MCWS 2024: Top storylines, bold predictions and picks for Omaha - ESPN

The Men's College World Series begins Friday, and seven of the eight spots have been filled by top-16 teams, the one outlier being Florida, the 2023 national runner-up.

This year's field is also made up of only SEC (No. 1 Tennessee, No. 2 Kentucky, No. 3 Texas A&M and Florida) and ACC (No. 4 North Carolina, No. 8 Florida State, No. 10 NC State and No. 12 Virginia) schools. The edge is with the SEC as the conference has won the past four MCWS titles.

But with a newcomer to the party in Omaha, teams that have made plenty of visits but never hoisted the trophy and others looking for redemption, there is plenty to watch in this year's tournament.

Our experts break down this year's MCWS, the storylines and players they're watching and give their bold predictions of what to expect in Omaha over the next week and a half.

Jump to:
Storylines | Players | Most to prove
Bold predictions | Who's winning it all?

Ryan McGee: I am fascinated by the unfinished business aspect of this series. Florida and Virginia have won it all before. That's it. Florida State is the greatest program to never have dogpiled in Omaha. NC State, Tennessee, Texas A&M… all have long been near the top of everyone's «How has this place never been better at baseball?» lists. UNC is still scarred by the heartbreak of 2006-07. Kentucky has never even been to Omaha before. Something's gotta give, right?

Kiley McDaniel: It's hard to ignore the portal/NIL era leading to a top-heavy group of traditional powers with resources. That's in even more stark relief this year as the MCWS is a showdown of half ACC and half SEC teams, with no Oral Roberts interloping like in 2023. The pool of teams that can get to Omaha might be getting a bit smaller, but the level of