ABS Challenge System Could Be Coming To College Baseball & Other Notes From SEC Coaches Meeting

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The Southeastern Conference enters 2026 as the unquestioned standard-bearer for college baseball. Last spring, 13 of its 16 programs reached the NCAA Tournament, a record that reflected both the leagueâ€s depth and its sustained grip on the sport. LSU carried the banner all the way to Omaha, winning its second national title in three years and extending the SECâ€s streak of champions that dates back to 2019.

Against that backdrop, the conferenceâ€s coaches gathered this month to discuss the state of the game and issues shaping its future. Topics ranged from rule tweaks and player welfare to the ever-evolving balance of technology in dugouts.

Here is a look into those discussions and how they could shape SEC baseball—and the broader landscape of the sport—in the years ahead.

ABS Challenge System Gaining Traction

Across the country last fall, players experimented with the automated balls and strikes challenge system.

Pitchers tapped the tops of their caps, hitters tapped their helmets and catchers gestured behind the plate—all invoking technology to dispute an umpireâ€s call. For most programs it was less about competition than education, a chance to help players grow comfortable with a strike zone no longer subject solely to human interpretation.

One coach described it as simply making his hitters “more familiar with the strike zone.â€

But what once felt like a novelty is edging closer to permanence in college baseball. After trials in the minor leagues, spring training and the All-Star Game, MLB will be bringing its ABS challenge system online full-time in 2026. The SEC is already laying the groundwork to follow, though not on the same timeline.

“I have been vocal in saying that my ambition for us is to be in close follow when Major League Baseball implements that fully,†an SEC official told Baseball America. “We implemented the action clocks a year after Major League Baseball, so Iâ€ve used that as kind of the barometer for us for the ABS. When commissioner (Rob) Manfred said theyâ€re going to seek to start to employ that through the challenge system starting next year, 2026, for them, that caught my attention.â€

For the SEC, the target is 2027, though even that goal comes with caveats. 

“Thatâ€s kind of the target date,†the official said. “But even standing here today in September 2025, I would tell you Iâ€m not naive. I think even thatâ€s ambitious for us, given the significant commitment to resources thatâ€s involved with that.â€

The official explained that the league is working to set up the foundation now, from the technology infrastructure to the logistics of training and implementation. But those steps will take time, and the runway is long. The target date of 2027 reflects both a desire to shadow MLBâ€s model and the recognition that the cost of outfitting stadiums, wiring broadcast feeds and retraining umpires will be substantial.

Itâ€s why the SECâ€s approach mirrors how it handled the introduction of the action clock in 2023—waiting a season to observe how the professional game adjusted, identifying pressure points and only then installing its own version with lessons already learned. 

“I thought it was valuable for us to observe it at the major league level and to see what issues, if any, they identify, and kind of let them be the test case,†the official said. “And then for us to try to follow as soon as possible thereafter.â€

With MLB flipping the switch on ABS challenges for 2026, SEC ballparks could see the challenge system the following spring. Though the ambition is clear, the league is under no illusions: Adapting the game at college scale is a massive undertaking.

The First Base Bag Debate Continues

First base remains a point of contention. 

The SEC has discussed whether to move from the double bag now in use to the larger “pizza box†base MLB adopted. Coaches see value in aligning the college game with the professional standard, but the path is complicated and highly unlikely to be uniform across the country based on conversations with SEC sources and several from outside the league.

Within the conference, there is reluctance to implement the bigger bag for conference games only, knowing teams would then toggle between two sets of rules in midweek and postseason play. 

“If you want to call it experimental in which we employ for conference competition only, I think thatâ€s probably too much for our programs,†the SEC official said. “Is it feasible? Yes. Is it something that you want to do? Probably not.â€

The challenge is that while SEC schools could handle the cost and logistics of switching, many smaller programs may not. 

One mid-major administrator told Baseball America it would cost in excess of $4,000 just to drill new holes in a turf field for the larger bag plus several more thousand dollars to adjust the bag locations at second and third. Even within Division I, resources vary enough that smaller conferences might not be able to keep up with those kinds of costs.

