Following Sunday afternoon's victory to force a decisive Game 3 of the College World Series Championship series, Scott Forbes admitted that he had some options to start Monday night's contest.
While the head coach of the Tar Heels said he would sleep on it, Tar Heel fans anxiously awaited news as first pitch drew near. Just around 3:00 PM EST, just four hours until game time, the UNC baseball program revealed it's starter for the final game of the 2026 season.
The decision is one that many expected to be the case.
Jackson Rose to start Game 3 of the CWS Championship Series
Forbes and company will turn the ball over to freshman left-hander Jackson Rose, who is coming off a stellar outing in which he pitched 4.1 shutout innings in relief against West Virginia in the victory that clinched UNC's spot in the title series.
🌹 in bloom in Omaha pic.twitter.com/zfqUYSn0SX
— Carolina Baseball (@DiamondHeels) June 22, 2026
In that contest, Folger Boaz started and struggled out of the gate, only giving the Tar Heels an inning of work. Fortunately, Rose came in and completely silenced the Mountaineers, allowing just two hits.
Rose has made 22 appearances this season, six of which were starts. His longest outing came on March 31 against Campbell, one in which he threw six shutout innings in what was his best overall performance of the season.
Now, as nice as it would be for Rose to replicate that type of start on Monday night in Omaha, it's likely that he won't be asked to do that.
Rose will likely fill a similar role that he did against West Virginia. Only this time, he'll be on the mound to start the game instead of coming in after one full inning of play. The goal for Rose will be simple: get as many outs as possible and turn the game over to the bullpen with a lead.
While Caden Glauber draws a lot of attention, Jackson Rose has been really good in his own right as a true freshman. The Tar Heels have a lot of confidence in him, which is very evident given they are turning to him to start the biggest game of the team's season, and it's safe to say that Rose won't be intimidated by the moment, as he knows what his job is and is more than capable of getting it done.
Caden Glauber delivered another masterpiece in a freshman season for the ages
We at least know one part of UNC's "all hands on deck" pitching approach, going to the left-handed freshman who comes in well-rested and ready to go. If he can string together a few good innings of work, UNC should be in a great position to win this game, but it certainly won't be easy given how good Oklahoma's offense has been over the past couple of weeks.
Two freshmen are set to square off on the mound in the biggest game of the college baseball season. We're in for a treat in Omaha on Monday night, one that we all hope ends with UNC returning to Chapel Hill with its first national title in program history.
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