NCAA baseball tournament thread

I cover an SEC team, and microbrewery knows this, and he knows I'm not going to get into a pissing match about relative conference strength. I'd rather sit at the Upstream Brewing Company in Omaha and taste-test every beer in the place until I can't tell RPI from RIP. Besides, I owe him at least one, maybe two.

I can say this about the SEC:

1990 -- national champion (Georgia).
1991 -- national champion (LSU).
1993 -- national champion (LSU).
1996 -- national champion (LSU).
1997 -- national champion (LSU), runner-up (Alabama).
2000 -- national champion (LSU).
2002 -- national runner-up (South Carolina).
2005 -- national runner-up (Florida.

That's not bad.

 

True. They are silly arguments ... but they're fun.

For the record, I'm not one of these "SEC is the best in every sport" guys. But it is in some.

I'm a tad too tired to look up the stat tonight, but I will tomorrow. I'd like to see the conference breakdown of CWS teams since 1980 and 1990. I think that would be as good an indicator of strength as national titles, and more importantly, just something I think it would be neat to know.

 

Where the SEC excels is teams that get to Omaha, not in the championships.

Smoke Laval, the guy taking so much heat now in Red Stick, has taken LSU to two CWS appearances in his six years. Granted, they've gone two and out both times.

Florida was the national runner-up to the Shorties last year. Tennessee also went to Omaha.

In 2004, Arkansas, Georgia, LSU and the Chickens went to the CWS. South Carolina was in the semifinals, or the format equivalent.

South Carolina and LSU in '03.  Chickens runner-up to Shorties year before that.

Ron Polk took Georgia to Omaha in '01, before Pat McMahon left for Florida and he returned to Starkvegas. (Much to the growing chagrin of a pissed-off portion of the fan base that recognizes Jackie cheated to win, never did that well in big games and that Stansbury has yet to figure out the plural of freshman.)

State, South Carolina and somebody else went to Super Regionals that year. Maybe LSU.

Skip won his last title in 2000. They may have been the only SEC team in Omaha that year. But in '98, four SEC West teams -- LSU, State, Auburn and Alabama -- all went to Omaha. Plus the Tigahs beat Alabama in the '97 title game.

I figured Mississippi State AND the Tigers would both get in, or neither would get in. I'd say the arguments against both teams were fairly compelling.

State wants to hang its hat on an 18-game win streak to open the season. They certainly didn't finish. Won three of 10 SEC series.

LSU got swept at least twice in the SEC. Ole Miss bitch-slapped 'em four times. Their non-conference schedule wasn't as strong as it usually is.

But all State had to do to get to Hoover was win on the last day, at home, vs. the Confederates. They got drilled, although they scored some runs late to make it respectable. Florida gave State the help it needed, in that series against LSU in Gainesville.

Still, LSU beat Alabama, the No. 4 national seed, at Hoover. It's 45 minutes from T-Town to the Hoover Met. Then Laval's boys flopped around like a World Cup soccer player ... (just not in Colombia. Those infidels get shot.)

LSU had Rice beat a couple days before the Florida series. Rice kid stole a signal at second base, the kid at the plate hit one that landed in the pool at Zephyr Field, and Laval had another game to explain in fragments of incomplete sentences.

Bertman was a tough act to follow. Real tough. He took some lumps, built his early teams around pitching, realized he had to hit and lift some weights (HGH was the most common whisper) ... but had a real charismatic side. A funny guy. Charmer from Miami. Could poke fun at himself. But an exceptional coach.

If Smoke's history, and growing opinions around Red Stick are that it's better than an even-money proposition, the next coach is gonna have even more pressure. But he's gonna get a new ballpark in 2008, and they'll be regulars at Omaha again, provided they hire the right guy.

Mike Bianco?
John Cohen?
Rick Jones?
Paul Mainieri?
John Paul Jones ...

They'll have a chance to make a great hire. And I suspect Skip will know which way to go.

 

It's freshmens, apparently.

 

JD: No Upstream for me this year, either. However, we'll get even on those beers one of these years.

But let's consider this, as well:

1986: National champion (ASU)
1987: National champion (Stanford)
1988: National champion (Stanford); national runner-up (ASU)
1990: National runner-up (Stanford)
1995: National runner-up (USC)
1998: National champion (USC); national runner-up (ASU)
1999: Third place (Stanford)
2000: National runner-up (Stanford)
2001: National runner-up (Stanford)
2002: Third place (Stanford)
2005: Third place (ASU)

That ain't chopped liver, either.

 

Ohhhhhhh, we're listing thirds  too ...

Hang on ...

;D

 

Henry, Rick's land speed record for the use of "freshmens" was seven in a 30- to 35-second answer on the SEC teleconference.

Actually, it goes beyond that, but ...

He's a moron. And not much of a bench coach either.

 

On this college baseball thread, let's pull up Stansbury's name in an attempt to demean MSU.
Same as always from most of the media.
Mix all the sports up on this college baseball thread.
Throw Jackie's name in there, too ...

Listen up whiney babies.
State's in the Dance.
Like it or not.
They DO have baseball tradition in Starkville.
Like it or not.
Jaded, jaded, jaded.

 

My fault. I meant to say 6 of 16 teams in the CWS in the last 2 years were from the SEC. Poor proofreading/common sense testing on my part.

 

Mississippi State fans probably felt a little disrespect from Baseball America, too ...

http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/college/news/261477.html

 

Thanks for the call ... Next up is Jim Bob from Tuscaloosa ...