LSU is off to huge lead at the College World Series before even taking field

The Tigers play in the fourth game of the double-elimination College World Series but supporters are already feeling at home in Omaha.

For the second year in a row, Rocco's Pizza in Omaha is running a jello shot challenge to coincide with the College World Series. This year's competition began on June 15 and the Tigers jumped out to a huge lead, becoming the first school to eclipse the 100-shot mark by the 5:00 p.m. CT update on the first day.

By noon on June 16, LSU fans had purchased 659 shots, a full day and a half before the Tigers' first pitch.

Things escalated quickly from there. In a five-hour span, LSU more than doubled its total to 1,349, and was well past the 2,000 mark by 9:00 p.m. CT. 

Heading into Saturday's action, LSU stood at 2,993 shots, 1,535 more than the next closest competition, Wake Forest. 

The Demon Deacons are the Tigers' biggest threat on the field, too. 

Wake Forest (52-10) is the No. 1 overall seed in the tournament and the favorite to win the CWS. Infielder Brock Wilken's 30 home runs are tied for second in the NCAA this year. Pitcher Rhett Lowder has a 1.92 ERA, fourth-lowest in baseball.

The Demon Deacons play Stanford in the 1:00 p.m. CT game.

LSU (48-15) is led by outfielder Dylan Crews, who is hitting .434, and pitcher Paul Skenes, who has an ERA of 1.77, good for second-best in the NCAA. The Tigers play SEC rival Tennessee at 6:00 p.m. CT on Saturday.

Both Wake Forest and LSU are built for the long haul and will likely stay atop the shots leaderboard at Rocco's. It will take deep runs at the CWS for fans to eclipse the Ole Miss faithful's mark of 18,777 shots purchased last year. 

Fans' livers might not agree, but the jello shot challenge is for a good cause. A portion of proceeds goes to local food banks for all eight teams as well as Omaha's Heartland Food Bank.