A wedding during the MCWS?! More than one ring is on the line for Louisville's Tanner Shiver

OMAHA, Neb. -- The DJ is booked, and the wedding cakes -- 1 white, 1 cocoa -- are astir to beryllium baked. Two 100 and 50 radical are acceptable to capable St. Michael Catholic Church adjacent Louisville, Kentucky, precocious Friday day for the wedding of Katelyn Farmer and Tanner Shiver.

All that is missing is the groom.

Shiver is simply a inferior subordinate for the Louisville Cardinals, who are playing successful the Men's College World Series. They look Oregon State connected Tuesday astatine Charles Schwab Field successful Omaha. The Cardinals' anticipation is to support staving disconnected elimination and beforehand to the finals, which commencement Saturday.

Friday is an disconnected time astatine the MCWS, and if everything goes close for Louisville and Shiver, he'll beryllium making the astir of it. Shiver's program is to alert home, get hitched and marque it backmost for the best-of-three title round. He would person to reschedule their honeymoon, which is booked to a concealed destination.

If this sounds unbelievable, here's the kicker -- Farmer is good with each of this.

She calmly sat successful the lobby of the Hilton Garden Inn successful downtown Omaha connected Monday afternoon, moving remotely connected her laptop arsenic Shiver got acceptable to measurement connected a autobus with his team, which was headed to a section children's hospital.

Farmer is an jock herself, a erstwhile midfielder connected the Tennessee Tech women's shot team. So she gets it. In Shiver's Louisville shot bio, helium lists Farmer arsenic his favourite athlete, calling her a "Tennessee Tech women's shot legend."

They met successful the cafeteria astatine Tennessee Tech arsenic freshman and were friends astatine first, but that didn't past long.

"She has the prettiest bluish eyes you're ever going to see," helium said. "I had a crush connected her the full time, but I didn't archer her."

Shiver is Farmer's archetypal boyfriend.

"I'm conscionable a miss who knows what I want," she said.

About two-and-a-half years later, astir Christmas 2023, helium got down connected 1 genu and projected to her successful the mediate of a crosswalk successful downtown Cookeville, Tennessee. Shiver had his friends artifact traffic, and strangers connected the sidewalk cheered. Farmer said it was the champion time of her life.

Shiver, a two-sport jock astatine his precocious schoolhouse successful Maryville, Tennessee, was a walk-on shot subordinate astatine Tennessee Tech. His last precocious schoolhouse play astatine Maryville had been scrapped due to the fact that of the COVID-19 pandemic, giving him small accidental to beryllium helium was worthy of a Division I scholarship. He wanted to play football, successful part, due to the fact that helium loved tackling people. His sophomore season, helium landed a spot successful the starting lineup, past suffered a precocious ankle sprain successful his archetypal game.

Shortly aft that, Shiver had a past people with a mates of shot players who sat successful beforehand of him.

"They weren't focused connected history," helium said. "They had their laptops retired watching YouTube videos of shot highlights.

"I would spot it, and past I started getting the shot itch."

He told Farmer that helium wanted to effort retired for the shot team, and though she was skeptical, she supported him. He practiced connected the intramural fields, hitting disconnected a tee into a chain-link fence. A fewer months later, aft a three-year interruption from baseball, helium made the Tennessee Tech shot roster.

In his 2nd season, successful 2024, helium deed .296 with 9 location runs. Shiver entered the transportation portal for his postgraduate twelvemonth and told each manager helium talked to -- including Louisville's Dan McDonnell -- that helium was getting joined connected June 20, 2025.

He said that agelong earlier the 2025 play started, McDonnell and the Cardinals believed they'd beryllium successful Omaha that summer.

"The program each on was to triumph a nationalist championship," Shiver said, "and it was funny, due to the fact that helium said thing erstwhile helium was recruiting me. He was like, 'That's going to beryllium a large communicative for radical similar ESPN to run, due to the fact that it's going to happen.'"

Farmer, who's moving connected her fiscal planner license, is flying location Tuesday nighttime aft the crippled and volition resume wedding preparations. Her mom, Michelle, has served arsenic her full-time wedding planner, taking attraction of each the details successful Farmer's lack -- they're serving chickenhearted astatine the reception and volition person a elephantine marquee connected the creation level that says, "The Shivers."

"There's not truly a batch to beryllium stressed about," Farmer said, "because this is truthful fun, watching him unrecorded retired a puerility dream."

She said if helium isn't location for Thursday night's rehearsal dinner, it's fine. A person volition capable in.

"As agelong arsenic he's determination astatine the extremity of the aisle erstwhile I locomotion down connected Friday," she said, "the remainder we'll fig out."

Shiver said he'll instrumentality a late-night formation Thursday if it's necessary, and he'll alert backmost Saturday morning. He knows 1 happening for certain: He isn't missing his wedding. He said it doesn't substance that he's a backup -- he'd beryllium determination successful Louisville connected Friday if helium was batting cleanup.

"I'm going to beryllium successful Louisville, Kentucky, travel hellhole oregon precocious water, connected June 20, nary substance what," helium said, "to wed the emotion of my life."