Help! They need somebody ...
posted by David Cloninger, 5/19/2009 09:56:00 PM
I never needed anybody’s help in any way,
But now, these days are gone, I’m not so self-assured,
Now I find, I’ve changed my mind and opened up the doors.”
-------------------------------------------------------- THE BEATLES
South Carolina’s electrifying finish has gotten it back onto the bubble as a potential host site for an NCAA Regional, but it’s not quite where it needs to be.
The bubble breaks this week, and it’ll be up to the Gamecocks and some factors they can’t control determining where they land.
A word of advice, USC fans – you’re already going to be cheering against Alabama on Wednesday. Cheer against Florida, too.
I think donning the hated orange for this is a worthy cause.
For the Gamecocks to host a regional, they’re going to have to win a few games and they’re going to have to have Alabama and Florida lose a few games. And for the latter criteria, the sooner, the better.
Alabama was considered a strong bet for a host site last week, then it lost two of three to Auburn. The Gamecocks need to keep that trend going by winning on Wednesday. Florida might be a bit more difficult – no matter what happens in Hoover, the Gators still won the SEC East and swept the Gamecocks this season.
What the Gamecocks have to do is hope Florida goes two-and-barbecue, so their advantages come into play. No, their record isn’t as good, they lost the head-to-head and they don’t have the division title in hand.
But they do have a much better ballpark – and by that, I mean better seating and more potential ticket revenue – than the Gators. If USC gets the wins to go with it, it could be a very homey postseason.
“I think we’re back in the conversation,” coach Ray Tanner said on Tuesday. “If we go deep into the tournament, probably going to get a little more talk.
“It comes down to what happens in the rest of the country, too. It could happen. Never can tell.”
The latest projections on SEBaseball.com have USC going to a regional in Greenville, N.C., with host East Carolina, No. 3 Western Carolina and No. 4 Rhode Island. It also has regionals landing at Florida, Ole Miss and LSU.
The Rebels and Tigers were expected to host after tying for the SEC regular-season championship. Florida got there after winning the East. Alabama, according to the projection, has lost its host and will go to Florida State as a No. 2 seed.
It can be done. Keep in mind, Georgia and Arkansas were considered locks for host sites in the midseason and played themselves right out of it. With USC’s history of hosting strongly attended regionals and its 10-1 season-ending, the selection committee just needs a bit stronger record to consider to push the Gamecocks over the hump.
It wouldn’t be a strange concept to have four SEC teams hosting – shoot, five teams have hosted in two of the past five years. The Gamecocks saw what they had to do to get to Hoover (and put themselves in the regionals) three weeks ago and did it. The next step beckons.
I sure wouldn’t mind if all I had to do was drive 10 minutes from the house to cover the game. Instead of pressing hotel clerks in Atlanta, Chapel Hill or Tallahassee on what nightspots are the hottest, I could be at Wild Hare five minutes after filing my story.
Roll the Tide and make the Gators bait.
Who’s with me?
Link to this entry - Discuss this entry - Return to Blog Home
“When I was younger, so much younger than today,
I never needed anybody’s help in any way,
But now, these days are gone, I’m not so self-assured,
Now I find, I’ve changed my mind and opened up the doors.”
-------------------------------------------------------- THE BEATLES
South Carolina’s electrifying finish has gotten it back onto the bubble as a potential host site for an NCAA Regional, but it’s not quite where it needs to be.
The bubble breaks this week, and it’ll be up to the Gamecocks and some factors they can’t control determining where they land.
A word of advice, USC fans – you’re already going to be cheering against Alabama on Wednesday. Cheer against Florida, too.
I think donning the hated orange for this is a worthy cause.
For the Gamecocks to host a regional, they’re going to have to win a few games and they’re going to have to have Alabama and Florida lose a few games. And for the latter criteria, the sooner, the better.
Alabama was considered a strong bet for a host site last week, then it lost two of three to Auburn. The Gamecocks need to keep that trend going by winning on Wednesday. Florida might be a bit more difficult – no matter what happens in Hoover, the Gators still won the SEC East and swept the Gamecocks this season.
What the Gamecocks have to do is hope Florida goes two-and-barbecue, so their advantages come into play. No, their record isn’t as good, they lost the head-to-head and they don’t have the division title in hand.
But they do have a much better ballpark – and by that, I mean better seating and more potential ticket revenue – than the Gators. If USC gets the wins to go with it, it could be a very homey postseason.
“I think we’re back in the conversation,” coach Ray Tanner said on Tuesday. “If we go deep into the tournament, probably going to get a little more talk.
“It comes down to what happens in the rest of the country, too. It could happen. Never can tell.”
The latest projections on SEBaseball.com have USC going to a regional in Greenville, N.C., with host East Carolina, No. 3 Western Carolina and No. 4 Rhode Island. It also has regionals landing at Florida, Ole Miss and LSU.
The Rebels and Tigers were expected to host after tying for the SEC regular-season championship. Florida got there after winning the East. Alabama, according to the projection, has lost its host and will go to Florida State as a No. 2 seed.
It can be done. Keep in mind, Georgia and Arkansas were considered locks for host sites in the midseason and played themselves right out of it. With USC’s history of hosting strongly attended regionals and its 10-1 season-ending, the selection committee just needs a bit stronger record to consider to push the Gamecocks over the hump.
It wouldn’t be a strange concept to have four SEC teams hosting – shoot, five teams have hosted in two of the past five years. The Gamecocks saw what they had to do to get to Hoover (and put themselves in the regionals) three weeks ago and did it. The next step beckons.
I sure wouldn’t mind if all I had to do was drive 10 minutes from the house to cover the game. Instead of pressing hotel clerks in Atlanta, Chapel Hill or Tallahassee on what nightspots are the hottest, I could be at Wild Hare five minutes after filing my story.
Roll the Tide and make the Gators bait.
Who’s with me?
Link to this entry - Discuss this entry - Return to Blog Home
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David Cloninger. David is a full-time staff writer for GamecockCentral, and covers Gamecock football, men's basketball, baseball and recruiting. He may be reached by email at david(at)gamecockcentral.com. Replace (at) with @.