DALLAS – DBU has been voted by the league’s nine head coaches as the preseason favorite to win the 2024 regular season baseball championship, the league announced Thursday, along with the preseason all-conference team. The Patriots received all nine first place votes.
DBU catcher
Grant Jay and starting pitcher
Ryan Johnson highlighted the 2024 CUSA Preseason Baseball Awards. Jay was named Preseason Player of the Year, while Johnson was named Preseason Pitcher of the Year.
Jay, the reigning CUSA Freshman of the Year and consensus Freshman All-American, compiled one of the most decorated freshman seasons in Patriot program history. The sophomore backstop hit .319 in 58 games while tallying the nation’s 18
th-best slugging percentage (.755) and finishing the season sixth in CUSA in RBI (62) and doubles (17).
Johnson, a NCBWA Third Team All-American, looks to build upon a strong sophomore season after posting an 8-4 record with a 4.43 ERA. The junior right-hander finished 2023 with 116 strikeouts, ranking as the 16
th-highest total in the country as he struck out eight or more batters in eight of his 15 starts. Johnson boasted a .239 opponent batting average while walking just 22 batters in 87.1 innings pitched.
In its first year as a member of the league, Liberty was voted the runner-up with 64 points, followed by Louisiana Tech in third with 60 and Sam Houston in the fourth spot with 57. WKU (48) and MTSU (29) finished fifth and sixth respectively while Jax State (26), FIU (25) and New Mexico State (15) rounded out the poll.
The Conference USA season gets underway Friday, February 16, with the CUSA Baseball Championship returning to Ruston, Louisiana, on May 22-26 hosted by Louisiana Tech.
2024 CUSA Baseball Preseason Poll
| Rank |
School (first-place votes) |
Total |
| 1. |
DBU (9) |
81 |
| 2. |
Liberty |
64 |
| 3. |
Louisiana Tech |
60 |
| 4. |
Sam Houston |
57 |
| 5. |
WKU |
48 |
| 6. |
MTSU |
29 |
| 7. |
Jax State |
26 |
| 8. |
FIU |
25 |
| 9. |
NM State |
15 |
CUSA Baseball Preseason Player of the Year
Grant Jay, DBU, C
CUSA Baseball Preseason Pitcher of the Year
Ryan Johnson, DBU, RHP
CUSA Baseball Preseason All-Conference Team
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Hometown |
| Grant Jay, DBU |
So. |
C |
Semmes, Ala. |
| Miguel Santos, DBU |
Sr. |
INF |
Fort Worth, Texas |
| Derrick Jackson, Jr., Jax State |
Sr. |
INF |
Huntsville, Ala. |
| Cam Foster, Liberty |
Jr. |
INF |
Douglasville, Ga. |
| Aidan Sweatt, Liberty |
Sr. |
INF |
Fernandina Beach, Fla. |
| Easton Lloyd, Sam Houston |
Sr. |
INF |
Marshall, Texas |
| Nathan Humphreys, DBU |
Jr. |
OF |
Midlothian, Texas |
| Keith Jones, NM State |
Sr. |
OF |
Brentwood, Calif. |
| Jake Tatom, Sam Houston |
So. |
OF |
Kingwood, Texas |
| Ethan Mann, DBU |
R-Sr. |
DH |
McKinney, Texas |
| Ethan Bates, LA Tech |
Sr. |
UTIL |
Hot Springs, Ark. |
| Ryan Johnson, DBU, RHP |
Jr. |
SP |
Red Oak, Texas |
| Garrett Horn, Liberty, LHP |
Jr. |
SP |
Kernersville, N.C. |
| Coltin Atkinson, Sam Houston, RHP |
Sr. |
SP |
Porter, Texas |
| Lane Diuguid, WKU, LHP |
Sr. |
SP |
Hopkinsville, Ky. |
| Dawson Hall, WKU, RHP |
So. |
SP |
Bowling Green, Ky. |
| Chandler David, Sam Houston, RHP |
Sr. |
RP |
Van Alstyne, Texas |
| Mason Burns, WKU, RHP |
Sr. |
RP |
Bloomington, Ill. |