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Gamecocks Repeat As National Champs…

CWS Championship Game: South Carolina 5-10-0 def. Florida 2-6-1
Final Stats | SC Recap | FL Recap

Head coach Ray Tanner talks with the media Tuesday after his team won a second straight national title.

The South Carolina baseball team beat Florida 5-2 on Tuesday in Omaha to win a second straight national championship at the College World Series. If you want a recap you can click one of the above links, but in the meantime here’s the Cliff’s Notes version on how the Gamecocks marched through Omaha with five wins and no losses over the last 11 days.

Lean-in close and I’ll tell you how:  They’re just that good.

It’s just that simple. Ray Tanner‘s Gamecocks have now won a record 16 consecutive NCAA Tournament games. They haven’t always made it look easy, but they just get the job done every time they hit the field.

If the Gamecocks were an automobile they would be a Ford pick-up. Just pile-in and get from point A to point B. No frills, no spills just get the job done.

South Carolina (55-14) didn’t even bat .300 as a team this year (a lot of teams didn’t, there are new bat standards that dropped run production this year if you hadn’t heard). Their 46 home runs weren’t even close to one a game (Peter Mooney‘s 6th inning home run was South Carolina’s only HR at the College World Series), they don’t steal a lot of bases (41), and their “small ball” percentage (67 sac bunts) isn’t off the charts either.

Gamecocks ace Michael Roth has dominated in Omaha for the last two years.

The two-time champs put three runs on the board in the third inning in Tuesday’s deciding game in dizzyingly unspectacular fashion: Double, sac bunt, walk, sac fly, error, infield single. Just like that it was 3-0, and it might as well have been 9-0 with Michael Roth on the mound for USC.

Ah, Michael Roth. The South Carolina lefty is the epitome of both a very good college baseball player and of why the SEC is just better than every other conference all at once.

Remember last year when Roth made his first two starts of the season in Omaha after exclusively coming out of the bullpen 37 times prior? His only starts were a necessity after South Carolina lost its 2010 College World Series opener to Oklahoma and then fought its way out of the loser’s bracket to reach the CWS Finals.

Roth first faced his school’s biggest rival, Clemson, on the games grandest stage and fired a complete game to stave-off elimination and eventually advance to the finals. He started again in the deciding championship game, which the Gamecocks won 2-1 in 11 innings.

Roth’s numbers in those two starts: 14.0 innings, 9 hits, 2 runs, 3 BB, and 7 Ks. That’s from a guy who was a set-up man all season. That’s why the SEC is just better than any other conference. Arms like Roth’s are pitching the 7th and 8th innings in the SEC when they could be starters in any other conference. Roth now has a 1.17 ERA in 38 1/3 career innings at the CWS.

It wasn’t over for Roth there though. With 2010 ace Blake Cooper gone, Roth didn’t just join the SC weekend rotation this year-he fronted it…and then some. The dude had a 13-3 record and a sick 0.97 ERA entering Tuesday’s game, so surely the junior was an early round draft pick earlier this month, right?

Wrong.

Roth didn’t get selected until the 40th round when Cleveland made him the 938th overall pick in the draft. Meanwhile, Virginia’s Danny Hulzten and Florida’s Karsten Whitson, whom Roth matched-up against in his last two CWS starts, were first round picks this year and last year, respectively.

He’s the Jason Bourne of college baseball (the Matt Damon Bourne, not the one with the guy from The Hurt Locker). He just keeps showing-up and keeps on winning.

And so does South Carolina.

Scott Wingo receives his 2011 CWS Most Outstanding Player trophy.

Just as big a reason for their success (in addition to the steady hand of head coach Ray Tanner) is the Gamecocks’ defense. The closet thing that comes to mind to describe their defensive style is the Amoeba defense Jerry Tarkanian‘s UNLV basketball team used in the late ’80s and early ’90s.

South Carolina just suffocates opponents with defense. Second baseman (and CWS Most Outstanding Player) Scott Wingo ranging left on the grass (when he’s not rapping clutch hits), shortstop Peter Mooney charging in on a chopper, Adrian Morales guarding the hot corner, Christian Walker (broken wrist and all these last two games) scooping it all up, and then there’s Jackie Bradley, Jr. running balls down from centerfield.

That’s maybe the most remarkable thing about how South Carolina is where it stands right now. Bradley, the team’s verified superstar (the #40 overall MLB Draft pick by the Boston Red Sox), hadn’t even played since late April after requiring surgery on a tendon in his wrist, but the Gamecocks got back to Omaha (with five straight NCAA wins) without him.

The Most Outstanding Player Trophy is a replica of the Road To Omaha statue.

Bradley played in all five South Carolina wins in Omaha, but he was just another cog in the machinery-the Armour All on the tires of that big shiny pick-up truck.

In the words of the South Carolina players, they “battle”. It’s a word that came-up over and over in post game press conferences during the CWS. Roth even made fun of it at one point, saying they had worn it out, but that’s what the Gamecocks did. Roth and Tanner both said after Tuesday’s clincher that their team wasn’t the most talented, but their ability to battle is what got them where they are:

Two straight national championships, 16 straight NCAA Tournament wins and 11 straight wins at the College World Series.

In all, 11 Gamecocks were drafted earlier this month. Some may return next year, most will be gone.They’ll ride the buses in the minors once they sign their pro contracts, but odds are most of them will be lucky to get a cup of coffee in the Big Leagues.

