Arkansas’ Cam Kozeal comes back to his hometown to make some more College World Series memories

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) - Arkansas' Cam Kozeal was a top 150 prospect for the Major League Baseball amateur draft two years ago, but pro ball was always going to have to wait.

Having grown up in Omaha and been a two-time Nebraska high school player of the year, and with his father a member of the Charles Schwab Field grounds crew, his goal was to play in the College World Series.

Kozeal will accomplish that Saturday night when the No. 3 national seed Razorbacks (48-13) play No. 6 seed LSU (48-15) in the first round.

"It is surreal. It's a dream come true. It's a cool journey. It's very fun. It's a lot of blessings," Kozeal said. "Took a lot of people to get here. It wasn't just me. A lot of coaches throughout the years. My dad, obviously. All my siblings. All the time I spent with them. It's good to be back in Omaha."

Kozeal has played a major role in getting Arkansas to this point. His .450 batting average in the NCAA Tournament is best on his team and ranks 11th among players in the CWS. He’s batting .346 for the season, and three of his team-best 18 doubles and two of his 15 homers have come in the postseason.

Kozeal became a high-level recruiting target when he was at Millard South High School in Omaha. He led Millard South to a state title in 2021 and hit a monster grand slam in a loss in the 2022 state final.

He began his college career at Vanderbilt last year and hit .284 with five homers while splitting time between second base and designated hitter. The fit wasn’t right, so he decided to transfer.

Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn said he knew Kozeal had difficulty making the transition from high school to college, but he also found Kozeal willing to do anything asked of him. Kozeal began this season as the Razorbacks’ starting first baseman and began playing more second base after Gabe Fraser was injured at midseason.

"His development is there. The talent has always been there. The strength is there," Van Horn said. "I think just mentally he had to know that everything was OK. It's OK. And he's been great, putting up good numbers."

The CWS was a big part of Kozeal’s childhood. His father, Matt Kozeal, was on the grounds crew at Rosenblatt Stadium, which had been home to the CWS until 2010. Cam was only 5 years old when the last games were played at Rosenblatt, but he made some of his earliest memories at the ballpark.

Before it was torn down, he and brother Carson and their dad spent a couple hours playing ball in the empty stadium. To this day when the Kozeals drive past the Rosenblatt site, Matt exclaims, "Viva Le Rosenblatt!"

By his senior year of high school, Cam made up his mind that college would be his next step. After some rocky times at Vanderbilt, he’s made it to the college game’s biggest stage.

On Saturday, his father will help prepare Schwab Field for when his son and the Razorbacks square off against their Southeastern Conference rivals. That the game will be played on Father’s Day weekend will make it the most cherished of all the Kozeals’ CWS memories.

Before Arkansas’ practice Thursday, Cam and his dad shared a hug on the warning track. It was a touching sight. But as the embrace ended, Cam jokingly made a request.

"I told him he should have mowed," he said, "because the grass is really long."