On this episode of the D1 Daily, Burkie and Roons welcome Ben McDonald to reflect on the passing and legacy of legendary LSU coach Skip Bertman.

The conversation centers on Bertman’s recruiting power, teaching of fundamentals and pitching specifics, individualized motivation, and program-building vision that helped transform LSU and college baseball, including the early adoption of strength, mental skills, and fan-experience initiatives. McDonald shares a final hospital visit with Bertman, plus a defining “tough love” story involving Mark LaRosa that illustrates Bertman’s methods and competitive edge.

00:00 Welcome Back!

00:19 Welcome to The D1 Daily, Ben McDonald!

00:53 Youth Baseball Stories From Ben

05:08 Remembering Skip Bertman

07:13 Being Recruited by Skip

09:52 Skip: The Teacher and Motivator

15:51 Skip’s Vision Changed College Baseball

18:36 What Made Skip a Closer

21:10 Skip Sees It Coming

23:17 Clean Baseball Fundamentals

24:17 Life Lessons Beyond LSU

27:37 Ahead Of The Game - Weightlifting

28:47 A True Five-Tool Coach

30:32 Gold Touch As An Athletic Director

31:38 One More Fun (Clean) Story

37:26 Final Wrap

For athletes and sports programs of all levels, AstroTurf has managed the entirety of the synthetic turf manufacturing process for decades. By focusing on quality, safety, and performance, AstroTurf continues to provide customized surfacing solutions for baseball and softball programs across the professional and collegiate ranks, including being the Official Synthetic Turf of MLB®. For more information, please visit https://astroturf.com/

Kerriston Coffee is proud to be the official coffee of D1Baseball. With over 30 years in the business, this family-owned roastery delivers fresh, small-batch coffee made for college baseball fans, coaches, and everyone in between. Kerriston Coffee ships nationwide, and as a listener to The D1Baseball Podcast, you can use code D1 at https://kerristoncoffee.com to receive 15% off your first order!

SUBSCRIBE

Apple: https://d1ba.se/Pod-Apple

Spotify: https://d1ba.se/40Ne9Dq

YouTube: https://d1ba.se/yt-sub

Is your favorite team in the SEC? Make sure to check out our Highway To Hoover podcast with Joe Healy and Mark Etheridge on Apple Podcasts: https://d1ba.se/h2h-apple or Spotify: https://d1ba.se/41nyqSv

Or maybe you're a fan of ACC baseball? Then you need to check out the ACC Baseball Etc. podcast with Daron Vaught and Bradley Smart on Apple Podcasts: https://d1ba.se/etc-apple or Spotify: https://d1ba.se/4tBUuF9

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Mike Rooney is joined by Prep Baseball vice president of scouting Shooter Hunt to discuss which draft-eligible high school players actually make it to college amid NIL and transfer-portal volatility. They talk about why projecting freshman impact is harder than ever, how scouting and opponent “reports” now resemble pro ball, and why opportunity matters as much as talent.

After reviewing some hits and misses from last year’s freshman projections, Hunt names five potential immediate-impact newcomers: Oregon State's Blake Bowen, South Carolina's Ethan Bass, Vanderbilt's Gunnar Skelton, Clemson's Chase Kiker, and Vanderbilt's James Tronstein. They also cover Duke’s James Clark and Stanford's Archer Horn, then highlight strong incoming classes and key names at Tennessee, LSU, Mississippi State, Kentucky, Troy, and Stanford.

00:00 Welcome Back!

