Chris Lemonis expresses frustration with NCAA after MSU was left out as a host

STARKVILLE, Miss. (WCBI) — Mississippi State baseball head coach Chris Lemonis called the NCAA Tournament host selection process “frustrating because it’s so subjective.”

Mississippi State was not named one of the 16 regional host sites for the 2024 NCAA Tournament, the NCAA revealed Sunday night. The Bulldogs tallied 16 Quad 1 wins — which is more than four of the regional hosts had combined.

Despite that and winning 17 SEC games in the hardest conference in college baseball, MSU was left out due to its RPI. Five Quad 4 losses for the Bulldogs dropped their RPI to 25.

But East Carolina was named a host with a similar RPI at 22 and Arizona was selected as a host with an even higher RPI at 31.

“They take the pieces they want and move them around,” Lemonis said.

Despite the frustration of not getting to play postseason baseball at Dudy Noble Field, Lemonis said he told his team they’re past that now and are focused on the Charlottesville Regional.