Aaron Fitt: Hello everyone, and welcome to the final college chat of the year from Durham before we take this act to Omaha. We'll have another chat Friday and two more next week, so keep coming back.

Aaron Fitt: I don't see any reason Florida State can't keep on mashing. It takes really good pitching to shut down that offense, and I don't think any of the teams on that half of the bracket have what I would call really good pitching. They all have good pitching, but not really good. Florida State already put up 18 runs in two games against Georgia this year, and 19 runs in its final two games against Miami, and if anything those pitching staffs have worn down a bit since midseason. I expect that half of the CWS to be very offensive, which means Florida State has a very good chance to bash its way through. Really, those are four very good teams, and it wouldn't be shocking for any of them to break through.

Aaron Fitt: I think I'll stick with Buster Posey, the fifth overall pick in the draft last week. He's got the entire package. I think he's got a chance to be a major league All-Star behind the plate.

Aaron Fitt: LSU is going to see the best righthander left in the tournament in that first game against North Carolina. Alex White has a big-time arm and big-time stuff to match. He's pitched better the last month than he has at any point in his career to this point — this is not the same guy you saw in Omaha last year. His command is much improved, and he's added a very good splitter to complement his plus fastball and plus slider. If anyone can slow LSU down, it's White.

Aaron Fitt: Fresno State.

Aaron Fitt: Arizona State is saying that fight was staged as a way to loosen up the team. Maybe it was, maybe it wasn't. I don't really care — either way, it's a ridiculous thing to do right before a do-or-die super-regional game. If staging a fight right before a big game is such a great motivational tool, why doesn't any other team on the planet do it? What a joke. And if the dispute was genuine and they're just trying to spin it by saying it was planned, well, that's even worse. Most teams shave their heads or dye their hair blonde as a display of unity. Arizona State's two biggest stars throw down their gloves and roll around on the ground like a couple of hooligans. Some unity.

Aaron Fitt: North Carolina, Rice and Fresno State all have similar kinds of lineups, in my estimation: they all stand out more for their good hitters than their big boppers, though they all have guys who can put a charge into the ball. I think all three are underrated offensive clubs; maybe they don't put up the kind of gaudy numbers that the teams on the left half of the bracket put up, but they're full of difficult outs and good line-drive hitters. LSU's offense is more similar to those teams on the other half of the bracket — more power than the other teams on its half of the bracket, but also plenty of depth. Rice's starting pitching hasn't been terribly consistent lately, but its bullpen has been good enough to mask those deficiencies. The Owls will simply need better outings from guys like Ojala, Langwell and Kelley if they're going to win that bracket.

Aaron Fitt: I am sticking with Miami and North Carolina in the finals, but really it's wide open. There's no team that is head and shoulder above any other team. This really should be a great CWS. We probably say that every year, but of course, it's true just about every year.

Aaron Fitt: Indiana's Mike Smith is the only player ever to win the Division I triple crown back in 1992, but Posey is doing it against much better competition on the grandest stage. By the time he's done, this might go down as the greatest season ever in college baseball. That said, I refuse to spill the beans about who will win our College Player of the Year award later this week!

Aaron Fitt: I don't love LSU's chances to win it all, but I'm not going to dismiss them either. I just think that teams typically fare better at the CWS when they've been to Omaha before, which is why UNC, Rice, Miami and Georgia are so dangerous. All those teams have been to Omaha in the last two years and have veteran leaders who know what this event is all about.

Aaron Fitt: They'd better not take Fresno State lightly, that's for sure. But I don't think that'll be a problem — this is a younger Rice team than last year's CWS edition, but the Owls still have plenty of veterans who've been here before. They'll be ready. I like Rice to reach the final four, but I don't think they match up great against North Carolina.

Aaron Fitt: I agree. We dubbed it the Regional of Death going into the postseason, and it lived up to the hype. I caught a little flack from Bethune-Cookman supporters for saying Fresno was a more dangerous No. 4 seed than B-CU, but as good as the Wildcats were, they weren't a threat to go to Omaha.

