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Omaha, NE–The College World Series Finals start tonight with the UCLA Bruins taking on the South Carolina Gamecocks. Unlike most college championships, college baseball’s is a best two of three format. Games tonight (Monday), tomorrow and an “if necessary” game three on Wednesday all begin at 7 p.m. Eastern Time. All three games will be televised on ESPN.

Rosenblatt Stadium host its last CWS Finals this week.

We know you’re a college baseball fan, so you don’t need a reason to watch the CWS Finals, but here are five reasons to watch anyway:

1. It’s Rosenblatt’s last hurrah. This is the 61st and final time Omaha’s Johnny Rosenblatt Stadium will host the College World Series. Somewhat surprisingly, crowds have not flocked to Rosenblatt to see it in all its splendor before college baseball’s biggest event moves downtown next year. A lack of marquee teams, like LSU and Texas, in this year’s CWS could be partially to blame. Storms that wrecked the schedule during the event’s opening weekend were a factor as well. More baseball will be played on Johnny Rosenblatt’s stadium this summer when the Omaha Royals come back to town, but the hustle of the college game will be no more after this Wednesday.

2. It’s East vs. West. With all the recent talk of conference expansion and super conferences, it’s only fitting that an SEC team is playing a Pac 10 team for the title. LSU and Georgia are the only other SEC schools to win the CWS, while five other Pac 10 teams have claimed crowns.  College baseball has traditionally been dominated by the western half of the country.  Since 1970, Georgia (1990) and Miami (FL) (1982, ’85, ’99, 2000) and the only schools east of the Mississippi River to win the CWS.

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Our coverage of the 2010 College World Series is brought to you by The Dugout in Omaha, with everything you’re looking for when it comes to officially-licensed CWS hats and shirts. If you can’t make it to Rosenblatt, be sure to follow the link for all of your CWS gear!

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Note & Thoughts On Sunday’s Action In Omaha

Our coverage of the 2010 College World Series is brought to you by The Dugout in Omaha, with everything you’re looking for when it comes to officially licensed CWS hats and shirts.  If you can’t make it to Rosenblatt make sure to follow the link for all of your CWS gear!

Sunday’s Games

Game 3 – South Carolina 4-8-0, Oklahoma 3-9-0

Visit the CB360 Scoreboard Page for full details.

CB360 OU/South Carolina Postgame Video

Game 4 – Arizona State vs. Clemson-The game has been moved to a 10:08 am start time Monday morning.

Day One CWS Blog

• The start of the Oklahoma vs. South Carolina game was delayed 4 hours and 15 minutes by rain.

• The game was halted in the middle of the 6th inning with Oklahoma leading 3-2.  The game resumed at 9 pm CT after a 2:01 rain/lightning delay.

• Gamecock starter Blake Cooper did not return to the mound after the delay.  Michael Roth went to the mound instead for his 34th appearance of the season. Cooper gave-up three earned runs on six hits in 5 IP with five strikeouts and one walk.  He threw 67 pitches with 48 of them strikes.

• Oklahoma starter Michael Rocha did not return after the delay either.  He was relieved by Jeremy Erben.  Rocha gave-up two runs on solo home runs in 6 IP.  He had two strikeouts with three walks and threw 86 pitches, including 47 strikes.

• A lot of strategy was going on in the bottom of the 7th inning.  Sunny Golloway sent pinch-hitter Ricky Eisenberg to the plate for Eric Ross.  As soon as John Taylor got Eisenberg to line to second base the Gamecocks called-on Steven Neff to face fellow lefty Chris Ellison, who filed to centerfield.  That prompted Ray Tanner to call upon Jose Mata go get Max White to line to second base.  So to that point after the delay South Carolina had used four relievers to get six outs.

• You think maybe all this rain and lightning is Johnny Rosenblatt getting his revenge for moving the event he brought to Omaha out of the stadium that bears his name?

• Oklahoma and South Carolina played for just the second time ever today.  The first and only time they played previously was in 2007.  South Carolina won 13-2.

• The Sooners have won 14 of their last 16 games coming into Sunday’s game.  They were 3-0 when they hosted the Norman Regional with a win over Oral Roberts and two wins vs. North Carolina.   OU lost its Super Regional opener at Virginia only to win games two and three by a combined 21-7 score.

