By John Manuel
May 31, 2002

Clemson Regional

1. Clemson (47-14). 2. East Carolina (41-18-1). 3. Elon (34-21). 4. Georgia Southern (38-23).

Best Player: SS Khalil Greene, Sr., Clemson. Need you even ask? Greene is the odds-on favorite for Player of the Year, unless someone like Stephen Drew, Russ Adams, Kyle Sleeth or Justin Simmons carries his team to the national championship.

The Favorite: Clemson was ranked No. 1 for seven weeks for a good reason. This is a very good team. Not only is there talent on the field, but there's also talent in the dugout. The challenge falls to pitching coach Kevin O'Sullivan to straighten out the Tigers' staff, which has struggled recently. He's got arms to work with, but offspeed artists Matt Henrie and Steve Reba (with the exception of his ACC tourney start) have not been on their game. How much can the Tigers trust younger, less-tested pitchers like freshmen Jeff Hourigan and Tyler Lumsden, who has the best arm on the staff?

But Don't Forget About: East Carolina has excellent pitching, a true No. 1 starter (when healthy) in LHP Sam Narron, and regional experience. It does not have a potent offense or a No. 1 seed for the first time in four years. The Pirates do have more motivation than any team, playing for coach Keith LeClair, who is ailing with Lou Gehrig's disease and happens to be a longtime friend of Clemson coach Jack Leggett.

Watch Out For: Georgia Southern's Rodney Hennen knows all of Leggett's tricks and knows LeClair well, too. The three all coached at Western Carolina (Leggett followed by LeClair followed by Hennen) before Hennen headed for Statesboro. Like the Pirates, the Eagles have to win with pitching, and Clemson's Doug Kingsmore Stadium is a pitcher's park.

Just Happy To Be Here: Elon. I covered the Division II league Elon was in back in the day (for me, that's the Grunge Era of 1994-96). It's amazing to see the Phoenix earn a Division I regional bid hardly six years after I wrote about the school moving from D-II to Division I. It's quite an achievement--but we all liked Jim Morris' alma mater better as the Fighting Christians rather than the Phoenix.

1. Wichita State (46-15). 2. Oklahoma (35-25). 3. Arkansas (31-26). 4. Oral Roberts (46-17).

Best Player: OF Randy Walter, Jr., Wichita State. He has power, speed and plays excellent defense.

The Favorite: Wichita State doesn't have a single star, but coach Gene Stephenson does have his best club since 1999, the last time the Shockers played host to a regional. Tyler Field at Eck Stadium has been spruced up quite a bit since then, and the Eck should be rocking with great crowds and plenty of grillin' going on out on the Coleman Pavilion in the outfield. While LHP Justin Maureau and RHP Adam Peterson get more attention from scouts, RHP John Tetuan has been the Shockers' most consistent pitcher.

But Don't Forget About: Oklahoma coach Larry Cochell has taken three different schools to Omaha, and two of them (Oklahoma and Oral Roberts) are in this regional. This is one of just two regionals in which all four schools have been to Omaha (the Stanford regional is the other). He has plenty to work with this time around. Juco OF Jason Fransz carries the offense, while freshman LHP David Purcey and his 95 mph fastball add spice to a deep, veteran pitching staff capable of winning a regional.

Watch Out For: No one.

Just Happy To Be Here: Oral Roberts and Arkansas. Oral Roberts is one of the hardest teams in the country to handicap because of the weakness of the Mid-Continent Conference. All coach Sonny Galloway can do is dominate the league, take his No. 4 seed and hope to pull the Big Upset in a regional, so his program can get more respect. Arkansas had better be happy to be here after going 27-26 against Division I foes.

1. Nebraska (42-18). 2. Southwest Missouri State (41-19). 3. Marist (40-12). 4. Wisconsin-Milwaukee (36-18).

Best Player: RHP Shane Komine, Sr., Nebraska. If he's healthy--and it looks like he's pretty healthy--he's the man.

The Favorite: Nebraska got a gift regional; now they need to take advantage of it. For the first time since coach Dave Van Horn's first year, the Huskers aren't coming off a Big 12 tournament championship. On the plus side, Komine has pitched well since returning from his month off due to shoulder problems. He and sophomore LHP Aaron Marsden are as potent a 1-2 punch as there is in the country.

But Don't Forget About: Southwest Missouri State gets kudos for adjusting and making the regional field despite the subpar season of their top player, sophomore RHP Bob Zimmermann. Team USA's closer last summer was overextended early and never regained the zip on his fastball (opponents hit .295 against him). SMS reworked its club, led by ace junior RHP Brad Ziegler and OF Dant'e Brinkley. And we would be remiss if we didn't mention the Bears' top home run hitter, C Tony Piazza. Yes, that's his name.

