By LUKE JOHNSON
Tiger Rag Assistant Editor

Freshman shortstop Alex Bregman had a forgetful College World Series debut against UCLA on Sunday, and his teammates and coaches made sure he forgot it afterward.

His two-out error in the top of the eighth inning allowed the Bruins to score the go-ahead run and send LSU to the loser’s bracket. When he got back to the hotel, senior teammate and roommate Mason Katz talked with Bregman about the play and got the response he was expecting.

“Right after the game … we went to the hotel and the first thing he said to me was, ‘Man, I hope I get that same ground ball on Tuesday,’” Katz said. “That’s the kind of player he is. He’s not fazed by a situation like that.”

Turns out Katz wasn’t the only one to have a chat with Bregman about the play afterward. LSU coach Paul Mainieri also pulled Bregman aside to express his confidence in his All-American shortstop.

“I had a nice long talk with him after we got back to the hotel last night, and I reiterated to him why I picked him to be our shortstop,” Mainieri said. “I said, ‘Alex, if it were anybody but you who made an error in the 8^th inning of the first game of the College World Series that allowed the winning run to score, I would have a tough time sleeping tonight. But I believe in you. I believe you’re as great a player as we can possibly have, one of the best players I’ve ever coached.’”

“I accept it. I accept whatever happens with that kid. You can’t be frontrunners with the kids you believe in. And I think it meant a lot to him when I told him that.”

The talks appear to have worked, though Bregman said he has “been thinking about it a little bit.” He fielded plenty of questions about the play, but gave clipped answers, obviously wanting to put it behind him.

“I’ve got to make that play,” Bregman said. “I’m fine. We’re ready to go.”

Mainieri isn’t concerned about how the error will affect Bregman. He was quick to point out that until the UCLA game, Bregman’s worst game of the year came against in Regional play against Sam Houston State, when he committed two costly errors.

Bregman responded with a three hits and two RBI the next day against Louisiana-Lafayette.

He also got a vote of confidence from Katz, who said he was glad it didn’t happen in an elimination game. But Katz did have one more thing to say to his freshman roommate.

“Just don’t do it again,” Katz said.

NOT SHORT ON REST

At roughly 11 a.m. Tuesday, for the first time in 27 days, Mainieri told sophomore left-hander Cody Glenn he’d be the Tigers’ starting pitcher the next day.

Glenn’s last outing was a May 22 start against Alabama in LSU’s Southeastern Conference Tournament opener.

“I’m a little concerned,” Mainieri said. “But the one thing that does give me some optimism is that he did throw on Monday (June 10), and he threw about 80 pitches in a simulated game. I thought he threw really well.”

“He looked like he did at the end of the season pitching against Alabama. Hopefully he’ll get into a groove early. He’s got a tough challenge.”

It just so happens that Glenn facing a talented but heavily left-handed North Carolina lineup. He’ll have to shut down the No. 1 national seed in a win, or go home game.

There is a little cause for concern that the extended break, caused by Glenn being suspended for LSU’s Regional weekend, could cause a dip in Glenn’s performance, which was outstanding down the stretch.

He turned in five straight quality starts, going a minimum of 6 2/3 innings in those games. His ERA in that stretch was a miniscule 1.01.

But if there is a cause for concern, there are no worries from the big southpaw from Texas.

“I’m going to keep the mindset that (the long break) going to keep me fresh,” Glenn said. “I’m not going to view it as me being rusty because I’ve gotten a lot of work in throwing to live hitters.”

“I felt good the way I performed in that, and that’s going to give me the confidence I need to face UNC.”

REVISITING STRATEGY

The Tigers might’ve had their best chance to put something together against the Bruins in the 9^th inning against super closer David Berg when Katz became LSU’s first leadoff runner of the game.

Senior left fielder Raph Rhymes was set to lay down a bunt, something Mainieri hasn’t done with him all season. But after the count went to 2-0, Mainieri changed his mind and had Rhymes swing away on a hit and run. Rhymes grounded into a double play, his 14^th this season, to kill the rally.

