The 2022 season was one of my favorites in recent memory for a plethora of reasons. I think it was one of the few college baseball seasons where we had a juggernaut that no one liked, a second wave of teams that were national title contenders and then a few mid-major teams that were hosting regionals. In more simple terms, there was a ton of very good teams reaching new heights with LOTS of must see tv each weekend.
First up, let’s start with some massive coaching hires that will shake up the whole ACC conference… Link Jarrett to Tallahassee and Erik Bakich to Clemson. These are 2 of the splashiest hires in recent memory. Bakich leading Michigan to an improbable CWS finals etched his name amongst the elites of college baseball coaches. What Link did at Notre Dame was impeccable. Turned the Irish into a fundamentally perfect baseball team while showcasing some raw talent. When Notre Dame eliminated #1 national seed Tennessee in Knoxville to go to Omaha, you knew his phone would start ringing with the brinks truck on the other end of the line.
I think both programs take an immediate jump forward… Clemson tasted some of their past glory last season after sweeping South Carolina and surging up the rankings, but tumbled their way to the finish line. Bakich will be bringing energy and talent back to Clemson, which they have sorely missed as of late. Clemson will push for the Atlantic title right out of the gate. Waiting for the moment I can prematurely tweet “Clemson is so back.”
Link Jarrett to Florida State is an interesting one fit wise… he ran a tight ship at Notre Dame where you didn’t see a whole lot of roo rah. Florida State has had some high energy and chip on their shoulder type guys that will show emotion in years past, so it will be interesting to see the style of play FSU will have this year. I think Noles can get Jarrett off to a hot start early with the roster they have. Bakich and Jarrett will face off April 6th in Tallahassee.
There is one thing I really want to happen this year… Cliff Godwin taking East Carolina to Omaha. The Jungle is still hungover from game 3 of their Super Regional vs Texas. Godwin had the Pirates within arms reach of Omaha before losing 2 straight to Texas at home. Game 3 was in a rain delay for hours and no one left their seats at Clark Leclair. It was such a moment of desperation as a spectator, you just had to feel for them as if they were trying to manually will the Pirates over the finish line. East Carolina lost some big pieces, but will return some studs in Jenkins-Cowart, Hoover and Spivey. The AAC will run through Greenville yet again, but to heal that hangover, this season needs to end with the Pirates in Omaha.
Also, on my radar (kinda obvious), the world favorite and unanimous #1 team LSU, will the Tigers hold on to #1 all year? Last year’s Tennessee squad was miles better than any other team, but failed when it mattered most, in a winner-take-all game with Omaha on the line vs Notre Dame. I’m going to err on the side of history here and say that LSU will not host the trophy in Omaha. The last team to be ranked #1 entering the postseason and win the title is the 1999 Miami Hurricanes (your absolutely right I'm going to sneak Miami in here). The only team to do it. LSU is loaded with the potential #1 pick in the draft Dylan Crews, Tre Morgan, the Freshman superstar Tommy White and a slew of other transfers including Paul Skenes, Thatcher Hurd and Christian Little. Let’s see what you got Jay Johnson, you’re on the clock.
Speaking of Tennessee, I wonder what kind of treatment Tony Vitello and the Vols will get from the Umpire’s union. Tennessee and Mike Honcho were the center of the majority of the viral events involving umpires in college baseball last year, PURE entertainment. Will Jeffrey Macias be booking any flights to Knoxville for work? Wait to see. I’d be shocked to see him calling any of the Vol’s games this year after getting hip thrusted to Mars. Safe to say umpires will be running a “no bullshit allowed” playbook when calling their games this season.
A second half of my storylines to be discussed will come as we get closer to Feb 17th. Start getting your minds right.
The 2022 season was one of my favorites in recent memory for a plethora of reasons. I think it was one of the few college baseball seasons where we had a juggernaut that no one liked, a second wave of teams that were national title contenders and then a few mid-major teams that were hosting regionals. In more simple terms, there was a ton of very good teams reaching new heights with LOTS of must see tv each weekend.
First up, let’s start with some massive coaching hires that will shake up the whole ACC conference… Link Jarrett to Tallahassee and Erik Bakich to Clemson. These are 2 of the splashiest hires in recent memory. Bakich leading Michigan to an improbable CWS finals etched his name amongst the elites of college baseball coaches. What Link did at Notre Dame was impeccable. Turned the Irish into a fundamentally perfect baseball team while showcasing some raw talent. When Notre Dame eliminated #1 national seed Tennessee in Knoxville to go to Omaha, you knew his phone would start ringing with the brinks truck on the other end of the line.
I think both programs take an immediate jump forward… Clemson tasted some of their past glory last season after sweeping South Carolina and surging up the rankings, but tumbled their way to the finish line. Bakich will be bringing energy and talent back to Clemson, which they have sorely missed as of late. Clemson will push for the Atlantic title right out of the gate. Waiting for the moment I can prematurely tweet “Clemson is so back.”
Link Jarrett to Florida State is an interesting one fit wise… he ran a tight ship at Notre Dame where you didn’t see a whole lot of roo rah. Florida State has had some high energy and chip on their shoulder type guys that will show emotion in years past, so it will be interesting to see the style of play FSU will have this year. I think Noles can get Jarrett off to a hot start early with the roster they have. Bakich and Jarrett will face off April 6th in Tallahassee.
There is one thing I really want to happen this year… Cliff Godwin taking East Carolina to Omaha. The Jungle is still hungover from game 3 of their Super Regional vs Texas. Godwin had the Pirates within arms reach of Omaha before losing 2 straight to Texas at home. Game 3 was in a rain delay for hours and no one left their seats at Clark Leclair. It was such a moment of desperation as a spectator, you just had to feel for them as if they were trying to manually will the Pirates over the finish line. East Carolina lost some big pieces, but will return some studs in Jenkins-Cowart, Hoover and Spivey. The AAC will run through Greenville yet again, but to heal that hangover, this season needs to end with the Pirates in Omaha.
Also, on my radar (kinda obvious), the world favorite and unanimous #1 team LSU, will the Tigers hold on to #1 all year? Last year’s Tennessee squad was miles better than any other team, but failed when it mattered most, in a winner-take-all game with Omaha on the line vs Notre Dame. I’m going to err on the side of history here and say that LSU will not host the trophy in Omaha. The last team to be ranked #1 entering the postseason and win the title is the 1999 Miami Hurricanes (your absolutely right I'm going to sneak Miami in here). The only team to do it. LSU is loaded with the potential #1 pick in the draft Dylan Crews, Tre Morgan, the Freshman superstar Tommy White and a slew of other transfers including Paul Skenes, Thatcher Hurd and Christian Little. Let’s see what you got Jay Johnson, you’re on the clock.
Speaking of Tennessee, I wonder what kind of treatment Tony Vitello and the Vols will get from the Umpire’s union. Tennessee and Mike Honcho were the center of the majority of the viral events involving umpires in college baseball last year, PURE entertainment. Will Jeffrey Macias be booking any flights to Knoxville for work? Wait to see. I’d be shocked to see him calling any of the Vol’s games this year after getting hip thrusted to Mars. Safe to say umpires will be running a “no bullshit allowed” playbook when calling their games this season.
A second half of my storylines to be discussed will come as we get closer to Feb 17th. Start getting your minds right.