• The last time UNC was eliminated from the NCAA Tournament during Regional play was in 2005 in Gainesville.  The Tar Heels had been to Omaha four straight times prior to being eliminated by the Sooners.  Florida also advanced to the CWS from its Regional in ’05

• Since losing four of its last five games prior to the NCAA Tournament South Carolina is a perfect 5-0 so far this year in NCAA play.  The Gamecocks swept through Bucknell, The Citadel and Virginia Tech in Regional play and then beat Coastal Carolina in two one-run games at the Myrtle Beach Super Regional.

• Reese’s and Hy-Vee Supermarkets are donating $200 to Boys Town in Omaha for every home run hit during the College World Series.  TCU’s Bryan Holaday and Florida’s Josh Adams each homered on day one of the CWS.  South Carolina’s Christian Walker & Jackie Bradley, Jr. and OU’s Caleb Bushyhead & Garret Buechele have also gone deep today.

• Buechele’s HR to lead-off the bottom of the 8th was a MOON SHOT.  It was the thunder to the lightning that was flashing around Rosenblatt all night.  The blast nearly left the stadium, but landed in front of the giant scoreboard in left field.  They should donate $600 to Boys Town for Buechele’s blast.

• Oklahoma football coach Bob Stoops is in the house today to see OU’s first CWS game since 1995.
  

  Jim Monaghan (right) and his brother Terry. (Photo Paul Fiarkoski)

• Paul Fiarkoski, who is helping us with our coverage of the CWS, met an interesting person outside in the stadium today.  Jim Monaghan told Paul that he played in the very first game ever played at Rosenblatt Stadium.  It was a youth game played in 1948…two years before the CWS moved to Omaha from Kalamazoo, MI.

• Jim also told Paul that he paid $550 for his pair of tickets for this year’s College World Series.  How much has he paid for his tickets for next year’s CWS at the new downtown stadium?  $3,300…can you say STICKER SHOCK!?!

• Just realize I haven’t mentioned it yet, so Happy Father’s Day! Starting with my day Jim, who was here with my family and I last year.  My son’s Scrappers baseball team was playing in the Omaha Slumpbuster Tournament here last year and we all had a blast.  They were supposed to come back this year, but didn’t get to due to some logistical issues. So happy Father’s Day as well to the Scrapper dads who didn’t get to make the return visit to Omaha this year:  Tom Lane, Don Milliser, Hal Farmwald, and Rob Coffel!

• ESPN’s Erin Andrews and Robin Ventura were seen out in the Old Market area in Omaha Saturday night with a couple of body guards as well.  No…they were not dancing.

• Chicago Cubs General Manager Jim Hendry was in the Rosenblatt press box tonight.

• The announced attendance of Sunday’s game was 22,800.  The total attendance through three games is 69,755 for a three game average of 23,252.  It’s about 3,000 behind last year’s average for the first three games.

Notes & Thoughts From Saturday…

I will be checking in throughout the day and into tonight with notes and quotes and happenings from Saturday’s action.  The first game of the day is TCU vs. Florida State, with UCLA facing Florida in the night cap.  Don’t forget you can follow results with recaps and more throughout the series on our CWS Scoreboard page.

Game 1 Final- TCU 8-11-2, Florida State 1-4-0 WP-Matt Purke (15-0), LP-Sean Gilmartin (9-8)
Postgame Video

Game 2 Final - UCLA 11-18-2, Florida 3-6-1 WP-Trevor Bauer (11-3), LP-Alex Panteliodis (11-3)
Postgame Video

• It’s a fairly overcast day in Omaha as we get ready for the start of the TCU-Florida State game.  The clouds mixed with a nice breeze make it pretty comfortable for fans who are used to sun and sweltering humidity at this time of year.

• Saw a lot of LSU t-shirts and tailgate canopies and the like on the streets and in the parking lot when I was making my way into the stadium today.  I don’t know if they actually made their way here from Louisiana or if they’re just local LSU fans…which there are a lot of here in Omaha.

• TCU’s Jim Schlossnagle has been named the NCBWA’s National Coach of the Year.  Schlossnagle’s Horned
  

  Jim Schlossnagle

  Frogs (51-12) have already set a school record for wins in a season, while reaching the CWS for the first time in program history.

• The NCBWA also named Texas pitcher Chance Ruffin the National Stopper of the Year.  Ruffin’s 1.11 ERA ranks second in the nation.  He was 6-1 with 14 saves this season before Texas was eliminated by TCU in last week’s Super Regional in Austin.

• One more announcement today from the NCBWA: Drew Pomeranz of Ole Miss, Miami’s Yasmani Grandal and Anthony Rendon of Rice are the three finalists for the Dick Howser Trophy.  The winner will be announced at a ceremony on July 2 in Lubbock, TX.

