Starkville Academy product Colby Allen is headed to The Show.
Allen, a Louisville native who spent the last four years as a right-handed pitcher at Southern Miss, is expected to sign with MLB’s Tampa Bay Rays this week as an undrafted free agent, the university said in a release. He ended his campaign as a Golden Eagle as a two-time All-American by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association, a three-time ABCA All-South Regional selection, a second team All-Sun Belt honoree and a member of the Sun Belt All-Tournament team this past season.
At SA, Allen played both pitcher and catcher for the Volunteers and helped the team reach the MAIS Class 5A North Half Championship three times in a row, where he was an all-district performer his senior season. At the plate with the Vols, Allen posted a .320 batting average with eight doubles, seven home runs and 34 RBI. He curated a .610 slugging percentage and a .504 on-base percentage. On the mound he threw just 13 1/3 innings through 10 appearances with 1-2 record and three saves. Allen also played football for the Vols and saw action as a quarterback.
In college, Allen was a reliable hurler for the Golden Eagles during his career and saw 92 appearances on the mound – the fifth most in a USM career – and 21 wins and 24 saves – which are also the fourth- and fifth-most for a Golden Eagle. Notably during the 2025 baseball season, Allen earned one of his wins over Mississippi State as he struck out five Bulldogs through four innings with no hits.
During the 2026 season he made 24 appearances and five starts for a 7-2 record. He racked up a 3.05 ERA with two saves and piled on 90 strikeouts with only 18 walks. He finished his career at USM with 264 strikeouts and 57 walks.
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