As the San Francisco Giants prepared for a home game against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Tuesday, new skipper Tony Vitello was asked about his former collegiate program as the Tennessee Volunteers prepare for the start of the NCAA Tournament.
The Vols are the 2-seed in the Chapel Hill Regional this weekend, alongside 1-seed North Carolina, 3-seed East Carolina, and 4-seed VCU. Tennessee will play ECU in Game 1 on Friday afternoon and will then play either UNC or VCU, depending on the result of both games, on Saturday.
Vitello, who led the Vols to the mountaintop of college baseball in 2024, says that former UT pitching coach Frank Anderson broke down the Vols’ draw to him on Tuesday in the office. Anderson followed Vitello to San Francisco during the offseason after spending nine seasons as the Vols’ pitching coach.
“Obviously, they’re capable because of, you know, I think a lot of their coaching staff, and it’s a talented roster, but it’s also playoff time,” Vitello said, courtesy of Jack Loder on X. “Anything can happen. And I know that was Buster [Posey]’s team’s philosophy when they were here. Just let us in the playoffs and see what happens, you know? Anything can happen and you can wreak a little havoc as long as you have some self-belief.”
Tennessee’s current draw as the 2-seed in the Chapel Hill Regional is somewhat familiar to Vitello in two separate ways. For one, Vitello’s first NCAA Tournament Regional appearance with the Vols was a 2-seed berth in the 2019 Chapel Hill Regional. While the Vols didn’t make it out of that grouping, Vitello did take Tennessee into the Clemson Regional in 2023 as the 2-seed and advanced out of the four-team group.
“But I’ve broken down those numbers a ton,” Vitello said about NCAA Tournament seeding. “Just because you’re hosting, doesn’t mean you’re going to win. The most recent years, there’s been more and more bracket busters in college baseball, kind of like we’re used to in March Madness, where home field doesn’t really play anything into it. But, you know, there’s chaos.”
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After winning the Clemson Regional in 2023, Tennessee Baseball hosted the Knoxville Regional in both 2024 and 2025. The Vols advanced out of the grouping both years, before winning the College World Series in 2024 and losing in the Fayetteville Super Regional in 2025.
With Vitello leaving the program to become the next manager of the San Francisco Giants in October, the keys were handed to longtime valued assistant coach Josh Elander during the offseason. The Vols went 38-20 this year, including a 1-1 record in last week’s SEC Tournament event from Hoover.
2-seed Tennessee will take on 3-seed East Carolina at Noon ET on Friday afternoon in Chapel Hill.
Chapel Hill Regional Teams:
1. North Carolina (45-11-1)
2. Tennessee (38-20)
3. East Carolina (36-22-1)
4. VCU (37-23)
Stay tuned to Rocky Top Insider throughout the weekend for live, on-site coverage from Chapel Hill, NC.
“Just cause you’re hosting doesn’t mean you’re gonna win… Obviously (Tennessee) is capable because of their coaching staff and it’s a talented roster.”
AdvertisementAsked Tony Vitello how he feels about @Vol_Baseball’s chances in the Chapel Hill regional this weekend. pic.twitter.com/YnWISki8lr
— Jack Loder (@JackLoder_) May 26, 2026