Just like this year, South Carolina likely won’t be number one when the preseason polls come out in 2012, but don’t bet against them to make it back to Omaha for a chance at a three-peat.

They’re just that good.

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Jackie Bradley, Jr. fires the ball into the outfield bleachers after making the catch to record the last out of the 2011 CWS.

Michael Roth and teammates hold the national championship trophy.

CWS MOP Scott Wingo

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A member of the 2010 national champion South Carolina baseball team has been kicked-off the 2011 squad. Gamecocks head coach Ray Tanner announced Tuesday that sophomore Ethan Carter has been dismissed for a violation of team rules.

Ethan Carter

Carter made 24 relief appearances for USC as a true freshman. He was 3-0 with two saves and a 5.46 ERA in 28.0 IP for the national champions.

The 6’5 righthander was expected to vie for a spot in South Carolina’s starting rotation this season. He was the 20o9 Gatorade Virginia High School Baseball Player of the Year.

He told The State Newspaper in Columbia “It’s extremely disappointing, and I’m going to miss my teammates,” Carter said. “I know I let them down with my violation of team rules, but I’ve got to take it in stride. Whenever one door closes, another one opens. I just have to try to make the best of the situation.”

Carter is expected to transfer to a junior college.

By College Baseball 360 Editor Sean Stires

We are just days away from a new year and that means we’re less than two months away from the start of the 2011 college baseball season. There was good and there was bad, and with that in mind here are 10 significant things we’ll take from college baseball in 2010…

1.  Goodbye to Rosenblatt Stadium

What can be said about Rosenblatt that hasn’t already been said? After 60 years at the top of the hill in Omaha, Johnny Rosenblatt Stadium hosted its final College World Series in 2010. The move to the new TD Ameritrade Park in 2011 is seen by progress to some, but heartbreak to many. The new park will have all the amenities that Rosenblatt lacked, and maybe the future will be even brighter at the CWS and Omaha down the road. However, wouldn’t it have been nice if the new stadium had even a hint of nostalgia? The new Yankee Stadium has oversized high-priced seats and is swelling with luxury suites, but they still managed to keep the look from the House that Ruth Built. Too bad they couldn’t do the same at TDA.  CLICK HERE to read a letter of thanks from Omaha native Paul Fiarkoski to Johnny Rosenblatt.

2. Cal Cuts Baseball

Septbember 28, 2010 could be remembered as “Black Tuesday” at Cal. That’s the day Cal-Berkley Chancellor Robert Birgeneau and Athletic Director Sandy Barbour announced the school would eliminate baseball and four other sports (rugby, gymnastics and lacrosse) at their school at the conclusion of the 2010-2011 season. The given reason was to “generate an estimated $4 million annual savings in direct and indirect costs for Cal Athletics, while limiting further growth in expenses.” The outcry was instant, and the “Save Cal Baseball” movement began.  More than $10 in pledges have poured in to save the 118 year-old baseball program and the four other sports. The future is still uncertain, but head coach Dave Esquer’s Golden Bears are ranked 33rd in Collegiate Baseball’s 2011 preseason poll.

3. Arizona State Gets Probation

Our top story from 2009 was Pat Murphy leaving ASU, but Tim Esmay still led the Sun Devils to Omaha after the departure of the controversial head coach. That won’t be possible in 2011 after the NCAA slapped the program with postseason probation due to “lack of institutional control”.  Click here for the full rundown. While Arizona State plans to appeal the postseason ban, the school has been sanctioned nine times since 1953 (in sports other than baseball). Murphy is currently working in the San Diego Padres organization, but the NCAA also ruled that if he were to return to college baseball he would not be able to make recruiting calls until December 14, 2011.

4. Garrett Wittels Chases History, And Then…

Garrett Wittels

Heading into the 2010 season nobody was talking about Florida International, and they sure weren’t talking about Garrett Wittels. However, by season’s end the sophomore infielder who hit just .246 as a freshman was the toast of college baseball. Wittels batted .413 by hitting safely in all 56 games he started in 2010 (he didn’t play in five games) while helping his team to a Sun Belt Conference title and an NCAA Regional berth. He enters 2010 on the heels of Robin Ventura’s 1987 Division I record 58-game hitting streak. Things took a turn for the surreal earlier this month though when Wittels and a group of friends were charged with raping two 17-year-old girls on Dec. 20 in the Bahamas. Wittels is free on bond as the 2011 season approaches. ESPN is scheduled to televise FIU’s season-opening series against Southeastern Louisiana, but for now the question is will Wittels be in the line-up or behind bars?

5.  South Carolina Wins The CWS

Ray Tanner

Ray Tanner’s Gamecocks became regulars at Omaha over the last decade, but they never won it all. In the 61st and final CWS at Rosenblatt, South Carolina changed that in a big way. South Carolina lost its first game, but stormed back to win six straight to claim the school’s first major championship in any sport. They also beat their biggest rival, Clemson, twice in the process. No player more embodied the Gamecocks’ team effort than soph. Michael Roth, who made his first two starts of the season on the Omaha dirt. Roth held opponents to a .167 average in 16 1/3 total innings at the CWS. It was only fitting that South Carolina won in dramatic fashion on Whit Merrifield’s walk-off single in the bottom of the 11th inning against UCLA.

