#43 Billy Brian Season 2025
2001 Southeastern Conference Academic Honor Roll
2000 Southeastern Conference Academic Honor Roll
Hard-throwing Louisiana product who was plagued by an arm injury in 2001 … hopes to return to full strength in his senior season on the mound … did not participate in LSU?s 2001 fall intra-squad games as he attempts to recover from the injury … a member of the 2000 and 2001 SEC Academic Honor Roll with a 3.25 gpa in general studies … the 25th-round selection of the Kansas City Royals in the 2000 major league draft, and the 47th-round selection of the Cleveland Indians in the 2001 major league draft… red-shirted as a true freshman in 1998.
2001 Season: Appeared in 13 games (no starts), allowing 15 earned runs on 28 hits in 15 innings with 12 walks and 17 strikeouts … pitched one inning vs. Ole Miss in the SEC Tournament (May 19), allowing one run on three hits … worked one scoreless inning vs. Virginia Commonwealth in the NCAA Baton Rouge Regional (May 26), allowing two hits … worked a season-high three innings vs. Duquesne (Feb. 24), allowing two earned runs on five hits with one walk and four strikeouts.
2000 Season: Appeared in 17 games (seven starts), recording a 6-2 mark with a 4.18 ERA in 56 innings … registered 54 strikeouts and 21 walks while also posting two saves … worked 8.2 relief innings in SEC regular-season games, allowing four runs on five hits with four walks and six Ks … pitched effectively in relief in LSU?s College World Series win over Florida State (June 15), working 0.2 inning with no runs, no hits and one walk; he induced a double-play grounder in the sixth inning to terminate an FSU scoring threat … picked up relief victory in NCAA Super Regional versus UCLA (June 3), limiting the Bruins to three runs on three hits in four innings with one walk and four Ks … earned a save in NCAA Baton Rouge Regional win over UL-Monroe (May 27), as he worked three scoreless innings and allowed just one hit with no walks and two Ks … defeated Southern (April 5), working five hitless innings with one unearned run, three walks and eight Ks … also recorded eight Ks in win at Centenary (March 28) … posted a career-high nine Ks in a March 7 win over Southern, limiting the Jaguars to one run on five hits in five innings … defeated Virginia (Feb. 13), allowing one run on four hits with two walks and two Ks in five innings … delivered outstanding relief effort in LSU win over Georgia (March 12), limiting the Bulldogs to no runs on two hits in 3.2 innings with one walk and four Ks.
1999 Season: Appeared in six games as a reliever, posting no decisions and a 0.96 ERA … worked a total of 9.1 innings, allowing five hits and one earned run with 12 strikeouts and nine walks … enjoyed an impressive collegiate debut at Tulane (April 14), allowing no earned runs and one hit in three innings with three walks and five strikeouts … pitched 1.2 shutout innings at Mississippi State (April 24) with four strikeouts … did not pitch in the post-season.
High School: Lettered three years as a pitcher and first baseman at Mandeville High … went 9-4 with a 1.98 ERA and struck out 128 batters in 82 innings as a senior … earned all-district honors three seasons … was all-Metro, all-St. Tammany Parish and Class 5A all-state honorable mention as a senior … played on three state playoff teams with the Skippers … also lettered two years as a tight end and offensive tackle for the Skipper football team … 1995 football squad recorded a perfect 10-0 regular season … coached in baseball by Bobby Nelsen and Jay Gaines and in football by Skip Curtis.
Personal: Full name is William Thomas Brian Jr … son of Thomas and Debbie Brian … has one sister, Elizabeth, and one brother, Marcus … goal at LSU is “to do whatever it takes to help get the team to another national title” … born November 7, 1978, in Covington, La.
Brian?s LSU Career Highs
Innings: 8.0 vs. Arizona State (2/20/00)
Strikeouts: 9 vs. Southern (3/7/00)
Hits Allowed: 9 vs. Arizona State (2/20/00)
Runs: 6 vs. Arizona State (2/20/00)
Earned Runs: 5 vs. Arizona State (2/20/00)
Walks: 5 at Central Florida (3/3/00)