The only major question for the Florida State baseball team heading into this weekend’s Oxford, Miss., NCAA Regional was which pitcher would get the starting nod in Game 1 vs. Southern Miss.

In years past, the Seminoles have made a habit of throwing their Saturday starter in the first game of a regional and holding their ace back until the following game.

But not many times in years past have the Seminoles been a No. 3 seed in the postseason, with a team like Southern Miss awaiting them in Game 1.

With that in mind, FSU coach Mike Martin Jr. has decided to pitch his ace this afternoon against the Golden Eagles (3 p.m. ET, ESPNU).

"Parker Messick will get the start," Martin said during his Thursday press conference.

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Messick is the 2021 ACC Pitcher of the Year. He's 7-2 with a 3.32 ERA, with 121 strikeouts in 84 innings pitched.

The redshirt freshman will be making his first ever postseason appearance.

"I can't wait," Messick said. "I've done it all season. I've pitched most of the Friday nights. I'm just going to try to pitch with a big crowd, with a lot of energy, and have a lot of fun with it. Nothing new. Just keep doing what I've been doing."

*ALSO SEE: NCAA Oxford Regional Primer: Breaking down FSU Baseball's opponents

One thing he hasn't done all season, though, is pitch in front of a big crowd. Almost all of the ACC programs were at 25 percent capacity or less throughout the season.

Oxford is wide open. And while the host Ole Miss Rebels won't be playing until the nightcap, there still figures to be plenty of fans in the stadium for the first game today. Southern Miss (37-19) expects to have quite a few fans in the stands for a regional showdown against the Seminoles (30-22).

"It's not ideal the fact that we haven't played in front of large crowds," Martin Jr. said. "And we're going to have them this weekend. We'd much rather have it that way than nobody being allowed to be in and trying to bring your own energy.

"So, it's going to be a challenge. Southern is going to travel. ... I'm hoping some Seminoles come and join and check out this beautiful campus and great facility and really good baseball."

The last time the Seminoles were in a position like this, being a road underdog in a regional, was of course just two years ago. They went up to UGA and swept through the Athens Regional and then beat LSU in two straight games in the Super Regionals to advance to the College World Series.

That's a long way off right now for the 2021 team.

The Seminoles will have to take it one game at a time in a regional as talented as this one.

Then again, that goes for every team in it.

Southern Miss didn't exactly get the easiest No. 3 seed in the world for the opener.

"They've got some really good pitching depth," Eagles head coach Scott Berry said of the Seminoles. "Particularly from the left side, their numbers are really good. It looks like the pitching has kind of carried them. Offensively, they've got a lot of power. ... They're No. 11 in home run leaders (in the country). They have tremendous power.

"It's a rich tradition club that certainly knows how to win and has for a long time."

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