Florida slugger Jac Caglianone predicts 'intense' few games against LSU in College World Series finals

Florida and LSU, after not facing off in the regular season or in the SEC Tournament, are now playing a three-game series for the national title at the College World Series. Ahead of first pitch on Saturday evening, Florida slugger Jac Caglianone dove into the contest and journey to get there.

Previewing the game and reflecting on Florida’s path through the College World Series in a video shared on the NCAA Baseball Twitter page, Caglianone shared plenty of respect for his opponent. And plenty of confidence in his own team.

“An intense two-to-three games, that’s for sure. You know, they’re a great team, we’re a great team. It’s definitely going to be a dog fight, it’s going to be back and forth all weekend and all that. It’s going to be really exciting, really fun,” Caglianone said.

Caglianone, who has starred for Florida this season and is tied for the national lead with 31 home runs, came to Florida as a pitching recruit. But he blew out his elbow just prior to his freshman season.

Rather than redshirting, he was part of the roster and watched for much of the season. Eventually, he came on as a designated hitter at the end of the season and earned all-tournament team nods in the SEC Tournament and Gainesville Regional.

He learned a lot from that season, namely that he’s not made for watching from the dugout.

“How much I hated watching and not playing, honestly. Just not taking the game for granted. Having it taken away for so long, it was tough, it was hard kind of rehabbing everything from TJ [Tommy John surgery]. Just kind of prepare for a stage like this, which is nice,” Caglianone said. 

In 2023, Caglianone became a full-time first baseman for Florida and continued to swing a big bat. He needs one more home run in the championship series to finish the season alone in the national lead and for his stellar season, the slugger is a 2023 Golden Spikes Award finalist.

And as he walked through the outfield at Charles Schwab Field, passing the spot where Michael Robertson made a thrilling catch to send Florida to the championship series, Caglianone thought about if the whole experience had sunk in yet.

It hasn’t, and probably won’t, until the final out of the season is recorded. Until then, the Caglianone is happy to keep riding this wave with his Florida teammates.

“Not really focusing too much on the future,” Caglianone said.