Mainieri said after the game he thought it was the right decision and stuck with that mantra on Monday.

“I’ve thought about it 1,000 times and I’ve talked to probably 20 of my best friends in coaching, and I think it was exactly the right thing to do,” Mainieri said. “It didn’t work out, and we all know how we define a good decision - it’s the ones that work.”

Mainieri followed it up by saying he wasn’t sure a sacrifice bunt would’ve worked, either.

“Rhymes doesn’t have a single sacrifice bunt all year,” Mainieri said. “He led the country in hitting last year, he’s been one of our big RBI guys. I just felt in that situation we needed to get the runner in scoring position.”

“I felt the best chance we had to score off Berg was to try to get a runner to third with less than two outs. Had we sacrificed him to second base, now you’re going to your six and seven hole hitters asking for an RBI single against a guy who’s got an ERA under one. I didn’t really like the odds of that.”

OHFER

If LSU plans on staying alive in the College World Series, it’s going to need more production from its key hitters.

Bregman, Rhymes and leadoff man Sean McMullen combined to go 0-for-12 at the plate against the Bruins on Sunday.

“When you don’t get anything out of one, three and five, it’s hard to string anything together,” Mainieri said.

By Tiger Rag News Services

BATON ROUGE, La. – LSU (57-10) seeks to keep its national title hopes alive at 2 p.m. CT Tuesday when the Tigers face North Carolina (57-11) in a College World Series elimination game at TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha, Neb.

The game can be heard on the affiliates of the LSU Sports Radio Network (98.1 FM in Baton Rouge), and live audio and stats of the game may be accessed in the Geaux Zone at www.LSUsports.net. The game will also be broadcast on Sirius XM satellite radio Ch. 91.

Tuesday’s game will be televised by ESPN, and it may also be viewed with the WatchESPN mobile app.

LSU dropped a 2-1 decision to UCLA on Sunday, forcing the Tigers into an elimination matchup with North Carolina. The Tar Heels fell to North Carolina State Sunday, 8-1.

The winner of Tuesday’s game will play either UCLA or North Carolina State at 7 p.m. CT Thursday.

LSU coach Paul Mainieri, who has directed LSU to the CWS three times during his seven-season tenure, said the Tigers will regroup quickly after Sunday’s loss to UCLA.

“We know what the rules are now,” Mainieri said. “We’ve got to win four in a row to get through the bracket. It’s very doable; you’ve just got to go out and play. We’ve got to play better than we did Sunday night. If we can do that ‑‑ we can’t look beyond Tuesday. And we’ve got a really tough team to face on Tuesday.

“So we’ve just got to go back to playing good fundamental baseball and play better on Tuesday and hopefully get a win and get to play again on Thursday.”

Mainieri said sophomore left-hander Cody Glenn (7-2, 2.41 ERA) will start Tuesday’s game on the mound for the Tigers. Glenn will make his first appearance since defeating Alabama on May 22 in the first round of the SEC Tournament.

North Carolina coach Mike Fox will counter with freshman right-hander Trent Thornton (11-1, 1.28 ERA).

LSU is led at the plate by shortstop Alex Bregman, the National Freshman Player of the Year. Bregman is hitting .374 with 18 doubles, seven triples, six homers and 52 RBI. He has 104 base hits, which ranks No. 2 in the nation.

LSU senior first baseman Mason Katz, a first-team all-American, is batting .365 with 14 doubles, two triples, 16 homers and 69 RBI, while senior leftfielder Raph Rhymes is hitting .337 with 15 doubles, one triple, four homers and 46 RBI.

The Tigers are batting .306 as a team with 47 homers and 54 stolen bases in 80 attempts.

The Tar Heels enter Tuesday’s game with a .305 team batting average, and North Carolina has recorded 48 homers with 86 stolen bases in 119 attempts.