6. Matt Curry’s CWS Grand Slam

Matt Curry

With two out, a full count and his team down by two runs to Florida State, TCU’s Matt Curry jacked a grand slam to centerfield to stave-off elimination. The big hit made TCU an instant CWS legend in the the most electric moment of the 61st and final series at Rosenblatt. Not bad for a senior who played his first two seasons of college ball at Howard Junior College. Of that moment, TCU head coach Jim Schlossnagle would later tell us “That’s a game and that’s a moment I think that if they were to do a history of the College World Series…it’s gonna be a very small part, but I think it would be a part.” Said Curry afterward “When I hit it, I knew it was gone, because I’ve hit home runs and I usually know when I get them. I look and I’m all fired up” CLICK HERE for more postgame reaction from Curry, Schlossnagle and FSU head coach Mike Martin.

7. TCU Beats Texas In Super Regionals

Before Curry had his shot at Omaha immortality, TCU had to beat Texas in Super Regional play. Many thought the Horned Frogs were deserving of a national seed and the chance to host a Super Regional that would come with that distinction, but that didn’t happen. Instead, for a second straight year TCU was matched with the perennial power in Austin with a trip to Omaha on the line.  TCU won games one and three by giving-up just a run in each game against the #2 national seed Longhorns to send the Horned Frogs to the program’s first CWS. CLICK HERE for more from TCU’s historic win.

8. New Mexico And Oregon Make It To NCAA Regionals

Ray Birmingham

For the game of college baseball to grow it has to prosper in places where it has not traditionally prospered. New Mexico made it to an NCAA Regional for the first time in 48 years in 2010, while Oregon made it in just its second season since resurrecting the program after a nearly 30 year extinction. The Lobos and Ducks reached the postseason with the distinctive styles of their head coaches. For UNM it was Ray Birmingham’s “Kick down the door” offensive approach, while UO did it with George Horton’s pitching laden formula. It should come as no surprise that both programs prospered under their skippers. Birmingham led New Mexico Junior College to a 2005 national championship, while Horton more famously won the 2003 CWS at Cal State Fullerton.

9. Kyle Parker’s Record-Setting Double Duty

Kyle Parker

Parker took being a two-sport college athlete to another level during the 2009-2010 season. The Clemson quarterback/outfielder became the first Division One athlete to ever throw 20 touchdown passes and hit 20 home runs in the same academic year. In fact, he was the first to even go 15/15. Parker helped the football team to a Music City Bowl win in the fall and then helped Jack Leggett’s baseball team reach the College World Series in the spring. Parker was taken by the Colorado Rockies with the 26th overall pick in the June, 2010 draft. He has signed a professional contract and will report to spring training in 2011. CLICK HERE for an exclusive podcast interview with Parker.

10. UCLA And Arizona State Get Off To Fast Starts

The Bruins and Sun Devils both ended their seasons in Omaha, and they both got their seasons off to blazing hot starts. UCLA road its pitching out of the gates to a 22-0 record that didn’t end until an April 2 loss to Stanford. Arizona State used its balance of pitching and offense to start 24-0 under new head coach Tim Esmay. Their first setback came a day after UCLA’s first defeat when they dropped a 12-inning game at Oregon. John Savage’s Bruins ended their season with a 51-17 mark and a second place finish at the CWS, while ASU finished with a 52-10 mark despite going 0-2 in Omaha.

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By Collegebaseball360.com Editor Sean Stires

South Carolina players received their CWS rings Saturday (courtesy South Carolina athletics).

Gamecocks received their 2010 national championship rings over the weekend. The presentation came at halftime of the South Carolina-Arkansas football game Saturday night (11/6) at Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia, SC. Tanner, his assistants and team received their CWS rings at the 50-yard line. Fireworks and balloons punctuated the ceremony.

Honoring “The Voice”…

Before that same South Carolina-Arkansas football game the Gamecocks paid tribute to longtime South Carolina play-by-play announcer Bob Fulton. The 89-year-old died last Wednesday at his Lexington home. Fulton retired in 1995 after 43 years calling South Carolina football, basketball and baseball. He was inducted into the school’s Athletic Hall of Fame in 1994.

Wonderdogs Or Torture?

Fresno State radio play-by-play man Paul Loeffler is also a lifelong San Francisco Giants fan. Just a few years ago it might have seemed that fans like Loeffler would go a lifetime without seeing a championship for either team, but all that has changed. Loeffler called FSU’s 2008 “Wonderdog” run to the CWS Championship, and now he has seen his beloved Giants win a World Series title. He has also written a good piece comparing the improbable title runs of both teams. Here’s one of his observations:  “The most powerful parallel is that the team is so much more potent than the sum of its parts. Turn these Giants into your fantasy league entry, and you’ll fall to dead last. It’s not about the eye-popping stats, it’s about the power of we over me.”  The entire piece is posted on Fresno State’s web site. CLICK HERE to read the whole thing.

The Beard Not Feared…

No doubt, San Francisco Giants closer Brian Wilson (formerly of LSU) and his beard garnered about as much attention as anyone (or anything) during the Giants’ World Series run. “Fear The Beard” signs were everywhere, as were San Francisco fans with faux beards in the stands. Wilson now has a group of college players who are using him (and his beard) for motivation. The University of Northern Colorado pitching staff has plastered Wilson’s mug on the back of their staff t-shirts. They read “Baseball NC P-Staff” on the front and “Mental Assassins” along with a screen print of Wilson’s face on the back of the shirts (pictured left, click-on photo to enlarge). There might be an influx of facial hair coming soon in Greeley, CO.

