ABS has arrived in college baseball. The Automated Ball-Strike challenge system we've come to know and love in MLB is being used in experimental basis in the SEC baseball tournament this year. The early results are just as entertaining as they were in MLB this spring.
The first challenge in college baseball history took place in the Missouri-Ole Miss game on Tuesday morning. The Tigers won 10-8 to eliminate the Rebels, but Ole Miss catcher Austin Fawley had the honor of tapping his helmet to initiate the first official challenge. After a 2-2 pitch in the top of the first inning was called a ball, Fawley challenged only to have the Hawk-Eye technology confirm the ball was more than two inches outside the strike zone. Whether it's the pitch location or the situation, there was really no justification for using a challenge at that point in the ballgame, and Fawley seemed to learn his lesson because he did not challenge any other pitches during the game.
The first ABS challenge in college baseball history!
— Wheels (@WheelsYT) May 19, 2026
Ole Miss challenges the call, but the umpire got it right pic.twitter.com/rDtXlZfjP1
Vanderbilt catcher Korbin Reynolds got even wackier in the afternoon when he challenged a call on a ball that appeared to be even further off the plate. At least he went 2-for-3 on challenges in the game and used this one in the ninth inning:
Alright let's not get carried away here... let's show some feel for what the strike zone is 😂😂 pic.twitter.com/jZ5bX50hsv
— 11Point7 College Baseball (@11point7) May 19, 2026
The Commodores went on to win 8-5.
Of course, it wasn't just catchers being set up to look foolish. Unsurprisingly, the hitters only overturned 3-of-8 calls they disagreed with, according to Baseball America. The most egregious challenge belonged to LSU's Mason Braun, who challenged a strike call in the seventh. ABS showed that every part of the ball crossed through the zone and it got a chuckle out of the catcher. Of course, Braun had the last laugh as the Tigers won 6-2.
Oklahoma's catcher was dying laughing that LSU challenged this strike call. 😂😂😂
— 11Point7 College Baseball (@11point7) May 20, 2026
Trusting college hitters to know the zone is pure entertainment. pic.twitter.com/7nGYYHQmvo
Overall, the experiment seemed to work fine. Just like in MLB, challenges are quick and it only takes a few seconds and the game continues. Players and umpires looking slightly silly every now and then is just an added bonus to the possibility that the system might fix a bad call in a key situation.