Aaron Fitt: I think that's the value of experience, first of all. North Carolina looked very, very comfortable this weekend, and Coastal looked downright skittish. Those guys made six errors in the first game, for Pete's sake. I also agree with Gary Gilmore's assessment Sunday that there isn't a huge difference between Coastal and UNC offensively, but the Tar Heels had a major edge on the mound — both with their front-line pitching and their depth. Coastal was just overmatched by a more experienced, more talented team. But winning a regional should help the Chanticleers elevate their program to that next level and get ever closer to Omaha in the next few years.

Aaron Fitt: Really, all four teams on the left side of the bracket are pretty similar on the mound. None have a truly overpowering ace — although Chris Hernandez and Jeremy Bleich are very talented lefties, they won't just blow people away like Alex White will. All have vulnerable starting pitching and quality stoppers at the back of the bullpen. Georgia has a little more bullpen depth than the rest of those teams, but Georgia also lags behind those other teams offensively (after you get by the middle of the order). All of that is just a long way of saying that any one of those four teams could win that bracket and it wouldn't be a big surprise.

Aaron Fitt: You'll have to wait until after the CWS to get my 8 for 2009, but you've got a few of the leading candidates there...

Aaron Fitt: Jim Callis posted a mighty fine Ask BA yesterday.

Aaron Fitt: Fun question. A few up-and-coming teams that I think are poised for top 25-caliber seasons in 2009: San Diego State, UC Santa Barbara, South Florida, Santa Clara. A couple for the next few years: St. Mary's, High Point (I like the Butch Thompson hire a great deal), and the real wild card, Oregon. Seriously, don't be surprised if the Ducks find themselves in the top 25 next year — many of their top recruits slipped in the draft and could wind up at Eugene. Those guys could hit the ground running.

Aaron Fitt: It's a terrific hire, really. That's not saying Tommy Raffo wouldn't have been a great hire too, but Cohen's got that proven track record as a head coach, and he's going to do a terrific job. Coach Polk is entitled to his opinions, but he's not doing any good going on the warpath like this. It's one thing to rail against the NCAA, and it's another thing to tarnish your legacy at the program you built into a national power by demanding your name be removed from the stadium and writing the program out of your will. Don't forget, Cohen is a former MSU player — it's not like Raffo was passed over for a complete outsider. I guess we shouldn't be surprised by Coach Polk's words — he's never been afraid to tell it how he sees it. But I think it's a pity he couldn't hold his tongue this time.

Aaron Fitt: The Commodores have a ton of young talent already there and a ton more coming in this fall. That should be a young, exciting team next year, and should be a CWS contender again by 2010.

Aaron Fitt: Irvine has good pitching, but they don't have any power arms in the class of Alex White or Matt Harvey. Even Scott Gorgen doesn't have that kind of stuff. I also like UNC's bullpen depth better than Irvine's, and the Tar Heels have a senior stopper in Rob Wooten who won't melt down the way Eric Pettis did in Game Two.

Aaron Fitt: I like the Gary Henderson hire — he's got a very nice track record as a pitching coach and was a big part of building the foundation for a national championship team at Oregon State before coming to UK. Rusin went in the 23rd round, so I would be very surprised if he signs. I think the bulk of that class will show up at school, and it has a chance to be the nation's best. Brad Bohannon stayed on board as the recruiting coordinator there and will do his best to shepherd those guys to class.

Aaron Fitt: Considering six of the eight teams left are national seeds, I'd say it's a pretty high-percentage bet that a national seed could win this year. And if the ACC can't break through and win a title this year, when it has the top three teams in the rankings and sends them all to Omaha, then maybe the league ought to just stick to basketball.

Aaron Fitt: That's all for today — stop by Friday for a chat from Omaha.