Molitor Out Front…

MLB Hall of Famer, Paul Molitor, has been enlisted to help the University of Minnesota raise funds to build a new baseball stadium. Prior to his 21-year Big League career, Molitor starred for three years as a Golden Gopher in the 1970s. He is now the chairman of  The Siebert Field Legacy Campaign, which hopes to raise $7.5 million to build a new stadium on the site of the current Siebert Field. The stadium, built in 1971, has split Minnesota home games with the Metrodome over the years, but it was not used in 2010 and all of the Gophers’ 2011 home games are slated for the

Golden Gopher great Paul Molitor is now helping raise funds for a new stadium (courtesy Minnesota Athletics).

Metrodome as well. The university says the new facility would be a “multi-use venue that will accommodate the needs of Gopher baseball, provide benefits to sports using adjacent facilities, enhance the experience of fans and visitors and serve as an important resource for amateur baseball in Minnesota.”

A New Stony Stadium…

Stony Brook is in the process of renovating it’s Joe Nathan Stadium. The first phase of the project is expected to be completed by March 2011. It includes a new FieldTurf surface, new dugouts, new bullpen, and new fences. Fundraising is currently underway for phase two of the project, which would include a new scoreboard, lights, stadium seating, and a press box. Joe Nathan Field is named for former Seawolves and current Minnesota Twins pitcher Joe Nathan. He contributed the lead gift for the facility. Stony Brook has won three America East Tournament championships since its elevation to Division One status in 2002.

Say What?

Just for some perspective, a non-BCS Conference school, Stony Brook, is building a new stadium in the northeastern part of the country in the village of Stony Brook, NY. Another cold weather school, Minnesota, is spending millions to build a new stadium as well. Meanwhile, Cal-a school that receives BCS revenue and has the benefit of great weather…not to mention the fact that it had more alums on MLB rosters than any other school at the start of last season, is eliminating its baseball program. Does that make sense? Savecalbaseball.com.

Red Sox For Rams…

Boston Red Sox season tickets are hard to come by, but the Rhode Island baseball team has a pair. URI is raffling off a pair of Red Sox season tickets for the 2011 season. The tickets (Section 24, Seats 17 and 18) have a face value of more than $8,000. Raffle tickets for a chance to win the season tix can be purchased for $100, with no limit on the number of raffle tickets an individual can buy. Proceeds will help Rhody baseball offset the costs of travel, equipment and facility upgrades. CLICK HERE for more information.

Spanning the country once again for college baseball nuggets during the off-season…

• Some sad news to start the Notebook this week. San Diego State head coach and MLB Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn has been diagnosed with cancer of the salivary gland. Gwynn’s cancer, which is located beneath his
  

  Tony Gwynn

  tongue, is said to have been diagnosed early. He will begin radiation and chemotherapy treatment.

• A much needed shot in the arm for college baseball  out of Lincoln, NE. The University of Nebraska announced it plans to spend $4.75 million to build an indoor baseball/softball practice facility that would be located at Haymarket Park, where the Cornhuskers play their home baseball games inside Hawks Field. The proposed 22,000 square foot facility would include indoor batting cages and pitchers mounds. It will also give Nebraska a big leg-up when it heads to the Big Ten. The news also comes just more than a week after Cal-Berkley announced it will eliminate baseball, which has been in existence since 1892, after the upcoming 2011 season. Cal is currently in the process of an estimated $321 million renovation of its football stadium. Nebraska also plans to renovated its football stadium. That proposed project will cost about $55.5 million. Both Nebraska projects are still subject to final approval by its Board of Regents.
  

  Future MLB great Steve Garvey played football & baseball at Michigan St. (courtesy MSU athletics).

• Former MLB great Steve Garvey was recently inducted into the Michigan State Athletics Hall of Fame. Garvey was a football and baseball player at MSU from 1966-1968. In those days freshmen were not eligible to play, so Garvey served as head coach Duffy Daugherty’s scout team quarterback the week before the epic 10-10 tie with #1 Notre Dame. Garvey recorded 30 tackles on the gridiron the next fall as a defensive back and then earned All-American honors on the diamond in the spring of 1968 with a .376 average, nine home runs and 38 RBIs. He belted a grand slam in his first career at-bat at MSU. Garvey left Michigan State after the LA Dodgers took him with the 13th overall pick in the 1968 draft. He went on to play in five World Series and earned 1974 NL MVP honors.

• Speaking of two sport athletes, we released our second Two-Sport Report of the fall last week. Among the notable recent performances noted there is Jacksonville State quarterback Coty Blanchard. The freshman earned All-Ohio Valley Conference honors last week for his efforts in the Gamecock’s win over Murray State. Jacksonville St. is ranked 4th in the most recent FCS national rankings. Blanchard was drafted by the Baltimore Orioles out of high school this June and plans to play shortstop at JSU next spring. The Two-Sport Report also includes updates on the likes of Clemson’s Kyle Parker, NC State’s Russell Wilson, Taiwan Easterling of Florida State, and many others.

• South Carolina head coach Ray Tanner has received a contract extension. Tanner earned the extension after leading the Gamecocks to the program’s first national championship earlier this year. The new deal runs through 2015 and will pay him $510, 000 annually.

• We also recently released a list of former college baseball players who are on the rosters of MLB Playoff teams. San Franciso Giants rookie Buster Posey is among those on the list. Each of the eight playoff teams has at least 16 former college guys on their active roster. Would you believe Kent State is tied with two other schools for the most players on the list? Click Here to see the full rundown.