The Tar Heels are led at the plate by senior first baseman Cody Stubbs, who is hitting .366 with 26 doubles, four triples, eight homers and 76 RBI. Junior third baseman Colin Moran is batting .340 with 11 doubles, three triples, 13 homers and 88 RBI, and freshman outfielder Skye Bolt is batting .323 with 13 doubles, two triples, six homers and 50 RBI.

The all-time series between LSU and North Carolina is tied 2-2. The teams first met in 1990 in the ABCA Hall of Fame Tournament in Orlando, Fla., where the Tigers posted an 8-5 win over the Tar Heels. LSU also defeated North Carolina, 11-4, in 1997 in the Winn-Dixie Showdown at the Louisiana Superdome.

The teams’ most recent meetings came at the 2008 College World Series in Rosenblatt Stadium, where North Carolina recorded two wins over LSU by scores of 8-4 in a first-round matchup and 7-3 in an elimination game.

#2 North Carolina Tar Heels (57-11) vs. #1 LSU Fighting Tigers (57-10)

DATE/TIME/STADIUM
Tuesday, June 18 – 2 p.m. CT
TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha, Neb. (24,500)

RANKINGS
LSU – No. 1 by Collegiate Baseball; No. 1 by USA Today; No. 1 by NCBWA; No. 2 by Baseball America
No. 4 National Seed in the NCAA Tournament, NCAA Baton Rouge Regional Champion, NCAA Baton Rouge Super Regional Champion
UNC – No. 2 by Collegiate Baseball; No. 3 by USA Today; No. 4 by NCBWA; No. 5 by Baseball America
No. 1 National Seed in the NCAA Tournament, NCAA Chapel Hill Regional Champion, NCAA Chapel Hill Super Regional Champion

TV
ESPN
RADIO
LSU Sports Radio Network affiliates; Baton Rouge affiliate is WDGL 98.1 FM
Sirius XM Channel 91
INTERNET
LSUsports.net – live audio and stats
WatchESPN.com – live video

PITCHING MATCHUP
LSU – So. LHP Cody Glenn (7-2, 2.41 ERA, 82.0 IP, 16 BB, 37 SO)
UNC – Fr. RHP Trent Thornton (11-1, 1.28 ERA, 84.2 IP, 15 BB, 78 SO)

By JIM ENGSTER
Tiger Rag Featured Columnist

Les Miles starts his ninth season at LSU in just over ten weeks. Only two other LSU coaches, Bernie Moore and Charles McClendon, have lasted as long on the sidelines for the Tigers.

Both Moore and Mac directed their teams to the Orange Bowl in their ninth seasons at LSU. LSU completed a 6-3 season in the middle of WWII under Moore in 1943 with a 19-14 triumph in Miami over Texas A&M. Hall of Famer Steve Van Buren raced for 63 yards for the winning score against the Aggies.

McClendon closed year nine in 1970, his only SEC Championship season, with a 9-3 record and a 17-12 loss in the Orange Bowl to national champion Nebraska. The Cornhuskers intercepted sophomore slinger Bert Jones in the closing seconds to preserve victory. The Tigers of 1970 also lost close ones to Texas A&M (20-18) and to Notre Dame (3-0).

With 85 wins in eight seasons, Miles could finish this campaign within 40 victories or less of eclipsing McClendon’s LSU record of 137 wins. Miles has guided LSU to unprecedented success in his eight years at TigerTown. A comparison of the past eight seasons with preceding eight year spans is an eye opener.

LSU has had 13 head football coaches since joining the SEC in 1933. In the70 years of conference affiliation, no Bengal boss has savored more victories in an eight-year period than has Miles. In fact, no one is close.

