Mike Bianco: Health and QB situation will decide Austin Simmons' future
OXFORD | Ole Miss had its first fall baseball intrasquads this weekend, beginning the push toward 2025 and what it hopes is a reversal of the past two seasons without postseason play.
Austin Simmons, quarterback and left-handed pitcher, is all football during every fall, and it’s not certain if he will be a part of the active roster for the baseball program in the spring or not.
Simmons, who injured his UCL in late April playing baseball, said earlier this month he plans to be back on the diamond, though he mentioned some medical testing that will be required at some point.
“I'm pretty positive I'll be back to playing at Swayze next spring, so I'll be back into the relieving rotation,” Simmons said. “I just have to take another MRI, you know, to really see where I'm going from there.”
Simmons chose to rehab the injury to preserve the 2024 football calendar, and he’s had no lingering effects on the football field during camp or the season. The football freshman has appeared in all five games for the Rebels, completing 10-of-21 passes for 137 yards and a touchdown.
He won the backup quarterback competition over Walker Howard and is a top candidate to be the starting quarterback beginning next season.
Ole Miss baseball coach Mike Bianco, during his pre-fall press conference, said the football situation and Simmons’ health will factor into what’s ahead for baseball and the talented lefty.
“As far as here, we’ve talked about it and the injury and he looks healthy but throwing a baseball is different than throwing a football,” Bianco said. “The best thing is to be the best version of himself on the football field. Get through that and then we’ll tackle baseball as it comes.
“I think it’s more complicated than are you good enough to play here or healthy enough or what does the football look like as you’re fighting to be the number one (quarterback). To say that (this early) is probably a little inappropriate."
There’s the possibility some type of surgery will be required to have his elbow in baseball throwing shape, though that can’t be determined without further imaging and testing. Football and baseball UCL recoveries can be quite different.
Simmons appeared in 13 games during baseball season with a 3.21 ERA and .173 batting average against. He had 20 strikeouts and 11 walks in 14 innings.
Five days before the injury while pitching against Alabama, he threw 2.2 combined innings against Georgia, with 24 pitches in game one of a doubleheader and 21 pitches in game two of the doubleheader. He didn't allow an earned run in either appearance.
Simmons also practiced football during the spring prior to the injury.
“I’ve heard and don’t know much about football and haven’t watched practive but heard from (Lane) Kiffin how talented he really is,” Bianco said. “To see him run out there and watch him do that is special. We know what he can do out here and how special he is out here. I’m just happy and proud for him.”