• Florida and Ole Miss each released their schedules last week. The Rebels don’t have any eye-popping non-conference games, but the Gators host three games with Miami and also play four games against Florida State. The series is split with single games in Gainesville, Talahassee, Tampa, and Jacksonville. Florida and Ole Miss will also each host defending national champion South Carolina in SEC action.
  

  Cody Regis, Trevor Brown and Aaron Weimer were among UCLA players honored at Dodger Stadium (UCLA photo).

• The UCLA baseball team was recently honored at Dodger Stadium for its runner-up finish at the College World Series. The Bruins finished the 2010 season with the best record in school history at 51-17 before falling to South Carolina in the best-of-three CWS Championship Series. The Dodgers also announced the 2011 Dodgertown Classic, which will take place March 11-13 at Dodger Stadium. UCLA, USC, Georgia, and St. Mary’s (CA) will all participate.

• LSU has long been one of the most popular college baseball teams in the country, and it’s showing as well in the world of social media. According to sportsfangraph.com, LSU baseball ranks 29th in baseball social media followers. The Tiger’s combined Facebook and Twitter numbers total roughly 109,00o. The #29 ranking is tops among college baseball programs and comes in ahead of three MLB teams: the Pittsburgh Pirates, Arizona Diamondbacks and Washington Nationals. Sports Fan Graph tracks more than 84-million fans who follow teams on Facebook and more than 17-million who track teams on Twitter. The New York Yankees are the most followed baseball team with more than 4.5 million social media fans.

• Texas scrimmaged Texas State Sunday, and there were both old and new faces on the diamond for Augie Garrido’s Longhorns. Texas lost 9-0 in the 12-inning fall exhibition, but next season’s potential starting rotation pitched well. junior Taylor Jungmann, senior Cole Green and sophomore Hoby Miner combined to surrender just one hit and one walk over the first 6.0 innings. Jungmann fired two perfect innings, while Green gave-up the hit. Sophomore Keifer Nuncio and freshman Nathan Thornhill combined to give-up seven runs in the 10th and 11th innings. It is the fall, and the Longhorns had trouble trying to turn double plays in both of those innings that would have limited the Bobcat damage.

Four trips to the College World Series netted Ray Tanner college baseball’s ultimate prize – a national championship. Now that title has given the South Carolina head coach another reward – a big contract extension.

Ray Tanner

The University of South Carolina’s Board of Regents on Friday approved a five-year contract extension for Tanner that will run through the 2015 season and pay him $510,000 a year.

“I am very fortunate to have a great coaching staff, outstanding student-athletes and one of the best facilities in all of college baseball with the most loyal fans,” Tanner said in an athletic department release. “The University of South Carolina is very special to my family and I. We look forward to future success in years to come.”

The upcoming 2011 season will be Tanner’s 15th at the helm in Columbia and his 24th overall as a head coach.

The Gamecocks have the longest current active streak of NCAA Regional appearances among SEC schools with 11. They advanced to Super Regionals eight times in that span, with trips to the College World Series in 2002, 2003, 2004, and 2010.

Tanner’s 11-year record of 522-217 is the fourth highest in Division One in that span. The Gamecocks have won at least 40 games in each of those seasons. Tanner’s 14-year record at South Carolina is 634-282 (.692), which is the second highest in SEC history.

Leaves Post As ODU Head Coach…

Jerry Meyers

“It is great to welcome back Coach Meyers to the Gamecock baseball program,” said South Carolina head coach Ray Tanner. “Coach Meyers was with me at the beginning of my tenure at South Carolina, through the first eight years that included three College World Series appearances. I’m excited to have him returning to lead our pitching staff. His wife, Chris, and daughters, Audrey and Riley, are very much a part of our family and we are ecstatic to have them back.”

Meyers helped turn around the Old Dominion baseball program in his previous six seasons (2005-10) leading the Monarchs to the top of the Colonial Athletic Association including a co-regular season championship in 2007 and the top seed at the CAA Tournament. That 2007 squad featured the top pitching staff in the CAA with a 3.97 ERA and 471 strikeouts. In his second year at ODU in 2006, the school enjoyed one of the nation’s biggest improvements with the squad compiling a 39-17 overall record and finishing second in the CAA. That season ODU climbed back into the national top 15 for the first time since the mid 1980s. Meyers earned CAA Coach of the Year honors with four of his players selected in the MLB draft and the team breaking or tying eight school and individual records. He compiled a 167-158 record during his tenure with the Monarchs.

Meyers also served one summer on the staff of the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team that won a gold medal in the 2008 FISU World Championships in Europe and finished the summer with a 24-0 record and an impressive 0.88 earned run average. Among the pitchers he worked with that summer included current MLB pitchers Stephen Strasburg (Washington Nationals) and Mike Leake (Cincinnati Reds). Along with an earned run average under one, his staff also struck out 268 batters to just 72 walks in 224 innings pitched with opponents batting just .154 as well.

“I’m thrilled to be back in the Gamecock family,” said Jerry Meyers. “When the opportunity presented itself to rejoin this program, I couldn’t say no. My family and I have deep roots in Columbia and it’s wonderful to be part of this great community once again. I’m grateful for the opportunity to work with Coach Tanner. He is the best baseball coach in the country, leading the best baseball program in the country, with the best fans. I’m looking forward to working alongside him, Coach Holbrook and Coach Esposito to compete for many more championships. I’m ready to roll up my sleeves and go to work.”