Years                     Record                  Pct.                        Coaches

2005-12                85-21                     80.2                        Les Miles

1997-04                64-34                     65.3                        Gerry DiNardo/ Hal Hunter/Nick Saban

1989-96                42-48-1                 46.7                        Mike Archer/Curley Hallman/Gerry DiNardo

1981-88                59-30-5                 66.5                        Jerry Stovall/Bill Arnsparger/Mike Archer

1973-80                56-35-2                 61.3                        Charles McClendon/Jerry Stovall

1965-72                66-22-3                 74.2                        Charles McClendon

1957-64                64-19-3                 76.2                        Paul Dietzel/Charles McClendon

1949-56                38-37-8                 50.6                        Gaynell Tinsley/Paul Dietzel

1941-48                43-28-5                 59.9                        Bernie Moore/Gaynell Tinsley

1933-40                57-20-6                 72.3                        Russ Cohen/Bernie Moore

Total                    574-294-33          65.5                        13 LSU Coaches in SEC Era

During the reign of Miles at LSU, only four coaches other than Miles have won BCS championships. They are Mack Brown (2005), Urban Meyer (2006, 2008), Nick Saban (2009, 2011, 2012) and Gene Chizik (2010).

Miles has won more games than any BCS winning coach over the last eight years.

Years                                     Coach                    Record                  Pct.

2005-12                Les Miles             85-21 80.2

2005-12                Mack Brown       80-24                     76.9

2005-10, 2012                     Urban Meyer     77-15                     83.7

2007-12                Nick Saban         68-13                      84.0

2007-12                Gene Chizik        38-38                     50.0

In the best eight-year span for Charles McClendon, here is how Charlie Mac compared to national championship coaches from 1965-72.

Coach                                    School                  Record                  Pct.                        NCAA Titles (1965-72)

Bob Devaney                     Nebraska             72-15-2                 82.0 1970, 1971

Ara Parseghian                  Notre Dame       65-14-4                 80.7                        1966

John McKay                        USC                        67-16-5                 79.0                        1967, 1972

Darrell Royal                       Texas                    67-18-1                 78.5                        1969

Bear Bryant                        Alabama              69-19-3                 77.5                        1965

Woody Hayes                    Ohio State           59-18                     76.6                        1968

Charles McClendon         LSU                        66-22-3                 74.2

Hodson headed for Hall of Fame 25 Years after His Most Famous Pass

LSU quarterbacking great Tom Hodson will be inducted in the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame in Natchitoches in a few days. Hodson was a four-year starter with the Tigers and still holds school records with 9,115 yards passing and 69 touchdowns. The marksman from Mathews directed his teams to a pair of SEC titles and 31 victories, also a record.

No win was as exhilarating or memorable than the “Earthquake” triumph over fourth-ranked Auburn on Oct. 8, 1988. On fourth and ten, Hodson connected with Eddie Fuller in the end zone to give LSU a 7-6 win over the War Eagles of Pat Dye. The 11-yard scoring strike enabled LSU to share the SEC trophy with Auburn, and the legend of that night is vivid a quarter-century later.

LSU officials passionately contend the outburst over the Hodson to Fuller touchdown from the 79,431 fans registered as an earthquake on a seismograph at the Geoscience Complex located 1,000 feet from Tiger Stadium. The reading was discovered the morning after the game by LSU seismologist Don Stevenson.

For years, Stevenson displayed a copy of the earthquake reading on his office window even though the United States Geological Survey has no record of an earthquake in Baton Rouge on Oct. 8, 1988.

At any rate, LSU is preparing a 25-year reunion of the “Earthquake” heroes, Hodson and Fuller, when the Tigers host Auburn on Sept. 21. Perhaps Coach Mike Archer will be on hand, as well. The Voice of the Tigers in 1988 remains the man at the microphone today. So Jim Hawthorne could do a recreation of the call of his career.

The win over Auburn proved to be a terrible jinx on the LSU football program. LSU lost 44 of its next 74 games under Archer, Curley Hallman and Gerry DiNardo and weathered eight losing seasons in the next eleven years.

Auburn Coach Pat Dye never recovered from the events of that night either. In his post-game press conference, Dye snapped at reporter Roger Sockman when asked what happened on the pass from Hodson to Fuller, “Did you see the game?” Dye logged four more undistinguished seasons after the heartbreak of the earthquake.