• TCU is not only making its first CWS appearance, it’s also its first ever game vs. Florida State.  In fact, any meeting with the other two teams in its bracket, Florida and UCLA, will also be TCU’s first game against those schools.

• Longtime official scorer Lou Spry is working his overall 600th CWS game today in some capacity.
  

  CWS Scorer Lou Spry

• The Horned Frogs can flat-out hit.  TCU scored five runs on six hits in the first inning off FSU starter Sean Gilmartin, who was not fooling anyone.  The lowest batting average by TCU’s starting nine is Aaron Schultz’s .303.  They were hitting ropes off Gilmartin in the three innings he worked.  Even Bryan Holaday’s 2nd inning infield single was a liner that hit Gilmartin.  The lefty was uninjured.

• Schlossnagle got bold in the third inning and it paid off…at least a little.  With runners at second and third with one out TCU 9-hole batter Brance Rivera plated Jantzen Witte with a squeeze bunt, but the play didn’t end there.  Taylor Featherston, who was at second base, never broke stride and tried to score from second base.  He was thrown out at the plate to finish a 1-3-2 double play on the throw home by first baseman Jayce Boyd.

• Matt Purke was just electric.  The freshman did walk four to tie a season-high, but he was untouchable when he wanted (and needed) to be.  His final line: 7 IP, 4 H, 1 UER, 7 K, 4 BB, 116 pitches, 66 strikes.

• TCU had four sac bunts in its win over Florida State.  The Horned Frogs kept bunting, even in the late innings when they were up 6-1.  Jason Coats said after the game that it’s “near automatic” for them to bunt with runners at first and second and no outs.  They now have 61 sac bunts this season.

• Local authorities have put-up a temporary chain link fence around the Rosenblatt Stadium and parking lot perimeter.  There are just a handful of gates where fans can go in and out.

• Florida and UCLA’s first round Saturday match-up was a rematch from the Women’s College World Series first round.  The UCLA softball team beat Florida 16-3 en-route to winning the program’s 12th softball national championship.

• From CB360 co-editor Pete LaFleur on our Twitter feed today:  “Do we really need to be reminded constantly about the differences between college and pro baseball?”  I didn’t get to hear exactly what he was talking about, but it’s not the first time ESPN has done this.  Yes, there are subtle differences.  Yes, the bat goes “PING”, but it’s still baseball!

• Erin Andrews isn’t Dancing With The Stars anymore.  She’s back doing sideline reporting at the CWS for game two (Kyle Peterson had game one).  This could end-up being her last event for ESPN, because her contract is up at the end of the month.

• In both of Saturday’s games the first two batters reached base safely for all four teams in the first inning.  The lead-off man scored for each of the four teams.

• Holy den Dekker!  Florida center fielder Matt den Dekker made a
  

  Matt den Dekker

  sensational over the shoulder and sliding catch to rob Bruin right fielder Brett Krill of extra bases in the bottom of the fourth inning.  If you didn’t see it watch Sports Center Saturday night and Sunday morning.  It’s a web gem.

• When Trevor Bauer struckout Jonathon Pigott to start the bottom of the 7th it was his 10th of the night as well as his third straight at that point, but it was also his 151st strike out of the season.  The total breaks an 18 year old school record.

• Bauer finished his night with 11 strike outs and two walks in 7 IP.  He also
  

  Trevor Bauer

  balked twice to become the fifth pitcher in CWS history to balk twice in the same game.

• I’ve been extremely impressed with UCLA’s offense.  I never would have thought that the team that would have double digit hits and runs on day one would be the Bruins…especially with 3-hole hitter Tyler Rahamatulla out with the broken wrist.  The Bruins hit the ball hard all night and scored at least a run in all but the second inning.

Our coverage of the 2010 College World Series is brought to you by The Dugout in Omaha, with everything you’re looking for when it comes to officially licensed CWS hats and shirts.  If you can’t make it to Rosenblatt make sure to follow the link for all of your CWS gear!

A few notes and thoughts from Collegebaseball360.com Editor Sean Stires while waiting for the Virginia-Arkansas game to start…

• ASU’s loss to Texas last night snapped their 7-game winning streak, and it leaves LSU as the only team without a loss in this year’s NCAA Tournament (7-0).

• Arkansas starting pitcher  (and OF) Brett Eibner had a tough time in his last start Monday vs. LSU when he allowed four runs in just 1 1/3 IP. That’s nothing compared to what happened to an Omaha motorist at Tuesday’s Arkansas practice when Eibner hit a home run during batting practice that smashed the window of a van parked on the street outside the park.