draft (No. 57 overall) by Carolina. He played for the Panthers (2000-03), Jacksonville (2004-06), Seattle (2007-09) and the Giants (2010-11). Grant was a Super Bowl champion with New York. He recorded 776 career tackles, 6.5 sacks, 30 interceptions, 10 fumble recoveries and four forced fumbles. Follow Vols Wire on Facebook and X (formerly Twitter).
