The Road to Omaha has begun in college baseball, and Alabama has a chance to reach the College World Series for the first time in over two decades this year. However, there is still a very long, and tough path to get there.

Monday morning, the Crimson Tide were selected as a No. 2 seed in the Tallahassee Regional hosted by the Florida State Seminoles, on the College Baseball Selection Show. Now, head coach Rob Vaughn’s squad has the opportunity to punch a ticket into the super regionals with a few successful showings down south.

Alabama had a disappointing start to its postseason journey, falling in the first round of the SEC Tournament to South Carolina. To its advantage though, the Crimson Tide had a full week of recovery and preparation for the bigger picture at hand.

Vaughn’s crew will have its work cut out for it in Tallahassee, however, as no team will be taking this chance lightly. Alabama will be competing against No. 8 national seed and No. 1 seed Florida State, along with No. seed 3 Central Florida, and No. 4 seed Stetson.

All of the action will begin on Friday afternoon, as the Crimson Tide will take on Central Florida for its first game in the regional bracket at 5:00 p.m. CT.

Here’s how to watch Alabama’s journey through the postseason in Tallahassee, along with a breakdown of the competition.

Who: Alabama (33-22, 13-17 SEC) at Central Florida (35-19, 14-15 SEC)

When: Friday at 5:00 p.m. CT

Where: Dick Howser Stadium, Tallahassee, FL

Watch: ESPN+

Listen: 100.9 FM / CTSN / The Varsity App

Florida State’s resume

Record: 42-15, 17-12 ACC

RPI: 8

SOS: 26

Postseason record: 3-1

Florida State may have just come off a tough loss in the ACC Championship game against Duke, but its postseason journey is far from over. The Noles are hosting a regional for the 36th time in school history, which makes this very familiar territory.

Led by head coach Link Jarrett, Florida State has had a very successful season, beating notable teams such as No. 12 NC State, No. 17 Duke, and No. 22 Wake Forest in various parts of the year, meanwhile holding an incredible 27-4 record at home.

Without a doubt, the Noles feel extremely comfortable at its own field and will try to assert its dominance over its opponents in the region.

The Noles are led on the mound by sophomore lefty Jamie Arnold who has been an absolute unit on the bump this year. Arnold holds a 10-3 record with a 2.45 ERA and a whopping 134 strikeouts which ranks fifth in the country.

Arnold has been on a tear recently as well, earning a victory in his last three appearances, allowing three runs or less in each game. Needless to say, the young pitcher is dangerous on the mound and will be looking to make sure his opponents know it.

At the dish, the Noles are currently in 10th place in the country in batting average, hitting .316. Along with that, it also ranks 12th in the country with 627 hits on the year. Without a doubt, this team can hurt you on both sides.

Florida State is led at the plate by sophomore third baseman Cam Smith, who has had nothing short of an incredible year so far. Smith is hitting .397, which ranks 19th in the country with 20 doubles, 14 home runs, and 50 RBIs.

Outside of Smith, the Noles have five other batters hitting over .300 right now which poses a huge threat to any pitcher throwing their way.

As expected, Florida State will be the biggest team to look out for this weekend with its successes on the mound and at the plate.

Central Florida’s resume

Record: 35-19, 14-15 BIG 12

RPI: 33

SOS: 42

Postseason record: 2-1

Central Florida is coming into this weekend very similar to Alabama. Much like the Crimson Tide, the Knights have a similar overall and conference record, along with some bumps in the road along the way.

UCF is back in the NCAA Tournament for the first time in seven years, and are looking to reach a super regional for the first time ever. Unfortunately for the Knights, Tallahassee hasn’t been very friendly to it for the last two decades.

In its five appearances in the Tallahassee Regional since 2000, UCF has been eliminated all five times. Two of which were by Florida State, and one of those was by Alabama in 2011. Though the past wasn’t positive to look back on, the Knights will be looking to do everything in its power to advance.

Led by first-year head coach Rich Wallace, UCF has a solid record this year, and has a winning 12-9 record on the road as well. With the Big 12 having a rough year in baseball this season, the Knights have only played two ranked opponents, beating one of them, namely the No. 16 Oklahoma State Cowboys.

Wallace’s squad has a decent pitching attack, led by junior righty Dom Stagliano. The veteran pitcher has a 3-4 record with a 3.73 ERA on the mound with 63 strikeouts as well. Stagliano has been the Knight’s go-to starter all season and will likely get the nod against the Crimson Tide on Friday night.

At the plate, UCF has a couple of threats to put the ball in play. Most notably, the junior outfielder Matt Prevesk. The veteran fielder is batting .347 this season with five home runs and 35 RBIs. Without a doubt, Prevesk is the best hitter on this roster and will certainly be circled in the lineup by the opposing team.

Stetson’s resume

Record: 40-20, 20-10 ASUN

RPI: 100

SOS: 198

Postseason record: 3-1

Perhaps one of the most underrated teams in the entire Tallahassee Regional is the Stetson Hatters. Reaching 40 wins in a season, regardless of the level of competition, is impressive in itself and Stetson is looking to make some noise as a major underdog.

Stetson is no stranger to the regional tournament, as it has reached the tournament 11 times since 2000, but have only reached it for the third time in 10 years. Nevertheless, the Hatter’s victory in the 2018 regional that it hosted is the most recent success in program history that will be attempted to repeat this year.

Despite coming from a weak conference, Stetson has been battle tested by a few teams this season. The Hatters have faced off against Florida State already, along with No. 10 Georgia, Florida, and UCF.

Stetson is entering the weekend on a high note as well after defeating Kennesaw State for the ASUN Championship game, and is looking to continue its success in Tallahassee.

The Hatters are very back and forth on the road, holding an 11-10 record at opposing ballparks. However, it has won 8 of its last 10 games including a 10-5 victory over the Seminoles just a couple of weeks ago.

Senior lefty Anthony DeFabbia is the leader on the mound for Stetson. The veteran arm has an 8-1 record with a 4.85 ERA and 50 strikeouts on the year. Currently, the Hatters are 14-3 in games where DeFabbia pitches which is certainly something to take note of if he plans on taking the mound Friday.

The bats have also been a major threat for Stetson all year too. Head coach Steve Trimper’s squad has four batters hitting over .300 this season and pose a constant threat at the dish every single inning.

The Hatters are led by freshman outfielder Kyle Jones who is batting .352 with 14 doubles, three home runs, and 30 RBIs. Jones is currently on a four-game hit streak and definitely has the potential to extend it further into the postseason.