The game was so long ago that Ronald Reagan was president of the United States and former LSU quarterback Pat Screen was mayor-president of Baton Rouge. Screen, who would have celebrated his 70^th birthday on May 13, died in 1994 at the age of 51.

By LUKE JOHNSON
Tiger Rag Assistant Editor

OMAHA, Neb. — LSU’s route to the College World Series final became considerably more difficult Sunday night.

After a 2-1 loss to UCLA in their first College World Series game, the Tigers are already facing elimination Tuesday against the No. 1 national seed, North Carolina.

In order to get to the finals, LSU must win four straight games. In order to add a seventh year to the Intimidator, LSU must win six out of the next seven games.

“We know what the rules are, we’ve got to win four in a row to get through the bracket,” said LSU coach Paul Mainieri. “ … It’s very doable, you’ve just got to go out and play. We’ve got to play better than we did tonight.”

It may be doable for the Tigers because they’ve only lost back-to-back games once this season, but the steps remaining just to get to the final are daunting. Bear with all the “ifs,” because prognosticating LSU’s future in this tournament now requires a bunch of them.

LSU must eliminate North Carolina Tuesday, which in itself is a difficult task. While Mainieri wouldn’t say who he is throwing Tuesday, the Tigers are likely to start Cody Glenn against the Tarheels’ heavily-left-handed lineup. Glenn hasn’t thrown since the first game of the Southeastern Conference tournament.

If LSU gets past UNC, it must play the loser of North Carolina State and UCLA on Thursday in another loser-goes-home game.

If the Tigers manage to stave off elimination again, it must then defeat the winner of the UCLA and North Carolina State game — not once, but twice to reach the final.

This becomes an even more daunting task if the team they have to beat twice is North Carolina State, who would have its outstanding ace, left-hander Carlos Rodon, ready to send the Wolfpack into the final.

It’s an extremely difficult route, but the Tigers aren’t looking past tomorrow.

Tomorrow, they’ll practice on an area high school field and get ready for North Carolina.

“You can’t look beyond Tuesday, you’re playing to win right now,” Nola said. “We’re going to come out Tuesday and we’re not going to be down. We’re going to regroup ourselves and come out with a lot of confidence.”

First baseman Mason Katz reiterated that the team won’t be thinking about how it let the game slip from its fingers on Sunday night when it takes the field for the game against the Tarheels.

“You flush it,” Katz said. “You just take every day like it’s a new day.”

So LSU will take the practice field tomorrow, assuming they haven’t read this story, focused not on how hard its route to glory just became, but on the Tarheels and the things it can control.

“All we’ve got to do is focus on winning Tuesday,” Mainieri said.

By HUNT PALMER
Bayou Bengals Insider Senior Writer

OMAHA, Neb. — Teams sporting a .251 batting average don’t generally reach the College World Series.

UCLA bucked that trend this season, posting a 44-17 record en route to Omaha, and Sunday night the Bruins played their brand of baseball well enough to edge LSU, 2-1, at TD Ameritrade Park.

“We don’t hit home runs. We play small ball. We get the next guy up to the next at bat,” said Bruin right fielder Eric Filia. “We feel like this park plays to our advantage.”

It certainly did Sunday as UCLA ace Adam Plutko induced 13 fly ball outs over his seven, four-hit innings. The Bruin outfielders roamed the cavernous confines of the TD Ameritrade outfield, hauling in out after out.

Three times early in the game a Tiger forced a UCLA defender to the warning track only to see the drives nestle softly into a Bruin glove.

“It’s unfortunate that that’s the way (the park) plays,” said Tiger senior Mason Katz. “One of two of (Christian) Ibarra’s I thought for sure was gone. It’s a huge park, but everybody is playing with it.”

While the Tigers (57-10) flailed away, UCLA executed a different approach.

In each of the final six frames, the Bruins had the leadoff hitter reach base. Four of those six times, he was bunted over, and finally in the eighth the sacrifice bunt paid off.

