Mike Bianco: 1,000 Wins and Counting
Ole Miss head baseball coach Mike Bianco became one of only 21 active NCAA DI coaches with 1,000 career wins on April 20, 2024 as the Rebels defeated Georgia in game two of a doubleheader in Athens.
On his road to 1,000 wins, Bianco has delivered 18 postseason appearances, including eight Super Regional berths, a pair of trips to the College World Series, and the first national championship in program history. He has racked up 900 victories at Ole Miss and holds a 1,000-603 (.624) overall record for his career. Those 900 wins are the most in Rebel baseball history and rank third all-time among coaches in the SEC.
Win No. 1 (February 6, 1998 vs. Southern)
After seven seasons as an assistant at Northwestern (La.) State and LSU, Bianco received his first head coaching opportunity, taking over the reins of McNeese State.
He quickly displayed his abilities to develop a competitive program. In his first season with the Cowboys in 1998, he engineered an 11-game improvement from 1997, posting a 30-26 record - the first of three 30-win seasons. The 1998 season also saw the Cowboys rise to third in the conference standings and qualify for the Southland Conference Tournament.
Bianco had the opportunity to coach McNeese’s first ever All-American in Ben Broussard (1996-99). Broussard was named to the 1999 NCBWA First Team, 1999 ABCA/Rawlings Second Team and 1999 Collegiate Baseball Third Team.
Following a 31-25 campaign in 1999, Bianco’s 2000 team produced one of the most successful seasons in McNeese State history. The Cowboys finished 39-20, including winning a school-record 20 SLC games en route to claiming their first conference title since 1988, and making their third-ever appearance in the NCAA Regionals. In recognition, Bianco was named the Southland’s Coach of the Year.
Bianco’s 2000 McNeese State team raked in the individual postseason awards. Four Cowboys were named to the All-Southland First Team, including the conference’s Hitter and Newcomer of the Year in Chris Williamson, and the SLC’s Pitcher of the Year in Chris Howay.
Win No. 101 (February 10, 2001 vs. Little Rock)
Bianco was hired to be the 20th head coach of the Ole Miss baseball program on June 7, 2000 after three successful seasons at McNeese.
After being picked to finish sixth in the SEC Western Division in his first season, Bianco and his crew defied expectations, finishing second in the West with a 17-13 record and an overall record of 39-23-1. The 39 wins were then one shy of the single-season program record, while the 17 conference wins tied the program record at the time.
Ole Miss rose in the national spotlight that season, breaking into the top 10 in the national rankings for the first time since the 1972 season. The Rebels closed out the year with a trip to the NCAA Regional in New Orleans as the No. 2 seed. Jake Gibbs (1972-1990) is the only other coach to take his team to the postseason in his first season as head coach.
Four Rebels earned spots as All-SEC selections on either the first or second team, while outfielder Burney Hutchinson earned second team All-America honors from Baseball Weekly. It was the beginning of a steady climb to the top for Ole Miss.
Win No. 297 (June 5, 2005 vs. Oklahoma)
Ole Miss set the stage for the move to the next level in 2004 as the Rebels earned another berth in the postseason, marking the first time in program history that Ole Miss reached an NCAA Regional in back-to-back seasons. However, things were different this time around.
Instead of heading on the road for the postseason in 2004, Oxford, Mississippi was selected as one of the 16 host sites for an NCAA Regional. It was the first time Ole Miss ever served as a Regional host, but it wouldn’t be the last.
On the way to the 2004 postseason, Bianco’s Rebels notched 18 wins in Southeastern Conference play on the way to an overall mark of 39-21 for the season.
Bianco’s leadership led Stephen Head, then a sophomore, to earn All-America honors for the second-straight season, becoming the school’s third two-time All-American in 2004.
Not satisfied with the accomplishments of the 2004 season, Bianco and Ole Miss added to its list of firsts in 2005. The Rebels hosted a second-straight NCAA Regional and advanced to an NCAA Super Regional for the first time, playing host to the eventual national champion Texas Longhorns. The Rebels broke the 40-win mark for the first time under Bianco, setting a school record at 48-20 on the season and claiming the SEC Western Division Championship, Bianco’s first SEC Championship.
Ole Miss also saw the second-straight Ferriss Trophy come to Oxford when Brian Pettway was named as the award’s recipient as well as being named an All-American for the first time in his career. He joined Head, who became the program’s first-ever three-time All-American when he earned the distinction again in 2005.
Win No. 338 (May 28, 2006 vs. Vanderbilt)
The Rebels posted a 44-22 record in the 2006 season, marking the first time in history that Ole Miss had turned in back-to-back 40-win seasons. Ole Miss also claimed the 2006 SEC Tournament Championship on the way to hosting its third-consecutive NCAA Regional as well as a second-straight Super Regional against the Miami Hurricanes.
The Rebels again had two players gain national recognition as Zack Cozart and Cody Satterwhite were named All-Americans and three Rebels gained All-SEC honors. With the conclusion of the 2006 season, Ole Miss found itself holding a spot as one of the top teams in the nation and atop the Southeastern Conference. The Rebels were the only team in the SEC to post a winning record in conference play each of the previous four seasons. Ole Miss also posted more wins in the SEC than any other program over the same time frame.
Win No. 461 (May 16, 2009 at Arkansas)
Ole Miss continued to pull in the accolades in 2009 as the Rebels claimed the SEC Regular Season Championship for the first time since 1977 with a 20-10 record in conference play. The 20 wins set the school record for wins in SEC play and helped Ole Miss secure a seventh straight berth in the NCAA Tournament, hosting for the fifth time in Bianco’s nine years. The Rebels advanced to an NCAA Super Regional for the fourth time in five seasons, becoming one of only six schools to advance to at least four Super Regionals in that time.
