Rice's opening round game Texas in the College World Series will be Saturday at 6 pm (CDT), the NCAA announced today and will be televised nationally by ESPN.
I hear Texas is a pretty good regional team this year, although their offense can disappear sometimes. They are hard workers and deserve to be in the World Series after beating Houston. Too bad they have to face the #1 team in the nation coming off 2 shutouts in a row against powerhouse LSU (who has won 3 out of the last 5 championships). And Rice also has 3 shutouts in the last 5 post-season games. That type of express is not a good draw for our UT team. It's unfortunate they have to face a powerhouse like Rice in the first round who is the complete package. But who knows, UT has some gutsy little players. Maybe they can get lucky.
Not meaning to disrespect a pretty good regional team that deserves to be in the Worlds Series...but Rice went with their 4th starter against UT on 2 Tuesday games. Not meaning to call UT out as power ranking builders, but there's a reason UT didn't give the #1 team in the nation a weekend series against Rice's top 3 starters. For instance, Rice has a leftie rolling at 2 shutouts in a row against this awesome post-season comp, and he's their #2 starter. UT deserves to be there; I don't doubt that. I'm just disappointed the NCAA brackets didn't allow UT to play an easier opponent, because it would be nice to see Rice advance with another quality regional team from the state.
<img src="http://www.owlzone.com/images/owllogo.gif"> How we spent our weekend: <img src="http://www.owlzone.com/baseball/images/lsu_sweeper.gif"> What's next: <img src="http://www.austin360.com/sports/college/utbase/baselogo1000.gif"> Beef - it's what's for dinner!
Go Owls!!! Smokey-If you knew anything about college baseball, you'd know that Tues night games are "exhibitions" more or less, in the sense that te 4th or 5th starters from both teams pitch those games. We found out in those 2 games that UT probably has better pitching depth, but Rice's top 3 pitchers are as good, if not better than UT's. Also, Rice's lineup seems to be more balanced top to bottom than UT. When Austin Davis is your 8 hitter, you know you're stacked.
And UT went with their aces? I'm not a diehard Horns baseball fan, but Eugene Espineli and Tim McGough aren't exactly #1's or #2's. Might not even be # 3's. In fact only Espineli saw action in the regionals (not as a starter) and neither will start in the CWS (someone correct me if I'm wrong). Ha. UT beat # 2 and # 3 Rice during the regular season. You could say the samething about Rice not wanting to face UT in a 3 game weekend series. However I don't think either team is dodging each other. We'll see what happens Sat night. It's going to be tough game for sure.
I don't doubt Rice has better starting pitching than UT, but bottom line is we're 2-0 against the Owls, and we didn't get "lucky". Our pitchers went up against their batters, and their pitchers went up against our batters.
Alright, what happened during the regular season can be thrown out. Stop trying to prove to each other who will win because it'll never end. Rice is damn good and UT ain't bad either. I wish they didn't have to match up already, but that's the way it goes. I'm going to UT, but I think Rice will win just because they've been there before. Cavil on....
So we should throw out this season, and pick a winner based on history? Alright, UT has 4 national championships and 29 CWS appearances. Rice has 0 national championships and 3 CWS appearances (97, 99, 02). Texas leads the all time series 204-43-2. I am not making a prediction based on history or the regular season. Rice is a very good team, I just don't want to see Texas slighted. We beat Rice and we have a good chance of doing it again.
Careful what you ask for; you're about to get it. Longhorn express rolling through. Rice just happens to be in the way.
I'm not even sure that Mcgough is on the 25 man roster. Geno is a solid reliever, but Jesen Merle and Ray Clark get the call first. The UT starting rotation goes Simmons, Halsey, and Bomer. I don't think either pitched in the supers....they weren't needed.
Always harping on the past? I was simply pointing out how idiotic it was to pick Rice because they've been there before. In fact, Texas has been there more recently than Rice. Would it make you happier if I would've just said that? Fine. Well, actually, UT was last in the CWS in 2000 while Rice's last appearance was in 1999. Is that harp-free enough for ya?
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Isabel, you shouldn't slight Texas like that; it makes their fans feel disrespected and hurt, and as Rice fans, we should know what arrogance tastes like. Texas deserves to be there. Those kids have worked really hard this year and are making a name for themselves this year. They've surprised me at every turn. Who would've thought they could make it to the World Series with such a weak offense. It's just unfortunate they are running into the face of a team with 2 shutouts in a row, and 3 in 5 games. It would be nice to root for Texas as the underdog against Notre Dame or someone. They will not have to feel ashamed of themselves for losing to Rice, as long as they give it their best. What is really sad is that had Texas not let Vincent Sinisi go, they'd have a great offense and probably be more highly regarded around the state.
You do realize that UT is ranked in the top 5, #2 by some, in the nation don't you? You do realize that UT has more wins and played in a much tougher conference and Rice don't you? Judging from your posts, sounds like the answer to both of those questions is an astounding no.