Filia cracked a two-out ground ball right at Tiger shortstop Alex Bregman who had it ricochet off his wrist and into centerfield for an error. That allowed pinch runner Christoph Bono to round third and dart home to plate the game’s decisive run.

Bono had entered the game for pinch hitter Ty Moore who singled to left field.

The Bregman error came after UCLA had gone eight at bats without a hit with a runner in scoring position. UCLA stranded seven men on the night.

So did LSU, but none will sting as sharply as the final two which came in the ninth against All-American UCLA closer David Berg.

Katz greeted Berg in the ninth by reaching on a throwing error on a tough chance by shortstop Pat Valaika. LSU head Coach Paul Mainieri signaled Raph Rhymes to drop down a sacrifice bunt, but after two balls, Mainieri elected to go to the hit and run which turned into a 5-4-3 double play, erasing Katz and putting the Tigers an out away from the loser’s bracket.

“We decided to take a gamble there and go with the hit and run,” Mainieri explained. “Raph hit it hard. It was just really bad luck. He hit it so hard, they were able to get the force out at second before Mason could get there and turned the double play.

“I was hoping we could get a big inning out of it. I think he hit it pretty close to the line…If the ball goes down the line for a double, we’re in business, maybe have a chance to win the game against a tough reliever.”

But LSU still had life.

Ibarra coaxed a walk and gave way to speedy pinch runner Jared Foster who represented the tying run. Then clutch pinch hitter Tyler Moore scorched a line drive single to center to put runners at first and second with two out for JaCoby Jones who worked the count full.

Jones then hoisted a routine fly ball to right field to end it.

Katz kicked the scoring off by bashing his 16th home run of the season into the LSU bullpen in left field.

In typical fashion, UCLA knotted the score with little offensive punch.

Brian Carroll’s drag bunt was scooped up by Tiger catcher Ty Ross who fired wide of first and into right field which allowed Carroll to scoot to second.

A Kevin Kramer ground ball to second base and a Filia sacrifice fly evened things up. For a team that struggles to collect base hits, UCLA understands how to score.

“Opportunistic would be the word,” said UCLA coach John Savage. “That (sixth) inning we got an error. We got a ground ball. We got a sac fly. Nola threw five pitches, and we got a run. There’s something there. It’s hard to describe.”

Nola (12-1) was saddled with his first loss of the season in an outing where he twirled eight innings and didn’t yield an earned run. Both Bruin tallies came after Tiger miscues. Nola allowed just five hits and struck out five while admittedly not having his best stuff.

“It was real frustrating,” Nola said. “Letting that lead off guy get on, but that’s happened to me before throughout the year. And I battled as hard as I could until the last pitch.”

The Tigers now play for their College World Series lives Tuesday afternoon at 2 pm against North Carolina who dropped an 8-1 decision to North Carolina State Sunday afternoon.

“I don’t think anybody on our team wants to go home,” Katz said. “That’s about it.”

LIVE BLOG, By LUKE JOHNSON
Tiger Rag Assistant Editor

By TIGER RAG NEWS SERVICES

LUBBOCK, Texas — The National College Baseball Hall of Fame’s National Pitcher of the Year Award list has been narrowed to three. The 2013 finalists are David Berg of UCLA, Jonathan Gray of Oklahoma and Aaron Nola of LSU.

Nola, a sophomore from Baton Rouge, is fresh off a dominating two-hitter against Oklahoma in the Super Regional, which raised his record to 12-0 and lowered his ERA to 1.68. The Tigers are 15-1 in his starts.

Berg enters the College World Series as the NCAA Division I leader with a miniscule 0.88 ERA. His 7-0 record and 21 saves in 46 appearances earned him Pac-12 Pitcher of the Year hon­ors and have placed him among the list of finalists for the NCBWA Stopper of the Year award.

