For one glorious week in June for West Virginia University baseball fans, it seemed like it was Ben McDougal’s world and the rest of us mere mortals were just living in it.
But before he rose to national attention as the left-handed pitcher playing for West Virginia at the World Series of College Baseball in Omaha, McDougal was Catamount.
After two years at WVU Potomac State College, McDougal went on to play for the main campus of West Virginia University in Morgantown and just last month took the Mountaineers to a College World Series tournament in Omaha. McDougal’s name was cheered from the stands, chanted like an urban legend. His pitching prowess was on full display on a national level.
“It was a surreal experience,” said McDougal. “It felt like baseball heaven and an experience that I’ll never take for granted. The Omaha natives were also extremely hospitable and did everything to make you feel welcome. I didn’t feel any added pressure, but I knew WVU was watching and I had some pride there without a doubt. It was great knowing that so many people cared about what we were doing to the point where they were an extension of the team.”
And what did he “take home” from his experience?
“The biggest thing I took home is that baseball is the most beautiful game in the world,” McDougal said. “Whether you’re in Omaha or in Keyser, the game is something that should be cherished every time it’s played.
And McDougal would know. He said he doesn’t remember his childhood without some kind of sport or ball being involved.
“I’ve played sports for as long as I can remember. But I was just like every other kid, just playing games to enjoy them. I had my fair share of picking grass and playing the guitar in the outfield just like every other kid,” he said. “Around 10 to 12, in Little League, I had started to get good enough to compete and learn to enjoy the process of getting better every day.”
Getting better landed him at Potomac State, where he played for two seasons, under the direction of the iconic Coach Doug Little.
“Coach Little was an inspiring coach who got me in the position to play at the next level, and I’ll be forever grateful for that,” McDougal said. “He never sugarcoated anything and made me earn everything I was given just like how it is in real life. Turning boys into disciplined men is just as much a coach’s job as winning ball games.”
For his part, none of McDougal’s success surprises the coach who scouted him to come to PSC in the first place.
“You could see his confidence levels grow during his time here because of his work ethic and make up,” said Coach Little. “But for me was the fact above all else is that he is an even better person and teammate.”
“We knew that Ben had stardom written all over him when we saw him in high school,” said Little. “We knew his projectability was off the charts if he would come in, work hard, compete, and be mentally tough. He proved us right in his two years here with us.”
McDougal did not forget the impact Little made on his athletic career either. Reportedly, McDougal had been making subtle references to his former PSC coach and even his teammates while on the field in Omaha. It could have been a tip of a hat, a hand signal, or singing a stanza of “Walking in Memphis.” All of it referenced inside jokes and individual experiences he had while at Potomac State College. Often, the social media post contains the letters “IYKYK” a reference to ‘if you know, you know,’ meaning the gesture is only meant for a select few who understand the personal reference. And many on campus who worked with and played with McDougal understood.
Little said the song is one that has meaning to anyone who has ever attended a Potomac State College baseball practice. He said he was as tickled to see the reference posted in one of McDougal’s personal videos as anybody.
“Walking in Memphis’ is from the Golden Park playlist. We start every day at the field when we stretch with that song,” he said. “In the video, he was starting his stretching routine for that practice, and the song was playing.”
McDougal said the song choice in his posted social media video just before one of the series games in Omaha was intentional.
“Every kid that steps into the baseball program doesn’t leave without knowing the Golden Park playlist, and when you take pride in being a part of a program, you like to take little things with you and pay homage to them when you can,” he said.
Before signing with PSC, McDougal played at Bridgeport High School, where he was a first-team all-state pitcher in 2022 as a senior. As a junior the previous season, Ben earned second-team all-state honors as a utility player. In his junior season, Bridgeport defeated Hurricane, 10-4, to win the West Virginia state championship.
Oddly, as he finished high school, McDougal only had offers from two scouting colleges and universities. The first was with Division 2 Alderson Broaddus. The second was here at Potomac State. McDougal chose the second option because of the opportunity to collaborate with Coach Little.
For his part, Little has a strong reputation for recruiting young talent into the PSC baseball team and athletics department. He has been called a “master recruiter" who works very closely with Potomac State’s pitching staff, having produced six Region XX pitchers of the year. Little has also had countless players continue to play at four-year colleges, JUCO All-Americans, and numerous players drafted and signed by professional organizations.”
“What I remember most about attending Potomac State is the guys that I was surrounded by and the stories that came along with it,” McDougal said. “It’s awesome walking into a locker room with a bunch of guys who are just happy to still be playing ball with shared goals for the team as well as aspirations for themselves.”
In his two seasons at Potomac State (2023-2024), McDougal posted a combined 12-6 record with a 4.56 ERA and 130 strikeouts across 92 and two-thirds innings pitched.
After becoming a Mountaineer in Morgantown, McDougal made 19 relief appearances on the mound, struck out 17 in 22 and one-thirds innings pitched, going 1-1 with a 3.63 ERA and two saves. His post-season was highlighted by striking out the go-ahead run with the bases loaded to earn the save against Clemson in the NCAA Clemson Regional and then striking out four batters in two and one-thirds hitless innings at LSU in the NCAA Baton Rouge Super Regional.
The WVU baseball team’s historic run in the 2026 Men's College World Series ended after an elimination loss to North Carolina on Wednesday, June 17. The Mountaineers finished the tournament with a 2-2 record in Omaha, marking their first appearance in the College World Series in program history. Even though the final result did not end up in the W column for WVU, McDougal remained a standout player throughout the competition.
Now, in his senior year majoring in Exercise Physiology, McDougal once again made a big splash in the post-season when West Virginia needed it most – at the game of games – the collegiate World Series.
WVU head baseball coach Steve Sabins referred to McDougal’s performance on the pitcher’s mound as something scripted from a Hollywood feel-good movie.
“The week was storybook. There are so many things that happened, beginning with the regional, but for Ben McDougal to send us to Omaha is a movie script,” Sabins said. “I’ve got sunglasses on, watching Ben McDougal go out there, and I’m almost in tears in the dugout, just because there’s a lot of sacrifice that gets made…we have a really unique group of people who have come together to do something special.”
“Something special” are two words echoed by Coach Little here at Potomac State to describe McDougal and his presence and power on the field. Little said that, in addition to being a talented player and a talented athlete, McDougal is worthy of attention and the spotlight that is now hot on his shoulders because of his outstanding quality of character.
“People will remember character above all else as time moves on,” the coach said. “I am glad he chose us to continue his growth and development in the classroom and on the field. Our program is better today because he came here and was a huge part of it.”
“People talk about life lessons learned through baseball and sports in general. There are too many to count, but I would say the biggest ones would be things like learning to do one thing the way I do everything and to understand the process isn’t linear,” McDougal said. “That it’s important to lean on your faith in times where the future is unclear and to understand that what you have planned isn’t always the same as God’s. I’d say I am just like everyone else. People have qualities that could be looked up to as well as things that they struggle with and want to work to improve every day.”
And does McDougal have any advice for aspiring athletes?
“Just to fall in love with the grind and to find what makes you a good ballplayer and stick to it,” he said. “Also, consistency will take you farther than you can imagine. Don’t skip things just because it’s the easy way out. Winners are made by doing hard things.”