USC is college baseball royalty, with 12 national championships to its name, four more than the next-closest school.
A program that once racked up College World Series titles, though, has consistently fallen short of the sport’s biggest prize the past 40 years… and hasn’t really gotten especially close. The Trojans have won only one national championship since 1979 and haven’t made the CWS since 2001.
This year, though, they’re further in the NCAA tournament than they’ve been in a generation. And while it’s been a full team effort, they’ve got two players in particular to thank for getting them to this point.
Mason Edwards and Grant Govel have been among the best pitchers in college baseball this season, serving as the leaders of a USC battalion of arms that ranks fourth among all Division I teams in team ERA. Behind their work on the mound, the Trojans are in the super regional stage of the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2005.
Whether or not they advance past No. 5 North Carolina in their best-of-three series in the Chapel Hill Super Regional, which begins on Friday, June 5, may very well come down to their two star starters.
Heading into that series, here’s a closer look at Edwards and Govel:
A 6-foot-2 left-hander, Edwards is in his third season at USC.
After appearing in only 12 games last season, with five starts, the Los Angeles native has seen his statistical output and national profile grow immensely this season. In 16 starts this season, Edwards is 8-0 with a 1.85 ERA, 164 strikeouts and 43 walks.
Edwards ranks second among all qualifying Division I players in ERA and is first in strikeouts. For his output this season, Edwards was named the Big Ten pitcher of the year and made first team all-conference.
His accomplishments this season have vaulted him up MLB draft boards, with Edwards now widely projected as a first-round pick in the 2026 MLB Draft.
For those close to the program, the signs of a breakout season from Edwards in 2026 were evident early.
“Every time we had an intersquad, we couldn’t hit him,” USC coach Andy Stankiewicz said to ESPN. “And usually the first couple of times out, your offense starts to figure out their teammate a little bit. But we were five, six scrimmages in and we still couldn’t hit him. I was thinking, ‘OK, this guy’s really good or we’re really bad offensively.'”
Here’s a look at Edwards’ year-by-year stats:
2024: 20 appearances, 4 starts, 1-3 record, 7.88 ERA, 52 strikeouts, 19 walks
2025: 12 appearances, 5 starts, 3-0 record, 3.86 ERA, 46 strikeouts, 13 walks
2026: 16 appearances, 16 starts, 8-0 record, 1.85 ERA, 164 strikeouts, 43 walks
2024: 20 appearances, 4 starts, 1-3 record, 7.88 ERA, 52 strikeouts, 19 walks
2025: 12 appearances, 5 starts, 3-0 record, 3.86 ERA, 46 strikeouts, 13 walks
2026: 16 appearances, 16 starts, 8-0 record, 1.85 ERA, 164 strikeouts, 43 walks
A six-foot right-hander, Govel has blossomed in his second year in the USC program.
Another Southern California native — he’s from Rolling Hills Estates, south of Los Angeles — Govel has enjoyed the same kind of rapid improvement as Edwards. After going 3-2 with a 7.45 ERA last season, Govel enters the super regionals with a 10-2 record and 2.93 ERA, along with 96 strikeouts to just 15 walks.
Like Edwards, he earned a spot on the All-Big Ten first team, making them the only two USC players to earn the distinction.
Here’s a look at Govel’s year-by-year stats:
2025: 20 appearances, 4 starts, 3-2 record, 7.45 ERA, 45 strikeouts, 20 walks
2026: 18 appearances, 17 starts, 10-2 record, 2.93 ERA, 96 strikeouts, 15 walks
2025: 20 appearances, 4 starts, 3-2 record, 7.45 ERA, 45 strikeouts, 20 walks
2026: 18 appearances, 17 starts, 10-2 record, 2.93 ERA, 96 strikeouts, 15 walks
