Who is Kirby Connell? Meet Vols baseball's reliever who has a Rollie Fingers handlebar mustache

With Tennessee baseball returning to Omaha, Nebraska this week for the College World Series, it will be hard to find a more recognizable player amongst fans than Kirby Connell.

And while it plays a factor, the Vols left-handed reliever's success on the mound isn't the leading reason behind his popularity.

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That would have to do with the Southpaw reliever's Rollie Fingers-looking handlebar mustache, which has led him to become one of the more recognizable relievers in college baseball over the years.

Here's what to know about Connell and the story behind his incredible mustache:

Kirby Connell mustache origin story

With his luscious flock of hair and handlebar mustache, Connell has been one of college baseball's best-groomed players for quite some time. But Connell's dedication, depending on how you look at it, to his hair and mustache precedes his time on Rocky Top.

"I've had long hair since high school, so all the way back to freshman year. And I've always had a little bit of a mustache," Connell told Adam Sparks of the Knoxville News Sentinel in 2022. "Usually it didn't get too long because my mom would make me cut it. And then we got to college and I was like, 'I'm just going to let it grow.'"

Then following a conservation with fellow relief pitcher Redmond Walsh before the 2021 season, Connell's second season with the Vols, came the evolution of "The Stache," as it is known today.

"(He) was like, 'Hey, I'll get you some mustache wax if you can start curling it. And so I kind of ended up letting it grow a little bit and it started curling," Connell said in 2022. "Now, I've gotten to a point where I don't really shave the ends as much and try to get as much curl as I possibly can."

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It's since become a superstition for Connell, and his pitching has reflected from it as well. His first season with the handlebar stache resulted in a career-best 1.66 ERA with a 4-0 record and 36 strikeouts in 30 appearances. Since then, Connell has posted ERAs of 3.52 and 3.98 in 2023 and 2024 respectively while becoming one of the Vols' top veteran relievers.

"I shape it up right before every single game. I shape it up before I leave the hotel. Some nights or some mornings after games it still has a little curl left," Connell said last year at the CWS when talking about his mustache. "But I try to get the curl all out in the shower in between games."

As for how he gets "The Stache" to look immaculate each game, he said he uses Pomade, a hair cream.

His mustache has helped him become not just one of the more recognizable Vols amongst fans but one of the more popular ones. An example of this is, patients at East Tennessee Children's Hospital recognizing him because of his stache during a visit in 2022. It's part of the reason why Connell has said throughout his career that "The Stache" wouldn't be going anywhere.

"I'd say it's a superstition at this point. But it's also my profile," Connell told the SEC last year. "You know, a lot of people recognize me now as 'The 'Stache.' So I have to get it ready for the games just to keep it going -- for them and for my superstition."

What is Kirby Connell's nickname?

With a mustache like Connell's, there is only one acceptable nickname for the lefty: "Vollie Fingers." A nickname that of course references MLB Hall of Fame reliever Rollie Fingers, who made the handlebar mustache popular in his playing time from the 1960s through 1980s.

"Somebody called me Vollie Fingers because I looked like Rollie Fingers but I played for the Vols," Connell said in 2022 on how he got that nickname. "Thought that was pretty cool."

Kirby Connell stats

Here's a look at Connell's career stats at Tennessee:

• Record: 10-2

• ERA: 3.13

• Appearances: 123

• Saves: Six

• Strikeouts: 141

• Walks: 26

• Innings pitched: 144.0

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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Kirby Connell mustache, explained: Why Vols' LHP is called "Vollie Fingers"