Gray, a junior from Chandler, Oklahoma, was the 3rd overall pick by the Colorado Rockies in last week’s MLB First-Year Player Draft. He finished the season ranked 2nd in strikeouts with 147. He was a semifinalist for both the Dick Howser Trophy and Golden Spikes Award.

The winner of the National Pitcher of the Year Award will be named on June 29 in Lubbock, Texas, as part of the College Baseball Night of Champions.

The event also features the an­nouncement of winners of the John Olerud Award and Brooks Wallace Award. The Johnny Bench Award and Dick Howser Trophy are also presented, as well as the 2013 National College Baseball Hall of Fame inductions

By HUNT PALMER
BBI Senior Writer

The switch has been flipped.

These Tigers never shied away from their goal, and the goal comes in one word—Omaha. How could they shy away from a mission that hovers over their every move at Alex Box Stadium? The Intimidator stands tall above the right field seats during practice and games. The “Omaha Room” houses team meetings. The portraits of every team to win a title escort them down the halls leading to the locker room and training facility.

And these guys had never been.

So, understandably when JaCoby Jones squeezed the final out Saturday, an unbridled avalanche of emotion culminated in a spirited dogpile on the pitcher’s mound. That monkey, turned gorilla, on the seniors’ backs having not reached a place so connected with the history of LSU baseball was gone.

“After the dogpile we were all just standing around, all the seniors, and we were like, ‘finally,’” said Mason Katz. “We waited four years for this after being recruits when the 2009 team won the national championship. We were like, ‘we could do this next year,’ and now four years later we finally made it.”

At some point, the realization sets in that the mission isn’t complete. The final destination has been reached, but there is work to be done. So when is that line crossed?

“When we got up from the dogpile,” Katz said. “I’m serious. We were all excited, but the first thing everyone was saying is, ‘we’re not done.’”

Katz’ close friend and fellow senior, Raph Rhymes, recalled the situation a little bit differently.

“He’s lying,” Rhymes said with a grin. “I was with him. It’s been flipped, but probably (Sunday) night for me. I got a chance to talk to my dad about it. It was kind of cool to celebrate it and think about it, but we’re in it to win it.”

And many believe LSU has the goods to bring title number seven back to Baton Rouge. The Tigers have a talented pitching staff, a proven lineup, strong leadership and an infusion of young talent. They’ve won a pair of tournament formats in the SEC Tournament and the Baton Rouge Regional. They’ve only lost one weekend the entire season.

What the Tigers lack is experience at the College World Series.

Just like the 2008 squad that Paul Mainieri piloted to Omaha, no Tiger on this squad has ever played there. That 2008 team went 1-2 and came back home empty handed. Mainieri doesn’t feel like this team is anything less than prepared.

He told them that Monday afternoon.

“I went over all the things that make Omaha unique,” Mainieri said. “No. 1, you’re going to be playing in front of large crowds. Wait a minute, we play in front of large crowds here don’t we? Then I said, ‘you’re going to play in a beautiful ballpark. Wait a minute, don’t we play in a brand new, beautiful ballpark?’ I said, ‘but you’re going to be covered by so much media. Oh, wait a minute. When we come out for practice isn’t there a lot of media out here?’

“And went on down all the list of all those things. Autograph seekers, playing against tough competition. National television audience. Everything we’re going to face in Omaha we face on a daily basis at LSU.”

Glenn gearing up

Pitchers work on routine more than perhaps any athlete in sport.

Starts are regimented by number of days off, and those days off generally entail the exact some process of recovering from start A and preparing for start B.

That’s why LSU left hander Cody Glenn embarks on his first College World Series trip surrounded by uncertainties far more substantial than new surroundings.

Glenn hasn’t pitched in a game since May 22 when he fired seven shutout innings in a victory against Alabama in the SEC Tournament. The outing marked Glenn’s fourth straight quality start since being ousted from the weekend rotation against South Carolina.

On the eve of the NCAA Tournament, Glenn was suspended from the team and sent home to Houston while his teammates began the eventual trek to the College World Series.

