From balk to glory, inside Aaron Combs' ninth inning to win Tennessee baseball's national title

Aaron Combs had a problem.

The Tennessee baseball pitcher spun to throw to first base. But no one was there. No Texas A&M baserunner. No Blake Burke waiting for a snap throw. Combs held onto the ball and broke his intense demeanor.

Combs laughed and grinned. He had to, embracing the humor in a highly tense moment. He balked for the first time all season and it happened in the ninth inning of the College World Series final.

“There was nothing I could do about it,” Combs said.

Combs was the man on the mound at Charles Schwab Field for the Vols in the final inning of the final game of the College World Series final. It wasn't a clean one-two-three inning to Tennessee's 6-5 win and its run to the national championship like Combs would prefer. But the tumultuous frame was beautiful its own right.

"There are a lot more memories of this ninth inning with the way it happened," Combs said.

Aaron Combs wanted the ball in the ninth inning of the College World Series

Combs threw four scoreless innings in Game 2 of the CWS finals.

He told coach Tony Vitello he would be ready no matter what in the Monday final despite throwing 63 pitches to help keep UT's season going.

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“The entire world series, all I was thinking about was getting the last out,” Combs said. “I wanted to be that guy the whole time. That was what I was thinking as soon as I came out of the game the day before."

Combs’ season didn’t go according to plan. He worked to be a starter in the fall after being a shutdown, sudden-change relief pitcher in 2023. He landed in the bullpen again then learned in his first outing the windup he had perfected in the offseason was illegal because his first move was toward the plate. He lost his command while reworking his motion then battled a hip injury in April.

The Sarasota, Florida, native settled in during a sterling outing at Kentucky in mid-April and changed Tennessee’s bullpen in the process. He had game-ending stuff — and the mentality to do it. He was calm in chaos to clinch Tennessee’s SEC Tournament title against LSU.

Combs felt the same in Omaha, Nebraska, as he ran from the bullpen to the mound.

“Those were two of the most calm games I have felt pitching ever,” he said.

How Aaron Combs attacked the final inning of Tennessee’s national title

Combs pumped his first fastball of the ninth at 94 mph and was geared up to seal Tennessee’s national title.

“I was throwing as hard as I ever do,” Combs said. “There was a lot of adrenaline.”

He stuck to what he does, throwing fastballs and curveballs while sprinkling in a couple of changeups. He quickly noticed Texas A&M hitters were sitting on his curveball.

Leadoff hitter Gavin Grahovac crushed a double to left on one. He struck out Jace LaViolette with a high fastball. Jackson Appel poked an RBI single to left on the only curveball Combs threw him.

The redshirt junior threw three straight fastballs to strike out Hayden Schott for the second out. Catcher Cal Stark pumped his fist and pointed out to Combs, pleased with the pitch. Combs stepped back onto the rubber and took a deep breath with one out to go.

STORIES: Incredible untold stories of Tennessee's triumph in the College World Series

“In basically any situation, I use my emotions to give me an edge on people,” Combs said. “I have things that reset me on the mound like a focal point or breathing to make sure I am worried on the next batter not whatever happened.”

Combs fired a first-strike fastball by Ted Burton before a moment etched in Vols history.

Why Aaron Combs laughed after balking in the College World Series

Combs’ post-balk laughter in Omaha stemmed from an Orange & White World Series sequence.

He stepped off and threw over then but Burke was playing behind the runner. Combs’ throw sailed down the right-field line.

“That was immediately what went into my mind and I was just laughing,” Combs said. “Me and Cal were on the same page. It was so dumb.”

Combs can easily explain the balk. Appel took second base on defensive indifference on the first pitch to Burton. He got a sign from Stark he didn’t understand, but took it to mean throw to first. It meant look at the pitch com with a runner on second. He stepped off and no one was at first base. He smacked the ball into his glove, then laughed while telling Stark he didn’t know Appel was on second.

The balk sent Appel to third base. He scored on a wild pitch two pitches later, pulling Texas A&M within 6-5.

“I knew I needed to stay calm instead of being like I usually am, all amped up and hyped for everything,” Combs said. "Stay calm until I didn’t have to be.”

What is it like getting the final out in the national championship?

Combs had a 1-2 count on Burton after the wild pitch.

Stark signaled for a fastball. Combs declined. Stark signaled emphatically for a fastball again. Combs again shook it off. He was committed to throwing a curveball. He felt like Burton was on the fastball after swinging under one for the second strike.

“Hitters’ minds turn a lot more than pitchers,” Combs said. "They are not in control. I just knew that it had to end on a curveball.”

Combs’ conviction was built on studying what Aggies hitters did against him through the inning. It was solidified by knowing his curveball has been his pitch all season. Sophomore pitcher Jerry Garcia labeled Combs’ curve “the gabagool,” a homage to The Sopranos.

He has thrown 12 of them in a row before — and this had to be the one after a string of fastballs against the Aggies.

“I wanted to throw what I wanted,” Combs said.

Stark conceded and gave a firm nod of approval. Combs threw it as hard as he could, spinning the breaking ball that dove away from the right-handed Burton. He swung over the top and the battle nestled into Stark’s glove.

Combs erupted. Stark sprinted. The dugout emptied toward the mound, where Combs had done what he set out to do in getting the final out of the CWS.

Pitcher Drew Beam and Stark told Combs to go down for a dogpile. He was having none of it.

“They can do it next year,” Combs said.

Mike Wilson covers University of Tennessee athletics. Email him at michael.wilson@knoxnews.com and follow him on Twitter @ ByMikeWilson . If you enjoy Mike’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that will allow you access to all of it

This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: From balk to glory, inside Aaron Combs' ninth inning to win Tennessee baseball's national title