“I had a great experience in my time as head coach at Old Dominion,” added Meyers. “I want to express my heartfelt gratitude to the people at Old Dominion – the staff, the players, the fans, the administration. It was an invaluable experience and I am very much indebted to them. It allowed me to be me even more prepared as I step back onto the campus here at South Carolina.”

Meyers joined Ray Tanner in Columbia in the summer of 1996 after Tanner was announced as the school’s new head coach. In eight seasons with the Gamecocks, Meyers built one of the top pitching staffs in the country and coached 10 All-American pitchers along the way. The Gamecocks reached the NCAA Tournament in six of eight seasons while Meyers was here along with a national runner-up finish (2002) three College World Series appearances (2002, 2003, 2004), two Southeastern Conference championships (2000, 2002), four SEC Eastern Division titles (1999, 2000, 2002, 2003) and one SEC Tournament title (2004).

Among the stars that learned under the helm of Meyers was Kip Bouknight (1998-01), who garnered National Player of the Year honors in 2000 along with the Golden Spikes Award, presented by USA Baseball to the top amateur player in the country. Bouknight put together one of the greatest single-season years in college history in 2000 posting a 17-1 record to help lead the Gamecocks to a 56-10 record and an SEC Championship. His 17 single-season wins is a school record and is tied for the most wins in a season by an SEC pitcher. Bouknight joined with Peter Bauer and Scott Barber to form the “Killer B’s,” a dominant trio that saw all three pitchers earn All-America recognition. The 2000 pitching staff posted a 3.51 team ERA.

In 2001, the Gamecocks again had one of the top pitching staffs in the country with the group finishing with a 3.41 team ERA. The squad featured All-America closer Lee Gronkiewicz, as well as a pair of 10-game winners in Bouknight and left-hander Gary Bell. That year, Bouknight rewrote the record book at South Carolina as the winningest pitcher in school history, compiling a career record of 45-12 in a four-year span, also setting a school records for strikeouts (457) and decisions (57).

When the Gamecocks returned to Omaha in 2002 to play for a national title, the pitchers were right at the forefront – chief among them was right-hander Blake Taylor, who set a school record and led the nation in saves with 21 on the year on his way to All-America honors. The 2003 staff was another star-studded group that reached the College World Series and led the SEC with a 3.57 ERA. The staff featured David Marchbanks, who tallied a 15-3 record and was named Southeastern Conference Pitcher of the Year in addition to All-America honors. Marchbanks was one of three USC pitchers drafted and signed by professional baseball in 2003. Steven Bondurant signed with Oakland and Chris Hernandez with Pittsburgh. In Meyers final season at Carolina in 2004, the Gamecocks made a third straight trip to Omaha with the pitchers putting together a 3.40 team ERA, the school’s best earned run average in the last 28 seasons. Left-hander Matt Campbell was a first round MLB draft selection by the Royals with right-hander Billy Buckner selected in the second round by the Royals and right-hander Chad Blackwell also a sixth round choice by Kansas City. Blackwell became the Gamecocks’ fourth reliever in five seasons to pick up All-America honors as he led the nation in saves with 20 with right-hander Aaron Rawl also picking up All-America accolades with a 13-4 overall record.

Meyers came to Carolina after one year at Old Dominion as assistant coach and recruiting coordinator. Prior to his first stint at ODU, Meyers spent four years as the pitching coach and recruiting coordinator at the University of North Carolina-Wilmington where he worked with pitchers and catchers. The 1995 Seahawk staff ranked 11th nationally in earned run average at 3.37 with two pitchers ranked among the nation’s top 15 in strikeouts per nine innings.

Meyers also coached at Gulf Coast Community College in Panama City, Fla., 1989-91 (ranked 4th nationally in 1989) where several pitchers went on to sign professionally or with Division I schools including Tim Davis (Seattle Mariners) and former Gamecock pitcher Scott Pace. Meyers managed the 1994 Winchester, Va., team in the Shenandoah Valley league to a second place finish. He is also a popular clinician and has worked camps at a number of institutions.

He began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at the University of South Alabama from 1988-89. Born Jerald Ray Meyers March 8, 1965 in Harvey, Ill., Meyers grew up in Chesterton, Ind., where he attended Chesterton High School, earning four letters in baseball and basketball. He was a second team all-state selection in basketball.

Meyers was a four-year starting pitcher at Iowa State University where he was named to the All-Big Eight Conference team as a senior. He was the team captain as a junior and senior and was named the team’s Most Valuable pitcher his senior year.

Meyers received a bachelor of business administration degree in management from Iowa State and the master of education in physical education from South Alabama in 1989 with an emphasis in exercise and movement technology. Meyers and his wife, Chris, have two daughters, Jaye Riley born July 31, 1999, and Audrey Reese, born December 31, 2001.