00:09 Introducing Shooter Hunt

00:58 On Campus List Explained

01:45 Why Freshmen Struggle Now

03:02 Scouting Arms Race in College

04:39 Last Year Hits and Misses

09:51 Five Impact Freshmen Picks

10:14 Blake Bowen - Oregon State

13:20 Ethan Bass - South Carolina

15:14 Gunner Skelton - Vanderbilt

17:35 Chase Kiker - Clemson

19:41 James Tronstein - Vanderbilt

21:38 James Clark - Duke

23:35 Archer Horn - Stanford

24:31 Stanford Lineup Pressure

26:35 Teddy Tokheim's (Stanford) Backstory

27:33 Tennessee's Impact Freshmen

29:49 LSU "Revenge Tour" Freshman Class

33:26 Mississippi State's Mega Arms

35:25 Kentucky's Two-Way Stars

37:39 Troy And Stanford Adds

40:16 Wrap Up And Next Shows

Kerriston Coffee is proud to be the official coffee of D1Baseball. With over 30 years in the business, this family-owned roastery delivers fresh, small-batch coffee made for college baseball fans, coaches, and everyone in between. Kerriston Coffee ships nationwide, and as a listener to The D1Baseball Podcast, you can use code D1 at https://kerristoncoffee.com to receive 15% off your first order!

SUBSCRIBE

Apple: https://d1ba.se/Pod-Apple

Spotify: https://d1ba.se/40Ne9Dq

YouTube: https://d1ba.se/yt-sub

Is your favorite team in the SEC? Make sure to check out our Highway To Hoover podcast with Joe Healy and Mark Etheridge on Apple Podcasts: https://d1ba.se/h2h-apple or Spotify: https://d1ba.se/41nyqSv

Or maybe you're a fan of ACC baseball? Then you need to check out the ACC Baseball Etc. podcast with Daron Vaught and Bradley Smart on Apple Podcasts: https://d1ba.se/etc-apple or Spotify: https://d1ba.se/4tBUuF9

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

On this episode of the D1 Daily, Burkie and Roons break down college baseball's biggest offseason winners. Using Kendall Rogers' offseason recap as a guide, they evaluate which programs are best positioned for 2027 after balancing roster retention, transfer portal additions and incoming recruiting classes.

The duo discusses why LSU and Tennessee set the standard this summer, how Oklahoma continues to defy expectations under Skip Johnson and why Kentucky, Oklahoma State, Clemson, Southern California and Texas A&M all have compelling cases as offseason winners despite different roster outlooks.

They also share why Mississippi State deserves to be in the conversation, examine the importance of keeping draft-eligible stars on campus and explain why the end of the signing period marks the true beginning of college baseball's "pre-fake season" as optimism shifts toward fall practice and the 2027 campaign.

00:00 Welcome and Sponsor

01:05 Who Won the Offseason?

01:58 LSU Revenge Tour

05:25 USC Staff and Arms

06:38 Big Ten West Outlook

08:01 Oklahoma Hard to Read

10:42 Kentucky Program Paradox

13:54 Oklahoma State and Clemson

18:20 Texas A&M and Tennessee Reload

19:39 Vols Transfers Deep Dive

24:21 Mississippi State Stock Up

25:49 Pre-Fake Season, Wrap

For athletes and sports programs of all levels, AstroTurf has managed the entirety of the synthetic turf manufacturing process for decades. By focusing on quality, safety, and performance, AstroTurf continues to provide customized surfacing solutions for baseball and softball programs across the professional and collegiate ranks, including being the Official Synthetic Turf of MLB®. For more information, please visit https://astroturf.com/

Kerriston Coffee is proud to be the official coffee of D1Baseball. With over 30 years in the business, this family-owned roastery delivers fresh, small-batch coffee made for college baseball fans, coaches, and everyone in between. Kerriston Coffee ships nationwide, and as a listener to The D1Baseball Podcast, you can use code D1 at https://kerristoncoffee.com to receive 15% off your first order!

SUBSCRIBE

Apple: https://d1ba.se/Pod-Apple

Spotify: https://d1ba.se/40Ne9Dq

YouTube: https://d1ba.se/yt-sub

Is your favorite team in the SEC? Make sure to check out our Highway To Hoover podcast with Joe Healy and Mark Etheridge on Apple Podcasts: https://d1ba.se/h2h-apple or Spotify: https://d1ba.se/41nyqSv

Or maybe you're a fan of ACC baseball? Then you need to check out the ACC Baseball Etc. podcast with Daron Vaught and Bradley Smart on Apple Podcasts: https://d1ba.se/etc-apple or Spotify: https://d1ba.se/4tBUuF9

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.