What Billy Oldham said of his eligibility, returning to Southern Miss baseball next season
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Southern Miss baseball held its senior day celebration before the regular-season finale on May 18 against Texas State. Six players were honored, but Billy Oldham did not participate.
That’s because he has an extra year of eligibility and isn’t sure yet if this will be his final season with the Golden Eagles.
Oldham explained the situation to reporters Friday after practice at Alabama State. Southern Miss (39-18) had the day off in the Sun Belt tournament after it won its first two games on Wednesday and Thursday. At 9 a.m. CT Saturday (ESPN+), it will play Appalachian State, which beat Troy on Friday 10-6.
“I’ve got another year of eligibility because of COVID and D-III,” he said. “My freshman year was the COVID year, completely shut down and played four games. The year after that, we only ended up playing I think a total of 40 (games) with playoffs. There was about half of the D-III conferences that didn’t even have seasons, so they gave it back to everyone. So that one doesn’t count, either. I have another year.”
Oldham began his career with three seasons at Eastern Connecticut State and won the Division III national championship in 2022. He transferred to Southern Miss last season and has become one of the team’s best pitchers.
On Wednesday, Oldham (7-2, 3.71 ERA) threw a seven-inning, scoreless gem in a 5-0 win against Coastal Carolina. He was one of two Golden Eagles named to the All-Sun Belt first team and leads the conference in innings pitched (89⅔) and is second in strikeouts (94).
The MLB draft, which is in July, is also why he isn’t certain whether he’ll be with Southern Miss in 2025.
“That’s pretty much where I am at the moment,” Oldham said. “I’d like to take any opportunity I got there if one arises. If not, I’ll most likely be back here. I still want to play. I want to use that year for sure.”
Sam Sklar is the Southern Miss beat reporter for the Hattiesburg American. Email him at ssklar@hattiesb.gannett.com and follow him on X @sklarsam_.
This article originally appeared on Hattiesburg American: Could Billy Oldham return to Southern Miss baseball for 2025 season?
