Back Home in Omaha!

Well, the field for the College World Series is set. Six of the eight national seeds advanced. Who didn't make it? Well, No. 3 seed Arizona State was ousted Monday night by Fresno State, which was the No. 4 seed in its regional. The Bulldogs won the Long Beach Regional and then surprised the Sun Devils in Tempe. Stanford upset national No. 5 seed Cal State Fullerton in the Super Regional.

The national seeds that advanced are No. 1 Miami (Fla.), No. 2 North Carolina, No. 4 Florida State, No. 6 Rice, No. 7 LSU and No. 8 Georgia.

A few Blogs to read during the CWS:
The College Baseball Blog
Baseball America
ESPN.com
NCAA Blog Central

I was fortunate enough to see Rice beat Texas A&M last Saturday at Reckling Park in Houston. They have strong pitching again this season but have an offense, too. If they can keep their fielding under control, they'll make a run at their second national championship. They are making their seventh CWS appearance (all since 1997) and won the school's only national title in 2003. Obviously, I'm pulling for them, having worked in the Owls' SID office from 1994-2000.

Miami looks like the team to beat and the ACC appears to be in good shape to win its first national championship since Wake Forest won in 1955. Seriously. If Rice can't play for the championship, I'll be pulling for North Carolina, which has been close the last few years but hasn't been able to get over the hump. I despise Miami in all sports, mainly because they are sore losers and even worse winners.

Complete Bracket
Official CWS Site

I know this site is dedicated to Ohio State baseball, but its purpose is also to help introduce fans to college baseball at a national level. There is no sporting event better than the College World Series and I think every fan should make the trip to Omaha at least once. I'll never forget my first visit with Rice in 1999. I went again with Clemson in 2000 and have been back a few other times through my participation with the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association.

Going for Record Ninth Tourney Win

The Buckeyes celebrate after winning the Big Ten Tournament Championship last year in Ann Arbor. Photo by Chris Webb.

Ohio State begins its quest for a ninth Big Ten title Wednesday in Ann Arbor. The fifth-seeded Buckeyes will play fourth-seeded Illinois in the first game of the Big Ten Tournament. First pitch will be at 12:05 p.m., ET. Michigan is the top seed followed by Purdue as the No. 2. Penn State moved into the No. 3 slot for the second consecutive season and will face No. 6 seed Indiana in Wednesday's second game at 3:35 p.m.

A complete tournament bracket is available at BigTen.com.

If the Buckeyes can win the Big Ten tournament next week it would be a record ninth title for the program. Ohio State and Minnesota each have eight tournament wins though Ohio State owns the best winning percentage in its previous 21 appearances. The Buckeyes have won 48 and lost 29 for a .623 winning percentage in conference postseason play.

The tournament winner gets the league's automatic berth into the NCAA touranment. This is a one-bid league if Michigan wins. Ohio State became the first No. 6 seed to win the tournament last year and has won four of the last six tournaments. I'm not ruling out the Buckeyes chances in 2008, but I think they have their work cut out for them.

Ohio State vs. Big Ten Field

No. 1 Seed Michigan

In 2008: Michigan won 3-1

In Big Ten Tourney: OSU leads 10-7

No. 2 Purdue

In 2008: Purdue won 3-1

In Big Ten Tourney: OSU leads 6-1

No. 3 Penn State
In 2008: Series split 2-2
In Big Ten Tourney: Series tied 2-2

No. 4 Illinois

In 2008: OSU won 2-1

In Big Ten Tourney: Illinois leads 4-2

No. 6 Indiana

In 2008: DNP

In Big Ten Tourney: OSU leads 3-0