Watch Out For: Marist. Don't laugh. While it's true the Red Foxes probably don't deserve No. 3 seed, they did knock off Long Beach State in the Stanford regional last year and have two legit pitchers in Kevin Ool, their career strikeouts leader, and sophomore Chris Tracz, who has 20 wins in two college seasons. Senior OF Anthony Bocchino actually improved on his .430-7-64 season of a year ago, batting .449-9-55 coming into regional play. Marist might pull another upset or two in Lincoln.

Just Happy To Be Here: Wisconsin-Milwaukee is another one of those schools that wants to be known just by the city it's in, like (Tennessee-) Chattanooga, or (North Carolina-) Charlotte. Whatever. They'll have to settle for being known as the first Horizon League champion, and the first back-to-back winner the former Midwestern Collegiate Conference produced since Notre Dame in 1994.

1. Wake Forest (44-11-1). 2. Richmond (49-10). 3. Navy (22-23). 4. George Washington (42-21).

Best Player: RHP David Bush, Sr., Wake Forest. He's the Deacons' most valuable player, though sophomore RHP Kyle Sleeth is their leading winner, has 13 wins and should be a high first-round pick in 2003.

The Favorite: Wake Forest doesn't mind being the answer to a trivia question (only ACC team to win it all in Omaha), but they'd like to keep the distinction and bring it into the 21st century. For a team fighting injuries all year on the mound and in the field, George Greer's club has done well. Freshman SS Ben Ingold wasn't highly recruited but provided steady defense up the middle all year. The Deacons also won a regional at Ernie Shore Field, home of the Winston-Salem Warthogs, in 1999.

But Don't Forget About: Richmond was also in Winston-Salem in 1999, with a team led by Casey Burns, Matt Dwyer and Cubs prospect Nic Jackson. This year's Spiders model features RHP Tim Stauffer, who has kept producing under a heavy workload and SS Matt Craig, whose power and savvy have been keys to a school-record wins total.

Watch Out For: George Washington has an RPI more than 100 points higher than Navy, but got the No. 4 seed to avoid a first-round game with Richmond. That's an injustice to a veteran Colonials team that beat the Spiders twice on their home field last week to earn a bid and add to a school record for victories.

Just Happy To Be Here: Navy coach Steve Whitmyer got the program to a regional just two years after coming to Annapolis from Virginia. Navy hit .251 in the regular season and has played just two games in May. The rust and anemic offense convinced Richmond that it could save Stauffer for Saturday, instead of using him in the first-round game with Navy. Can the Middies take advantage?

1. South Carolina (48-14). 2. North Carolina (40-19). 3. James Madison (43-14). 4. Virginia Commonwealth (38-25).

Best Player: 3B Russ Adams, Jr., North Carolina. It's a tough call, but we'll go with Adams, who has played four positions for the Tar Heels (3B/SS/2B/RF), by a nose over South Carolina SS Drew Meyer, 1B Yaron Peters and RHP Blake Taylor.

The Favorite: South Carolina was the class of the SEC this year. Taylor blew a lead against LSU in the SEC tournament but came back to help eliminate the Tigers later. Peters was the conference player of the year. A loss to Alabama in the title game may have pushed Ray Tanner's bunch down in the national seeding but shouldn't dent its confidence. With speed, power, good pitching and defense, this club has a lot of ways to win.

But Don't Forget About: North Carolina might have earned a No. 1 seed (and perhaps even a regional in Chapel Hill) if it had won the ACC tournament, but the Tar Heels are just 2-8 under Mike Fox in four years in that event. The Heels have plenty of offense--senior OF/RHP Chris Maples has been one of the most improved players in college baseball--but have mixed and matched pitchers all year. First-half ace Gary Bakker hit the freshman wall and needs help in this regional.

Watch Out For: James Madison is the only Colonial Athletic Association member (past or present) to go to Omaha, but that was back in 1983. Coach Spanky McFarland has a pair of power LHPs in Jared Doyle and Dan Meyer, and an imposing lineup presence in 280-pound 1B Eddie Kim. But JMU got no favors with a No. 3 seed and the toughest regional on the Eastern Seaboard.

Just Happy To Be Here: Virginia Commonwealth will go to this regional without SS Josh Arteaga, the MVP of the regional at LSU who got drafted last year. The Rams are just 5-11 against the 64-team field.

