How USC's Mason Edwards became one of the most dom...
Key takeaways
- "When I start hearing projections for the draft and everything, I'm just like, 'Damn, it's pretty surreal just to think about how it started, where he's been and what he's accomplished,'" Goossen-Brown said.
- He wasn't a showcase regular and didn't interest top schools until late in high school.
- Those numbers are the payoff of a development story years in the making.
Why this matters: a sports story that could shift standings, legacies, or fan conversations.
Edwards set a new Big Ten single-season strikeout record with 101. USC Athletics Kyle Bonagura May 7, 2026, 07:00 AM ETClose Covers college football.Joined ESPN in 2014.Attended Washington State University.Follow on XMultiple Authors Email Print Open Extended Reactions IN SUMMER 2021, Josh Goossen-Brown -- now USC baseball's director of player development -- was coaching at a junior college in Los Angeles when a goofy, left-handed pitcher came looking for lessons. The kid had just finished his sophomore year of high school and was determined to get better, but with a fastball in the mid-70s, he didn't profile as a surefire college recruit, let alone a star at the next level.
Five years later, that kid -- USC junior pitcher Mason Edwards -- is nearly unrecognizable, having developed into one of the most dominant pitchers in college baseball and a likely first-round Major League Baseball draft pick.
"When I start hearing projections for the draft and everything, I'm just like, 'Damn, it's pretty surreal just to think about how it started, where he's been and what he's accomplished,'" Goossen-Brown said.