That disparity underscores a central tension in college baseball: the SECâ€s commitment to preparing players for pro ball by mirroring MLB standards vs. the broader NCAA ecosystem in which lower-budget Division I programs hold equal sway in rules decisions.

“It is a good illustration of the challenges that we face in this sport,†the official said. “Our players want to play 162 games a year at the next level. So, we try to take pride in preparing them as best as we can, including playing the game in the same type of way.â€

For now, the pizza box bag remains on the wish list rather than in the rulebook. Unless the NCAA moves toward uniform adoption—including at the tournament level—the SEC is hesitant to go it alone. But the conference has made clear that if consensus builds among power four leagues, it will push hard for the bigger base.

Pace Of Play Back On The Table

The SEC has prided itself on staying close to Major League Baseball when it comes to pace of play, but coaches were reminded this fall that progress is fragile. After three straight years of average conference games finishing under three hours, 2025 saw game times climb back to 3:10.

An SEC official said the trend concerned both the league and television partners. 

“That three-hour line kind of seems arbitrary, but itâ€s actually pretty impactful,†the official noted. 

The culprit, in part, is hitters gaming the action clock—stepping in with their heads turned and waiting until the countdown nears zero before engaging.

One proposal was to mirror MLBâ€s 15-second and 18-second pitch clocks. Coaches pushed back, arguing hitters need more control, but the league made clear that adjustments—either to clock rules or umpire instructions—could be coming.

“Weâ€ve got to figure out a way to curtail that,†the official said. “If a hitter gets in the box and they have enough time to just stand there and watch the clock tick down, that tells me thereâ€s too much time on the clock.â€

Exit Velocities On The Rise

One trend the SEC is keeping a close eye on is the continued climb in exit velocities across Division I baseball. Between 2022 and 2025, the average jumped from 82.5 mph to 86.1 mph, while 90th percentile averages have climbed from 96.5 mph to just under 102 mph to mark the first time the sportâ€s peak output has cracked triple digits in the data-tracking era.

Administrators and coaches in the SEC have discussed the issue, but no clear answers have emerged. The league is wary of calling it a safety problem yet acknowledges the trend is significant enough to monitor. 

“Exit velocities in college baseball are objectively up right now,†an SEC official said. “Itâ€s something that weâ€re following and at least having conversation about ways in which that may be explored.â€

The likeliest starting point is the ball itself, but even that idea is at a very early stage. For now, the conversation remains just that—a conversation.

More Quick Hits

Roster Cuts On The Horizon

The SEC is helping coaches navigate the first mandatory roster declaration, which requires teams to be down to 34 players by Dec. 1. The timing is awkward, with the winter transfer portal window opening the very next day. 

“Youâ€re going to declare your roster on one day and then the next day weâ€re going to invite the opportunity for anybody on that roster to enter into the portal,†an SEC official said. “It seems quite impractical and illogical, at least to me.†

The league has encouraged coaches to step back and look at roster management holistically, recognizing how many overlapping dates—draft, portal windows and signing periods—now complicate the process.

Staff Size Flexibility

Baseball coaches want the same staff freedoms football and basketball recently received. Prior to the 2024 football season, the NCAA allowed analysts and other non-designated staffers to provide on-field instruction, eliminating what had become an archaic rule often ignored in practice. With staffs growing and more programs investing in analytical specialists, SEC coaches are lobbying for similar latitude. 

As one official put it: “This is high-level competitive baseball—you should have the ability to put somebody out there. But because of these antiquated NCAA rules, youâ€re just hamstrung in what you can do.â€

Uncertainty Around New NCAA Committee

The NCAAâ€s new baseball oversight committee officially began work Sept. 1, but its role and influence remain unclear. 

The SEC is pressing for clarity on how the group will operate, how it will be staffed and what authority it will carry in shaping the sport. Several coaches admitted they donâ€t yet understand its responsibilities, reflecting the uncertainty across the league. 

“Thereâ€s a lot that needs to be addressed there,†an SEC official said. “Iâ€ve encouraged (coaches) to be pretty active and aggressive in asking those questions.â€

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