Southern Miss junior ace JB Middleton was recognized as Mississippi’s top collegiate baseball player on Monday when he was awarded the 2025 Ferriss Trophy at the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame.
The Yazoo City product has been among the college baseball’s best in his work on the mound this season. In 91.1 inning pitched, the righty hurler has etched a 2.07 ERA, .83 WHIP (walks plus hits per innings pitched), and 104 strikeouts to just 23 walks. Middleton’s ERA ranks fifth nationally, while his WHIP mark is second-best in Division I baseball.
“It’s a great honor just to be in consideration and be a finalist,” Middleton said after the ceremony. “It feels good. We have a really special group — we always do. Having somebody, or this year in the case of having two, it’s really special to kind of show everybody what kind of talent we have.”
Middleton has led the way for the Golden Eagles as the premiere presence on the mound, helping the program to a 9th-straight 40-win season — the longest active streak in DI baseball.
Other finalists included Delta State’s Drake Fontenot, Ole Miss’ Luke Hill, Mississippi State’s Ace Reese, and Southern Miss’ Nick Monistere.