QUOTES FROM INTRODUCTORY PRESS CONFERENCE

Head Coach Ray Tanner
A few weeks ago, when it was apparent that we were going to need a new pitching coach, I immediately picked up the phone and called my friend and colleague, Jerry Meyers, to gauge his interest. He didn’t say `yes’ right away, so I continued to talk really fast, and I told him it was time to come home. His two children were born in Columbia, and he made three trips to the College World Series, among other things. And so I hung up before he could say too much and told him I would be in touch – quite often. I proceeded to go through the process and visited with some other people, but we continued to have dialogue. Our chief recruiter, coach Chad Holbrook, got involved, he put his two cents in and stayed in touch as well. In the end, it all worked out that we got Coach Meyers to come back and be a part of this program once again. Eight years he was here with us, we did a lot of tremendous things. He had a lot of success at Old Dominion, he was on the USA coaching staff, he was Coach of the Year in the (Colonial Athletic Association). Certainly, resume-wise, he’s got to be one of the top pitching coaches in the country. I’m ecstatic, I’m delighted, to now have him back in the Carolina family. He will now be the assistant head coach, he’ll have his hand in on the pitching staff, and we’re just excited to have him back. We’re delighted to have him back in our family, and we look forward to great things in the future.
Assistant Head Coach Jerry Meyers
First of all, it’s a tremendous honor to have Coach Tanner make that kind of phone call and to have me in mind. I think a lot of it goes back to the eight best years, not only in my coaching career, but in our lives with our two daughters being born here, and my wife and I being so well-received the first time we were here. When Coach Tanner calls, you’re going to listen long and hard to what he has to say. I’ve always had an affection for the program, the area and the media, and we’re excited to get back and have this opportunity. The way we were treated here the first time is the main thing. The people we were surrounded by, all the help that we got in trying to make that move the first time… Lot of tremendous memories. I guess the only thing I regret about taking the job this time is that I didn’t take it about six months ago and get to experience everything that’s happened. But our goal is going to be to do everything we can to hit the ground running and try to do my part to do the best I can to get us back to that situation again. A lot of things went into the decision, and it all comes down to what Coach Tanner’s done along the way for me and my family… It’s great to be back.

On how long it took to make the decision to return to Columbia…
To say I knew 100 percent that I would come back … I knew I wanted to come back at some point in time. But it’s all about timing and knowing that family-wise, career-wise, that it’s the best move to make. I’m one to make sure that I prioritize decision-making that way. Family is going to be toward the top, if not at the very top, of every decision that I make. The tradition here, and all that we have to offer here as a program, obviously was a good move in all ways that you can look at it.

On giving up a head coaching job to return as an assistant coach…
That’s a great question. Coach Tanner called, that’s why. The thing you have to keep in perspective, there’s a lot of opportunities. Being a head coach is being a head coach. We had a lot of positives going at Old Dominion, and some of those resources were going to continue to improve there with new leadership within the athletic department. It was as exciting a time to be at Old Dominion as any, and that’s what made it a little tougher. But it’s not all about being a head coach. I’d like to be here for quite some time. I’m not making this step to make another quick step out to another “better” position. I’ve not made a wrong move yet professionally, and this is not anything but the best move right now for us and, hopefully, for the program.

On working with the Gamecocks’ pitching staff…
I’m extremely excited about that. You make yourself a very good coach if you have very good players around you, and you don’t mess them up. We’re hopefully going to have an opportunity, just like we’ve had the last several years… Who’s not going to be interested that we’re going out there to recruit? A lot of things have to fall into place; we’re not going to get every player, every pitcher that we’re trying to recruit, but I think we’d have a chance at just about all of them.

On having big shoes to fill as Mark Calvi’s successor…
Absolutely. The ultimate level of success was the last game this program played. That being said, that’s why we do this. We love to play the game, we love to coach the game, we love to be in those settings. And that’s part of the reason that I’m back. The program’s been in those kinds of settings, those kinds of games… And I want to be back in that situation with this program, and I want to do everything I can to help it achieve that.

(South Carolina Release)

South Carolina Gamecocks head coach Ray Tanner discusses winning the last College World Series at Rosnblatt Stadium. He’s joined by CWS MOP Jackie Bradley Jr., Whit Merrifield and Michael Roth.

Gamecocks Down UCLA For First National Title …

2010 CWS MOP Jackie Bradley, Jr.

South Carolina (54-16) won the best two-of-three CWS Finals 2-0, with a 7-1 game-1 victory on Monday.  Centerfielder Jackie Bradley, Jr. was named the CWS Most Outstanding Player.

“Thank you very much for your enthusiasm. Thank you for your support,” South Carolina head coach Ray Tanner told the crowd at Rosenblatt after his team was presented its championship trophy. “And to UCLA, the greatest club we played all year and a class act.”

The win makes South Carolina only the third school from the SEC (along with LSU and Georgia) to win the College World Series. The Gamecocks also are the first team east of the Mississippi to win the title since Miami in 2001.

More notes and thoughts from CB360 Editor Sean Stires …

• UCLA (51-17) was trying to become the first school ever to win both the NCAA baseball and softball World Series in the same year. The 51 wins are the most in the history of UCLA baseball.

• South Carolina entered tonight’s game with the best team batting average (.294) and ERA (2.41) during the CWS. UCLA was third with its .282 BA and 3.89 ERA.

• The Bruins plated five runs in the 1st inning of Saturday’s 10-3 win over TCU to advance to the CWS Finals, but they scored single runs in two of the 20 innings in their two Finals losses.

• After making his first start of the season in last Friday’s elimination game vs. Clemson, South Carolina’s Michael Roth made his second start tonight. The lefty had tossed a 3-hitter with four strikeouts in Friday’s 5-1 win. Roth left tonight’s game trailing 1-0 after five innings. In his two CWS starts, the young southpaw totaled 14 IP, 9 hits, 2 ER, 7 K and 3 BB.

