Thoughts on Tar Heels, Golden Eagles, the Pac 10 and even Toby Gerhart and the NFL Draft with Collegebaseball360.com editor Sean Stires.

Two For Home? North Carolina and Southern Mississippi were two of the “Omaha Eight” last year, but more and more they are looking like teams that could be left entirely out of the field of 64 this season.  UNC (23-16, 6-12 ACC) enters this weekend’s series at Clemson tied with Duke for last place in the ACC Coastal Division.  However,

Mike Fox (UNC photo)

they’re technically not even tied with the Blue Devils, because Duke took two of three games from the Tar Heels last month.  That was the first of four ACC series losses by UNC already this season.  As we pointed out in our Notebook earlier this week, the Tar Heels lost just six ACC series over the last four seasons combined.  They entered the week with a solid 36 in the NCAA RPI, but  have lost seven of their last nine games while continuing to drop in every national poll.  In addition to Clemson, North Carolina’s remaining conference series are Wake Forest, at Virginia and Virginia Tech.

Meanwhile, Southern Mississippi (18-17, 2-7 CUSA) is completely reeling.  With an NCAA RPI of 102, last year’s CWS darlings have lost three straight and seven of their last nine games.   Mid-week losses to LSU and Ole Miss are one thing, but USM has lost its last three Conference USA series to UAB, Central Florida and Marshall to plummet to dead last in the conference standings.

The Pac Is Back: After a down year in 2009 the Pac 10 is looking very good.  Arizona State and UCLA grabbed most of the early season headlines with their long winning streaks to start the season, but the league is deep.  Seven teams, #1 Arizona State, #6 UCLA, #16 Arizona, #18 California, #20 Oregon, #24 Oregon State, and #29 Stanford,  are ranked among the CB 360 Composite National Rankings top 30. Each of those teams is

Toby Gerhart hit 16 HR and ran for 44 TDs in his two-sport career (Stanford photo)

also in the NCAA RPI top 30.  At least six of those teams should receive an NCAA bid this season, making it even tougher for a team like North Carolina to find a bid of its own.

Go Gerhart: As I write this the start of the 2010 NFL Draft is just hours away.  It’s hard to believe, but former Stanford two-sport star Toby Gerhart isn’t expected to be taken until the end of the second round…at the earliest.  This is a guy who set Pac 10 records and led the nation with 28 rushing touchdowns and 1,871 rushing yards in 2009.  He also played in 105 college baseball games, while helping the Cardinal to the 2008 College World Series.  He had good 40 times at the NFL Combine, but he’ll slip in the draft because the last white running back to have any real NFL success was John Riggins.  At least one scout has said “If Toby Gerhart was black, he would be drafted in the first round.”  I’m no scout, but was Gerhart too slow when he ran over and around USC’s Taylor Mays when he ran for 178 yards, while running for 3 TDs and catching another in Stanford’s 55-21 win at USC?  Mays is expected to be a first round pick.   Pete Carroll wanted Gerhart to be a fullback when he recruited him, but he ran over Carroll’s linebackers instead.   Gerhart proved Carroll and a lot of other doubters wrong in college, and let’s hope he does the same again in the NFL.

CORVALLIS, Ore. – The Oregon State baseball team will play 34 home games at Goss Stadium at Coleman Field in 2010, which highlights the season’s upcoming schedule released Tuesday by head coach Pat Casey.

OSU Head Coach Pat Casey

games as possible. We have some of the greatest fans in the Pac-10 and across the nation and the 2010 season will represent a great opportunity for our players to compete in front of them and for our fans to lead the Pac-10 in attendance.”

Complete 2010 OregonState Schedule (PDF)

The schedule begins Feb. 19 when the Beavers travel to Hawai’i for a four-game series. It marks the second time in four seasons in which OSU will travel outside the continental United States to open the season. In 2007, OSU played at Hawai’i-Hilo, and swept its four games there en route to its second of two consecutive national championships.

After playing four in the islands, the Beavers will return to Corvallis for the 2010 home opener against Tennessee in the Papé Grand Slam, which will be held at Goss Stadium from Feb. 26-28. The third-annual Papé Grand Slam will be played in Corvallis instead of Portland due to a construction schedule at PGE Park that could not accommodate the Beavers. PGE Park, however, will be able to accommodate Oregon State and Oregon for a non-conference game on May 26, which will mark the Beavers’ only appearance this season at the Triple-A park.

Other non-conference home opponents for the Beavers include perennial West Coast power Long Beach State (March 26-28), Portland and Utah in OSU’s Spring Tournament (March 12-14), Maine (March 19-21), Southern Utah (March 24), San Diego (May 10) and Seattle (May 18-19).

Of the Beavers’ 23 road games, eight will be played amongst the team’s first 11. After the series against Tennessee, OSU travels to Surprise, Ariz., to play in a six-team tournament hosted by Arizona State. In addition to the host Sun Devils, OSU squares off against Cal Poly, Utah Valley and UC Riverside over the four days.

Oregon State opens its 2010 Pacific-10 Conference slate April 1 at USC. The Beavers also travel to Washington State, California and Arizona State for league games this season.

Casey and the Beavers open their Pac-10 home schedule April 9 against UCLA. Other conference foes OSU fans will be able to see at Goss Stadium include Stanford, Oregon, Washington and Arizona, whom the Beavers close out the season with in a three-game series from May 28-30.

The NCAA postseason begins June 4 with NCAA Regionals play. NCAA Super Regionals start June 11, with the College World Series, which is scheduled to be played at historic Rosenblatt Stadium in Omaha, Neb., for the final year, being played June 19-30.

(Release)

Wildcats Will Open Season With 27 Straight Home Games

UA Head Coach Andy Lopez

Beach State, Cal State Fullerton, Northern Colorado, and Sacramento State.  The Wildcats will also play non-conference two game sets vs. UNLV, Saint Joseph’s, Wichita State and New Mexico.

Complete 2010 Arizona Baseball Schedule

The Wildcats begin Pac-10 play vs. Oregon with a 3-game home series that starts on March 26.  They play their first road games at California April 1,2 & 3 in Berkley, CA.

Other Pac-10 road series are vs. Washington, USC and Oregon State.  The Wildcats host Washington State, UCLA, Arizona State, and Stanford.

Two “non-conference” games vs. Arizona State will be played in Tempe on Aprl 20 & May 4.   Cal State Bakersfield also visits Tucson May 7-9 in Arizona’s last non-conference action.

In all Arizona plays eight games against 2009 College World Series teams.