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December 17, 2008

Kendall Rogers
Rivals.com College Baseball Editor

Oregon State raised the excitement level by winning back-to-back national titles, but Fresno State could turn the college baseball community into a frenzy this spring by also winning back-to-back national titles.

Though Fresno State winning the national title this season certainly is a possibility, other 2009 CWS participants likely have a better chance to accomplish the goal. North Carolina returns a strong nucleus of pitchers, while LSU returns one of the nation's best offensive lineups. There's also Rice and Georgia, which also welcome back several key cogs.

In this week's mailbag, we also take an inside look at the best assistants from the biggest conferences in addition to discussions about Cal Poly and the Big West, Sam Houston State and yet another discussion about the premier conference.

Reliving the Omaha 8

Can Fresno State repeat as national champs? Will North Carolina finally find a way to win the national title?

Those questions will be answered in a few months, but for now, it's time to speculate about which teams will return to Omaha in June.

Of the eights teams that made it to Rosenblatt Stadium this past June, which four participants have the best chance to return in 2009?

North Carolina: The Tar Heels have some tough holes to fill this spring, but still are one of the frontrunners to win the national title. Alex White and Matt Harvey spearhead the pitching staff, while first baseman Dustin Ackley and second baseman Kyle Seager are two of the nation's best hitters. UNC has some work to do at the plate, but is in great shape on the mound.

LSU: The Tigers must find a way to replace first baseman Matt Clark and shortstop Michael Hollander and pitcher Ryan Verdugo, but welcome back several key cogs including Leon Landry, Jared Mitchell, Ryan Schimpf, DJ LeMahieu, Micah Gibbs and pitcher Louis Coleman. The Tigers have something to prove on the mound, but are in great shape at the plate.

Rice: Might the Owls actually be better this season than they were last season? As crazy as it sounds, it might be the case. Though the Owls have a plethora of holes to fill entering the spring, they also welcome back several key cogs including pitchers Ryan Berry and Mike Ojala and positions players Rick Hague, Chad Mozingo and Jimmy Comerota, among others. The Owls still have some newcomers to break in this spring, but otherwise are in great shape.

Georgia: Because of recent history many observers already are counting the Bulldogs out of the upcoming College World Series. I think that's a bad idea. Though the Bulldogs have the tough chore of replacing shortstop Gordon Beckham and third baseman Ryan Peisel in addition to closer Joshua Fields, they welcome back several key cogs, including infielder Rich Poythress and catcher Bryce Massanari and pitchers Trevor Holder and Alex McRee. History is against the Bulldogs, but that may not matter this spring.

Needing an assistant?

It's tough to single out an assistant for one team, much less for one conference. But I believe this is an interesting topic of discussion.

So, who is the best assistant from the SEC, Big 12, ACC and Pac-10?

SEC: Though he's still new to the conference, I believe South Carolina's Chad Holbrook is the conference's best assistant. Holbrook helped North Carolina become a national power and likely will sprinkle some magic on the Gamecocks. Other assistants to watch include Vanderbilt's Erik Bakich, Tennessee's Fred Corral, Alabama's Mitch Gaspard, Ole Miss' Rob Reinstetle and Arkansas' Todd Butler.

Big 12: It's only a matter of time before Texas A&M will have to replace assistant Matt Deggs. Deggs went to A&M from Arkansas, where he also was a successful assistant for coach Dave Van Horn. Deggs has been instrumental in turning A&M's offense into one of the nation's best. He also assists in recruiting. Other assistants considered include Missouri's Tony Vitello, Oklahoma State's Greg Evans, Baylor's Mitch Thompson and Texas' Tommy Harmon.

ACC: Because of what he has accomplished with the North Carolina pitching staff the past few seasons, it's hard not to go with Scott Forbes. Recently promoted to associate head coach, Forbes is an excellent teacher and probably will find a head coaching job sooner rather than later. Other assistants considered include Florida State's Jamey Shouppe, N.C. State's Tom Holliday, Clemson's Tom Riginos, Miami's J.D. Arteaga and Virginia's Kevin McMullan.

Pac-10: He has yet to step on the field for a real game and his impact already is being felt in more ways than anyone imagined. That's UCLA's Rick Vanderhook. Though the Bruins still have much to prove, Vanderhook is a great teacher and brings with him an excellent resume. Other assistants considered include Arizona State's Andy Stankiewicz, Stanford's Dean Stotz, Arizona's Mark Wasikowski and California's Dan Hubbs.