• Clemson lefthanded batters were only 1-for-20 in the Friday game, with the only hit coming in the 9th inning. UCLA’s Beau Amaral (also a LH hitter) matched that tonight with a 1st-inning infield single. Amaral then legged-out a double in his next at-bat, with one out in the 3rd inning.  UCLA lefties were 2-for-7 vs. Roth.
  

  Gerrit Cole (12) talks to Orel Hershiser before Tuesday's game.

• Before the game tonight, former L.A Dodger and current ESPN analyst Orel Hershiser was on the field with Monday’s starter, Gerrit Cole of UCLA.  Hershiser was tutoring Cole on gripping pitches.

• UCLA starter Rob Rasmussen had to stand behind the mound for a good 30 seconds prior to the start of the bottom of the 6th inning, because Hershiser was finishing some kind of demonstration on ESPN. (We could not hear what they were saying on TV in the press box, but we had monitors & could see it). Do we really need the fundamentals of the game explained to us just because it’s a college game and not MLB? The pace of CWS games is already an issue.If they have to do gimmick demonstrations, can’t they do it in a picture-in-picture small screen so the game can keep moving? It’s not like anyone’s going to miss 30 seconds of play-by-play.

• Rasmussen tossed six shutout innings in his second CWS start. The junior threw 109 pitches and finished with 5 Ks.

• I was dumbfounded when a wave broke out in the bottom of the 8th inning tonight. The score was 1-0 UCLA and South Carolina had the tying run at first base. Shouldn’t that be enough to hold your attention?

• When South Carolina reliever Matt Price walked Steve Rodriguez to load the bases with two outs in the top of the 9th, it was the Gamecock bullpen’s first free pass allowed in 18 IP at the CWS. After a mound meeting, Price struck out Niko Gallego on three pitches to escape any harm.

• With the score tied 1-1 and South Carolina batting in the bottom of the 9th inning, there were cameras flashing on every pitch.  The flashes continued through the 11th inning with the anticipation that each pitch to a Gamecock batter could be the last of the season and the last at Rosenblatt Stadium.

• After committing the error in the bottom of the 8th that allowed the tying run to score for the Gamecocks, UCLA first baseman Dean Espy punched a wooden dugout bench. He came out of the game defensively in the 9th. TV cameras showed him with an ice pack on his knuckles in the 10th inning. Adrian Williams entered and went to second base, Cody Regis moved from second to third and Trevor Brown went from third to first base.

• As the game moved to the 10th inning, a young blond girl (when I say young I’m guessing teenage to early 20s) came out of the leftfield stands and ran to center field. At least a dozen security guards scampered to the outfield grass to “apprehend” her. “Bye Blatt” was painted on her stomach.

• Not to be outdone, a guy jumped out of the leftfield bleachers in the bottom of the 10th. It took seven security guards to wrestle and subdue the skinny guy who was wearing only his underwear.

• Yesterday we had a sighting of South Carolina football coach Steve Spurrier, and today UCLA’s Rick Neuheisel was here. Neuheisel was chatting it up with ESPN’s Erin Andrews in the top of the 4th inning, while Spurrier was sitting in his press box booth.

• Attendance for Tuesday’s game was 24,390 – the largest crowd at this year’s CWS. The 16-game total was 330,922 for an average of 20,683. Last year’s Series drew a total of 336,076.

• A bugle player gave us a rendition of “Take Me Out To The Ballgame” to close the last college game ever played at Rosenblatt Stadium, after a video tribute and fireworks display.

• Not everyone who coached at Rosenblatt Stadium is in awe of tradition.  Former LSU head coach Skip Bertman told the Omaha World-Herald this week: “I’m not going to miss anything [about Rosenblatt]. I think the NCAA and Omaha have taken Rosenblatt as far as it can go.  “There are so many great college baseball facilities, it doesn’t make sense to come to Omaha and have a less-than-perfect locker room. There’s not enough room in the concourse. The restrooms are small. We saw it a couple years ago when they redid Yankee Stadium, and I haven’t heard anyone say ‘Man I miss that old place’ … They’ve got a wider seat, better bathrooms and concession stands, and they’re going to love it here.”
  

  Skip Bertman

• A lot of what Bertman says makes sense, and he should know since he’s been in and out of Rosenblatt as much as anyone in the past 20 years. I’ve never favored the move downtown, but I do think it is going to give that area a sorely needed boost. However, when they built the new Yankee Stadium they did everything they could to replicate the look and feel of the House That Ruth Built. That’s probably my biggest problem with the new stadium. With the exception of the partial red brick facade, nothing about it says tradition. Would it have been so hard to build a place that has even a hint of either Rosenblatt Stadium or any kind of retro feel that so many other new ballparks around the country have embraced?

• The College World Series has been on center stage for more than a week now, but here’s a cool college baseball note from outside of Omaha.  Houston Mayor Annise Parker declared today “Anthony Rendon Day” in honor of the Rice star.

• Which is worse: (a) when your hotel room key doesn’t work; (b) when you see that housekeeping is in a room near yours, so you leave for several hours only to return to an uncleaned room; or (3) when you leave again and come back to find the housekeeper is cleaning your room? All three happened to me today … and I got a parking ticket. Is somebody trying to tell me something?

Three consecutive trips to the College World Series can create unrealistic expectations for any program, let alone one that plays inside the fish bowl called the Southeastern Conference (SEC). (front-page photo of Niko Gallego courtesy of UCLA)