We are one day away from the start of the NCAA Super Regionals in college baseball. Coming off one of the highest-scoring regional weekends in recent memory, there’s plenty of intriguing meat still on the bone as the field of 64 has whittled down to 16 teams.
Here are my thoughts heading into the Super Regional weekend:
Notre Dame @ #1 Tennessee
Let’s start with Notre Dame heading to Knoxville to take on top-seeded Tennessee. First, credit where credit is due. Notre Dame had every right to be upset about not being selected to host a regional last weekend, but this squad went to Statesboro and handled its business and grinding out three straight wins to advance to this weekend.
Their reward? A date with the number one team in the country. Tennessee is coming off its own regional sweep; and while it was a sweep, the Vols did not look like the dominant team that we have become accustomed to. Campbell and Georgia Tech may not have beaten Tennessee, but they certainly forced Tony Vitello’s team to sweat over the course of the weekend.
The overwhelming sentiment going into this weekend will be Tennessee vs. the world. The Vols added to the list of…less than savory antics over the course of this weekend when Jordan Beck hit a game-tying double against Georgia Tech in the 9th inning and proceeded to flip the bird to the Yellow Jacket center fielder.
I will be honest, I hate this. As I have said before, Tennessee is great for college baseball in terms of driving interest, engagement and viewership, but to directly disrespect your opponent like that is not okay with me. Learn to respect the game some. Nevertheless, Vitello’s program and the fanbase surrounding it have embraced that everyone else in the country hates them, their arrogance, their antics, their celebrations, their attitude, etc. We have truly entered a scenario where it is “national championship or bust” for this supervillain squad out of Knoxville.
UConn @ #2 Stanford
Second-seeded Stanford hosts UConn. The Huskies come across the country to the Sunken Diamond in Palo Alto, CA, after winning a regional hosted by Maryland. This UConn squad has had a very strong season, and it managed to sneak by a hot Maryland team thanks to a questionable call by the umpires last weekend. This team is deserving, but certainly, Maryland was as well.
Stanford, on the other hand, had to claw and scrap their way back against Texas State to survive another weekend. They forced a Game 7 on Monday night. In the 9th inning, Texas State took a two-run lead, but Stanford answered right back with a pair of back-to-back solo home runs to tie the game and stay alive. The next batter, Eddie Park, singled for his 10th hit in 11 at-bats to keep the rally going. The pendulum continued swinging Stanford’s way, ending up with a walk-off and a Super Regional.
The only question I have is can this Stanford team scrape by again? I do not know the answer.
#14 Auburn @ #3 Oregon State
Stanford won’t be the only Pac-12 school hosting a regional. Third seed Oregon State will host 14-seed Auburn. This regional is intriguing because Oregon State has plenty of pitching, but the offense was not overwhelmingly dominant last weekend. They have the home-field advantage with an atmosphere that rivals that of the best programs in the SEC, but they have to play a red-hot Auburn squad.
This Auburn team was scuffling mightily going into the tournament but showed up and kicked the door down in their home regional. The Tigers dominated from the jump with an 11-spot in the first inning they played, headlined by the return of second baseman Cole Foster who homered from both sides of the plate and then added another homer and double later in the game. That first inning set the tone for Auburn because they completely eviscerated everyone all weekend, tallying 51 runs in just three games, outperforming the 46 runs they had scored over the previous 10 games leading into the tournament.
However, it is not just on offense. Auburn’s pitching staff appears to have rounded into form as well. Trace Bright was solid on Friday. Joseph Gonzalez was strong on Saturday. Mason Barnett was great on Sunday. The bullpen was hardly stressed and should be extremely rested and ready to roll in Corvallis.
This Auburn team is riding high across the country to Corvallis, but who is the team that will show up once they arrive? Will it be the team that drummed Southeastern Louisiana, Florida State and UCLA to a combined score of 51-18? Or will it be the team that struggled to string together quality at-bats at the end of the year against Kentucky to finish the regular season?
Oklahoma @ #4 Virginia Tech
The fourth Super Regional probably has the least buzz around it. The fourth-seeded Virginia Tech will host Oklahoma in Blacksburg. The Hokies had probably the quietest regional weekend of anyone. None of their games were really in doubt as they handled their business, outscoring opponents 46-15.
Oklahoma went on the road last weekend and battled Florida and the weather all weekend in Gainesville. When the dust finally settled, the Sooners advanced to the Supers for the first time in nearly a decade. Oklahoma came from behind in all three of its wins in Gainesville. Can the Sooners keep that up? I don’t know if they can against a team seemingly set to handle anything thrown at them in Virginia Tech.