Mustangs in the mix

The Big West has improved a great deal the past few seasons and should be even better once again this spring.

Cal State Fullerton should be the cream of the crop in the league this season, while UC Irvine also should have a very good team with the return of several veterans, including infielder Ben Orloff and pitchers Christian Bergman, Danny Bibona and Eric Pettis.

Long Beach State has several holes to fill but should get better as the season moves on, while UC Santa Barbara could make the biggest climb. The Gauchos have a couple holes to fill, but welcomes back most of their key cogs, including pitchers Mario Hollands and Mike Ford, which finished last season with ERA's of 4.03 and 2.96, respectively.

After Fullerton, Long Beach, UC Irvine and UC Santa Barbara, the Big West race focuses on UC Riverside and Cal Poly. The Highlanders hope to bounce back from an inconsistent '08 campaign, while the Mustangs finally hope to turn the corner after finishing last season with an overall record of 24-32.

The Mustangs will be better this spring. Though they must replace Brent Morel and Logan Schafer, they welcome back several key cogs, including outfielder Luke Yoder, infielder Wes Dorrell and pitchers DJ Mauldin, Jared Eskew and Steven Fischback. The 'Stangs also welcome back left-handed pitcher Matt Leonard, who missed last season because of an injury.

If the Cal Poly pitching staff meets expectations this spring, the program may finally turn the corner and reach an NCAA regional. If not, the Mustangs once again will be filed under the disappointment category.

Purely premier

We've touched on this subject in the past and there are many ways to determine which conference is the nation's best. Some prefer a conference strong at the top while others prefer balance.

Put me in the group that prefers balance.

Though the ACC has had the best conference at the top the past few seasons, I still am a believer the SEC is the most balanced conference. If you look at the SEC standings each season, the difference between the top teams and those near the bottom of the standings generally isn't great.

More than any other conference, the SEC is unpredictable each weekend. The ACC and Big 12 are top heavy, while only the Pac-10 can come close to the SEC in the balance department. As with the SEC, the Pac-10 also is unpredictable.

I'd say the SEC, ACC, Pac-10 and Big 12 are the best conferences, while the Big West and Conference USA also are power conferences in college baseball. While Cal State Fullerton and Long Beach State used to always rule the roost in the Big West, UC Irvine recently has become a player and UC Riverside and UC Santa Barbara always are programs to watch. In Conference USA, Rice obviously is the headliner. Other programs such as East Carolina, Southern Miss and Tulane, however, also make occasional splashes on the national stage.

While the SEC currently is the nation's best conference, the Pac-10 poses the biggest threat to carry that label in the future. Arizona State and Oregon State are national powers, but other programs such as UCLA, Arizona and California also continue to make waves.

This debate will only intensify in the future.

Building a consistent contender

This is college baseball and it's always important to avoid saying never, but in Sam Houston State's case, I'd be pretty surprised if it reached the College World series in the near future. Even if the Bearkats have a great team this season or beyond, they likely would have to get through Texas, Texas A&M or Rice to get to Omaha. Not an easy proposition.

The Bearkats once were an afterthought in the state of Texas, but have won the Southland Conference's automatic berth the past two seasons with overall records of 37-25 and 40-24. There's a reason for that.

When the Bearkats searched for a new coach a few seasons ago, they certainly had some viable options. However, just 50 miles west, the program had an ample opportunity to go after former Texas A&M coach Mark Johnson, who still holds the school record for all-time wins.

Johnson certainly could've turned down the Bearkats, but he seized the opportunity to build up yet another program. SHSU struck gold.

Though Johnson and the Bearkats admit there still is work to be done, what the long-time head coach has accomplished the past two seasons is remarkable.

As for the '09 season, the Bearkats have some tough holes to fill. Though they welcome back position players Seth Hammock and Nick Zaleski, they must also find a way to replace Ryan Trevino, Keith Stein, Todd Sebek and Bobby Verbick.

SHSU's pitching staff should be in good shape with the return of Dallas Gallant, Guillaume Duguay and others, but the offense is a question mark.

Kendall Rogers is the college baseball editor for Rivals.com and Yahoo! Sports. He can be reached at rogersk@yahoo-inc.com. Got a question for Kendall's Mailbag? Click here to drop him a note