The 2025 NCAA Men’s College World Series culminates with an intriguing three-game Championship Series between SEC power LSU and red-hot Sun Belt juggernaut Coastal Carolina, which has won 26 (!) games in a row.
Both the Tigers and the Chanticleers went 3-0 in Omaha to reach the winner-take-all series this weekend. LSU took down Arkansas (4-1), UCLA (9-5) and Arkansas (6-5) for a second time to emerge from Bracket 2.
Coastal came to Omaha on a 23-game winning streak and remained unbeaten with Bracket 1 wins over Arizona (7-4), Oregon State (6-2) and Louisville (11-3).
The Chanticleers’ last L came in a midweek road game vs. College of Charleston, which Coastal lost 4-2 on April 22.
CWS Championship Schedule, How To Watch Coastal vs. LSU
- Game 1: Saturday, June 21, 7 p.m. ET (ESPN/ESPN+)
- Game 2: Sunday, June 22, 2:30 p.m. ET (ABC/ESPN+)
- Game 3 (if necessary): Monday, June 23, 7:30 p.m. ET (ESPN/ESPN+)
Coastal Carolina vs. LSU Series Odds
As you can see below, oddsmakers see 2023 national champion LSU as the clear favorite.
Will the SEC’s dominance of this tournament continue?
Or are sportsbooks overlooking an impressive Coastal squad that has already won 56 games this year?
| DK | FD | bet365 | BetMGM | |
| Coastal Carolina | +155 | +154 | +160 | +155 |
| LSU | -190 | -192 | -190 | -190 |
CWS Championship Series Total Games Odds
At bet365, you can bet on whether this series will feature a Game 3.
Below are bet365’s CWS Championship Series over/under total games odds as of Friday, June 20:
- Over 2.5 Games: -115
- Under 2.5 Games: -125
Coastal Carolina-LSU Game 1 Odds: Moneyline, Run Line, Total
| DK | FD | bet365 | |
| CCU ML | +130 | +134 | +130 |
| LSU ML | -166 | -172 | -160 |
| CCU run line | +1.5 (-135) | +1.5 (-158) | +1.5 (-150) |
| LSU run line | -1.5 (+105) | -1.5 (+124) | -1.5 (+120) |
| Total | 8.5 (o-115; u-115) | 8.5 (o-113; u-113) | 8.5 (o-110; u-120) |
CWS Championship Series Analysis, Picks
Following a tense three-game series in last year’s CWS Championship Series between Tennessee and Texas A&M, this year’s clash between LSU and Coastal also promises to be a hard-fought battle.
The Tigers’ 2023 title and their 2025 resume make them worthy favorites, but the betting odds for this series strike me as too dismissive of Coastal Carolina.
While the Chants did not play an SEC schedule, they’ve shown no reason to doubt that they can hang with a top team from the top conference in college baseball.
Coastal has only played two games against an SEC foe this year, but its Super Regional road sweep of Auburn — which went 17-13 in the SEC — showed that it can more than hang with SEC competition.
Doubting a Chanticleers team that has gone 8-0 this postseason while outscoring the opposition 64-25 (including a 3-0 record in Omaha while outscoring Arizona, Oregon State and Louisville 24-9) just does not seem like a great idea, regardless of who it is facing.
While anyone who has watched Coastal’s run to this point would agree they have a real chance in this series, that doesn’t quite answer the question of whether it makes more sense to bet on CCU or LSU.
The Tigers have few holes in either their lineup or their pitching staff, and they’ll be starting two of the best pitchers in the country in Kade Anderson in Game 1 and Anthony Eyanson in Game 2.
Coastal has three excellent starting pitchers of its own, though. Expected Game 1 starter Cameron Flukey boasts a 3.29 ERA, and likely Game 2 starter Jacob Morrison has been lights-out all year (ERA: 2.08; opp. batting avg: .194). If there’s a Game 3, Coastal fans would feel great about No. 3 arm Riley Eickhoff.
If Morrison can stay in the groove he was in during his last two appearances — he allowed just two earned runs combined in 13.2 total innings vs. Auburn in the Super Regional on June 7 and Oregon State in the CWS on June 15 — I like Coastal to take Game 2.
Coastal Carolina vs. LSU CWS Championship Best Bets, Pick
It’s hard to predict how a head-to-head matchup between two well-rounded teams playing as well as LSU and Coastal will go, but right now, the best bets in this series are:
- Series Total Games: Over 2.5 (-115 at bet365) — 1 unit
- Coastal Carolina run line +1.5 (-135 at DK) — 1 unit
And if I have to pick a national champ before this thing gets underway, I’m going to go with Coastal Carolina (+160 at bet365) — 0.5 units. This series is just too evenly matched for me to recommend LSU at -190 or shorter.
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