1. Florida (43-17). 2. Florida International (41-18). 3. Miami (30-26). 4. Bethune-Cookman (38-20).

Best Player: SS Mark Kiger, Sr., Florida. He does whatever the Gators need to get a win. The ultimate coach's player.

The Favorite: Florida. Think about coach Pat McMahon's last 12 months: Team USA went 21-7-1 under him last year, despite having no goal to shoot for. He took Mississippi State to a super-regional last year, and this year took a Florida team that underachieved in the post-Brad Wilkerson years to a 20-10 SEC mark. His Florida predecessor, Arizona coach Andy Lopez, and his Mississippi State successor, Ron Polk, are at home watching the postseason.

But Don't Forget About: Miami is still the defending national champion, and junior RHP Kiki Bengochea, who took a lot of criticism early in the season, seems to have regained his summer 2001 form. If he's sinking it and sliding it the 'Canes have a chance, with their experienced lineup, to be dangerous.

Watch Out For: Florida International won a regional last year and has one of the nation's top sluggers in senior 1B Brad Eldred, who had 29 of the team's record 97 homers.

Just Happy To Be Here: Bethune-Cookman is a dangerous bunch, with senior SS Wes Timmons and other transfers making this a tougher team than the average MEAC champion. Still, most of the Wildcats' impressive wins (Central Florida, Jacksonville, Florida Atlantic) came early.

1. Georgia Tech (46-14). 2. Georgia (30-27). 3. Louisville (39-16). 4. Coastal Carolina (43-17).

Best Player: LHP Kyle Bakker, Soph., Georgia Tech. It's hard to pick from Georgia Tech's deep, talented roster, but we'll go with Bakker, the tallest player in the Atlantic Coast Conference at 6-foot-9, even though he has slumped late in the season.

The Favorite: Georgia Tech had a gaudy RPI but finished fifth in the ACC. Still, they received a regional host site, a significant achievement for the program. In the first year of the remodeled Russ Chandler Stadium, Georgia Tech was a cool 31-4 at home, with series wins the last three weekends of the regular season against Clemson, Miami and North Carolina.

But Don't Forget About: Coastal Carolina probably is peeved that it won the Big South regular season and tournament, a year after nearly winning the Athens regional, and still got a No. 4 seed. More galling is that Elon, which finished three games back in the Big South race, is a No. 3. The Chanticleers are the second-best team in the regional because of their experience, depth, three experienced starters and a solid double-play combination of 2B Brandon Powell (last year's regional hero before Jeff Keppinger went berserk) and SS Adam Keim.

Watch Out For: Louisville stumbled in the Conference USA tournament, but until then was a hot team. While this is the Cardinals' first regional bid, coach Lelo Prado has plenty of postseason experience from his days at Division II power Tampa. Sophomore OF Mark Jurich could start for any team in the country.

Just Happy To Be Here: Georgia had a solid season after losing its coach (Ron Polk) and most of its firepower and pitching from last year's College World Series qualifier. First-year coach Dave Perno did an excellent job with a team full of newcomers (freshmen and juco transfers) against a difficult schedule. The Bulldogs haven't won a game in May, though, and judging by Perno's comments after the SEC tournament, they didn't expect a regional bid.

1. Alabama (48-13). 2. Auburn (34-24). 3. Florida Atlantic (43-18). 4. Southeast Missouri State (36-18).

Best Player: RHP Lance Cormier, Sr., Alabama. Though he was much better in the first half, Cormier still gives the Crimson Tide a chance to win every time out. We'd take him to start our most important game.

The Favorite: Alabama earned a host site by finishing second overall in the SEC and winning the league tournament. But this field is too easy. The Tide's experience (even though they missed last year's regionals) has to help, too. 2B Peter Stonard and OF Scott McClanahan were the team's most consistent offensive threats, but senior C Jeremy Brown always seems to get the big hit when the Tide needs it.

But Don't Forget About: Florida Atlantic stumbled down the stretch and didn't win the Atlantic Sun title, but this is a team that won 27 games in a row earlier. The Owls lost their stride when RHP Chris Pillsbury missed a start; he and junior RHP Danny Core are capable of putting the Owls up 2-0 in most regionals.

Watch Out For: Auburn is quite young and quite good on the mound. The Tigers need OF Javon Moran and C Trent Pratt, who was hotter early in the year, to generate offense behind those arms. Auburn is a year away from a real national push.

Just Happy To Be Here: Southeast Missouri State had the nation's ERA leader last year in Todd Pennington and had another ace this year in Brad Purcell, who won 16 games the last two seasons. But more than one win here would be a big surprise.

Back to Part 1.