Win No. 657 (June 19, 2014 vs. No. 2 seed TCU)
Many people refer to the 2014 season as one of the best in Ole Miss history as Bianco led the Rebels to the College World Series for the fifth time in program history and the first time since the 1972 season.
Ole Miss claimed the SEC Western Division title for the third time under Bianco’s leadership, posting a 19-11 record before hosting an NCAA Regional for the sixth time during the head coach’s watch. The Rebels blew through the Regional with a win over Jacksonville State and a pair of wins over Washington on the way to a fifth NCAA Super Regional in 10 seasons.
In the NCAA Super Regional, the Rebels traveled to face top-ranked Louisiana-Lafayette and rallied after losing the first game to claim the NCAA Super Regional with wins in game two and three to secure the program’s berth in the College World Series.
In Omaha, the Rebels faced No. 1 seed Virginia, falling to the Cavaliers 2-1 in the opening-round game before picking up a dramatic walk-off win over Texas Tech and a 6-4 victory over TCU in elimination contests to set up another showdown against Virginia with a berth in the CWS Championship Series on the line. Ole Miss fell to the Cavaliers to end the season with a third-place finish, tying the best finish in the CWS by an Ole Miss team with the 1956 Rebels.
Win No. 708 (May 27, 2018 vs. LSU)
The 2018 campaign brought one of Bianco’s best seasons to date. The Rebels won 48 games for the first time since heading to Omaha in 2014, were crowned SEC West Co-Champions, and went on to win the SEC Tournament Championship.
Ole Miss opened the season with the best start to a year in program history, coming in at 17-1, as well as 20-2 at just before the halfway point. The Rebels entered postseason play tied for their highest ranking in program history at No. 2, according to NCBWA. They were a consensus top-five team by the end of the year, and spent most of the season as one of the nation’s best teams. The Rebels ranked in the top-15 nationally in hits, doubles, runs scored, slugging percentage, home runs, and batting average. Every Rebel who started a game in 2018 recorded a home run, but no one contributed more to the offense than the hot bat of Ryan Olenek, who had a record year that saw the junior hit .350 with 83 hits in 61 games, including the third-longest hitting streak in program history at 23 games.
After running through the SEC Tournament, capped by a 9-1 win over LSU in the conference title game, the Rebels hosted an NCAA Regional for the first time since 2016 the tournament in 2017. After opening with a decisive victory over Saint Louis, the Rebels exited the tournament after two heartbreaking losses in one day to the nation’s top hitting team, Tennessee Tech.
Win No. 854 (June 26, 2022 vs. No. 4 seed Oklahoma)
In a career that has been filled with memorable seasons, the pinnacle without a doubt came during the 2022 campaign. Once sitting at 7-14 in the SEC and left for dead by fans and media across the country, Bianco’s Rebels responded with one of the most miraculous turnarounds in college baseball history to not only right the ship, but finish on top.
Ole Miss finished 7-2 over its last three SEC series, including its first-ever sweep over LSU in Baton Rouge, to bolster its resume and ultimately garner the very last bid into the NCAA Tournament.
Despite Rebel captain Tim Elko’s warning of “Don’t Let the Rebs Get Hot,” the college baseball world did just that. Once in the postseason, the Rebels never looked back, cruising through three-straight wins to claim the Coral Gables Regional and topping Southern Miss in the Hattiesburg Super Regional to advance to Omaha for the second time under Bianco.
Even at the College World Series, the Rebels couldn’t be cooled down as Ole Miss defeated Auburn and took down Arkansas twice to advance to the championship series against Oklahoma. After Bianco’s bunch eased past the Sooners in game one, an eighth-inning rally sealed the deal in game two, securing the program’s first national championship.
Following the triumphant season, the longtime Rebel skipper was tabbed the National Coach of the Year by D1Baseball, USA Baseball, the ABCA, and Collegiate Baseball. It was the second season in which Bianco was named the national coach of the year, receiving the honor from Collegiate Baseball after leading Ole Miss to a 16-1 start to the 2020 season prior to the halting of play due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Win No. 1,000 (April 20, 2024 at Georgia)
Bianco became the 21st active coach with 1,000 wins under his belt at the back-end of a Saturday doubleheader against Georgia in Athens on April 20. He became the 98th head coach in NCAA history to reach the mark. The win was also his 900th as the head coach of the Ole Miss Rebels.
The Rebels rallied to take game two of the doubleheader and the final game of the series by a tight score of 3-2. Ole Miss pitching held the Bulldogs to just two unearned runs and just five hits in the finale, striking out 11 batters in the process.
Gunnar Dennis got the start, allowing just four hits over 4.1 innings of work. He allowed just one unearned run in the third inning that came on an overthrown ball to third base.
JT Quinn relieved Dennis with one out and one on in the fifth inning. He induced a strikeout and a groundout on a comebacker in his first action since March 2 to get out of the inning.
Ethan Lege hit a solo home run, his 12th of the season, in the sixth inning to tie the game a one run apiece. After Andrew Fischer was thrown out at the plate trying to score later in the inning, Will Furniss knocked in Jackson Ross to give the Rebels a 2-1 lead.
Ole Miss would add one more in the top of the seventh on a sacrifice fly by Fischer to make it 3-1.
Quinn pitched into the seventh inning before being relieved by Austin Simmons with one on and no outs. The Bulldogs went on to load the bases and scored an unearned run on a fielding error before Simmons was able to get out of the inning.
Quinn’s final line in his return to the mound was no hits, one unearned run, two strikeouts, and two walks over 1.2 innings of work. He was also credited with the win at the end of the game.
Simmons, working for the second time in the doubleheader, struck out two batters in his inning of work.
Brayden Jones came in and worked a two inning save, allowing just one baserunner and striking out three to close out the win.