The 2023 College World Series field is set, and the top overall seed Wake Forest is the betting favorite before the action starts in Omaha on Friday. The Demon Deacons are +220 on BetMGM, followed by LSU (+310) and Florida (+380).
Wake Forest has mashed its way through the NCAA Tournament with a 5-0 record to book a trip to Omaha. The Demon Deacons went 3-0 in Regional play, scoring at least 12 runs in every game. In the Super Regional against Alabama, Wake won 5-4 and 22-5 in a two-game sweep. This is Wake’s first appearance in the College World Series since 1955 when the program won its only national title.
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Four other national seeds made the field of eight: No. 2 Florida, No. 5 LSU, No. 7 Virginia and No. 8 Stanford. Stanford is more of a longshot because the Cardinal play Wake Forest in its first game in Omaha.
2023 College World Series odds
| Team | Odds |
|---|---|
+220 | |
+310 | |
+380 | |
+500 | |
+800 | |
+900 | |
+1000 | |
+2000 |
Stanford, the only West Coast team in the College World Series field, is making its third straight trip to Omaha. The Cardinal went 1-2 in 2021 and lost both CWS games last year.
TCU and Tennessee made it to Omaha after being No. 2 seeds in Regional play, but they aren’t strangers to Omaha. Tennessee last made it two years ago (when the Vols went 0-2) and TCU is making its sixth appearance, the most recent of which was in 2017.
The longshot in the field is Oral Roberts. The Golden Eagles started as the No. 4 seed in Oklahoma State’s Regional and swept through the field before beating Oregon in three games in the Super Regional. ORU, which was 23-1 in the Summit League, is making its second CWS appearance after also going in 1978.
The Golden Eagles are +2000 (2o-to-1) to win the first College World Series in program history.
The field is dominated by the Southeast with three SEC schools and two ACC schools. Virginia is the most northern school in the eight-team field.
2023 College World Series schedule and format
The 2023 College World Series remains a double-elimination tournament with four teams in two brackets. The winners of the two brackets face off in a best-of-three series for the championship.
All times Eastern
Bracket 1
Friday, June 16
Game 1: Oral Roberts 6, TCU 5
Game 2: Florida 6, Virginia 5
Sunday, June 18
Game 5: TCU vs. Virginia, 2 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 6: Oral Roberts vs. Florida, 7 p.m. (ESPN2)
Tuesday, June 20
Game 9: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 loser, 2 p.m. (ESPN)
Wednesday, June 21
Game 11: Game 6 winner vs. Game 9 winner, 2 p.m. (ESPN)
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Thursday, June 22
(If necessary): Game 11 winner vs. Game 11 loser, 2 p.m./7 p.m. (ESPN/ESPN2)
Bracket 2
Saturday, June 17
Game 3: Wake Forest 3, Stanford 2
Game 4: LSU 6, Tennessee 3
Monday, June 19
Game 7: Stanford vs. Tennessee, 2 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 8: Wake Forest vs. LSU, 7 p.m. (ESPN)
Tuesday, June 20
Game 10: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 loser, 7 p.m. (ESPN)
Wednesday, June 21
Game 12: Game 8 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 7 p.m. (ESPN)
Thursday, June 22
(If necessary): Game 12 winner vs. Game 12 loser, 7 p.m. (ESPN2)
Championship Series
Game 1: 7 p.m., Saturday, June 24 (ESPN)
Game 2: 3 p.m., Sunday, June 25 (ESPN)
Game 3 (if necessary): 7 p.m., Monday, June 26 (ESPN)
(Photo of Nick Kurtz: Eakin Howard / Getty Images)
Dan Santaromita is a senior editor for sports betting at The Athletic. Dan previously wrote for NBC Sports Chicago and ProSoccerUSA. He is a University of Missouri graduate who resides in Chicago. Follow Dan on Twitter @TheDanSanto
