NCAA softball committee chair Kurt McGuffin addresses entire SEC reaching field, Ole Miss getting in

All 13 SEC softball programs heard their names called on selection Sunday when the field of 64 was set for this year’s NCAA Tournament. Tying its own record for the most teams from a single conference in the tournament for the fourth time after 13 SEC teams made the cut for three straight years between 2017 and 2019.

Powerhouse teams like Tennessee and Florida making it to the NCAA Tournament did not come as a surprise, representing two of the eight SEC squads that secured top-16 seeds and will be hosting their own regional rounds between May 17-May 19. But a program like Ole Miss making the cut did make some people scratch their heads after the Rebels finished the season 31-25 with just seven conference wins on the season.

ESPN’s Holly Rowe asked Tennessee-Martin athletic director and NCAA Division I Women’s Softball Committee chair Kurt McGuffin about Ole Miss and their controversial entry into the NCAA Tournament. Which he explained on selection Sunday after the field of 64 was officially set.

“Ole Miss had some top 25 wins that we consistently looked at throughout the whole field,” McGuffin said. “I think that’s what put them in. It was tight. The last four. It seemed like we put more teams in this year because we didn’t have any bracket busters. But Ole Miss deserved that spot with the quality of wins they had in the top half.”

The Rebels make it to the NCAA Tournament for the eighth straight season after receiving their first bid in program history in 2016. With a strong finish to the season making up for their slow start in conference play and propelling them to the ‘Big Dance’ once again.

After starting off SEC-play with a 3-14 record, Ole Miss caught their stride to close out the season. Defeating both Auburn and No. 8 ranked Arkansas respectively 2-1 in a pair of series to close out the regular season followed by a 7-2 win over No. 25 ranked Kentucky in the first round of the SEC Tournament as the lowest seed. Which was enough to convince the committee they were worthy of a spot in the NCAA Tournament.

Ole Miss being worthy of a spot in the tournament is debatable, but the dominance of the SEC on the diamond this season was not. As it will be fascinating to see how the SEC’s team perform this month when it matters most in the postseason.