While the Tigers marched through the regional unscathed, Glenn watched from home, hoping for another shot. He was granted that shot when his team unanimously voted for his reinstatement for the duration of the postseason run.

“I’m extremely grateful for the opportunity to be back,” Glenn told the media last week. “I was able to address the team as a whole and apologize to them and they accepted me back.”

But Glenn wasn’t given the chance to take the ball this weekend as LSU polished off Oklahoma in two straight games. If and when he takes the ball in Omaha, it will have been more than 20 days since his last start.

“I’ve been throwing ever since my last start,” Glenn said. “I still feel good. I’m throwing like I need to be throwing.”

Mainieri wasn’t so sure, calling Glenn ‘rusty’ after a simulated game last week prior to the Super Regional. The sophomore southpaw took the mound Monday afternoon for another simulated game, and Mainieri told WNXX 104.5 ESPN Baton Rouge that Glenn looked much better than he had the week before.

Pitching coach Alan Dunn doesn’t anticipate the layoff affecting Glenn too much.

“This time of year, when you’ve taken as many starts as our guys have had, it’s just about staying polished up,” Dunn said. “You don’t need a whole lot of work in between because you’ve had a lot of time on the mound. I feel like I like where he is right now.”

Glenn, who is 7-2 on the season, has never thrown an NCAA Tournament game. Last year while the Tigers made a bid for the College World Series, missing out by one game, Glenn had already begun his summer assignment.

The combination of never feeling the rush of climbing the mound in the tournament and only throwing simulated games the last three weeks would figure to cause a jump in nerves and adrenaline if Glenn gets the call in Omaha.

“You have to try to psych yourself up a little bit, because the work that I put in (Monday) is crucial for my performance in Omaha,” Glenn said. “It’s definitely not the same. These situations don’t have the importance of a Game 3 in a Super Regional, but I have to go out there and do the best I can.”

McMullen mending

Junior leadoff man Sean McMullen gimped out of the batter’s box noticeably this weekend. The Tiger designated hitter continues to recover from a strained hamstring he suffered in the regional.

Though he was limited physically, Mainieri wanted McMullen in the lineup for RBI chances. As it turned out, McMullen only hit once with men on base and led off four innings in two games.

Under instructions from the training staff, McMullen didn’t push the tender hamstring over the weekend, but he expects to do that Wednesday. The Tigers expected to play Saturday, but weather in the North Carolina and South Carolina series forced the LSU start date back to Sunday in Omaha. The added day off may help McMullen near full strength.

By LUKE JOHNSON
Tiger Rag Assistant Editor

Sophomore pitcher Aaron Nola and freshman shortstop Alex Bregman were each named first team All-Americans by Baseball America Wednesday.

It’s a continuation of honors for the duo. Nola was named the Southeastern Conference Pitcher of the Year and Bregman was named the SEC Freshman of the Year.

Serving as LSU’s ace since the first day of the season, Nola enjoyed an excellent sophomore campaign that got better as the season wore on. During one stretch, the Baton Rouge native fired four consecutive complete games.

He tossed his fifth complete game, a masterful two-hit shutout, to lead the Tigers to a 2-0 win in the opening game of the Baton Rouge Super Regional against Oklahoma with fellow first-teamer Jonathan Gray on the mound for the Sooners.

Nola finished the season with an unblemished 12-0 record and a 1.68 ERA. He struck out 117 batters while only walking 17.

Bregman was one of just three freshmen to be recognized as All-Americans by Baseball America. Hitting from the No. 3 spot in LSU’s lineup, Bregman tore up college pitching in his first season on campus.

He led a stacked LSU lineup in six offensive categories, including batting average (.380), doubles (18), triples (7) and stolen bases (16).

Both Bregman and Nola will travel with Team USA this summer.

Nola and Bregman were the only Tigers to earn All-American honors from Baseball America. They represent LSU’s first players on the publication’s first team since Mikie Mahtook in 2011.

By LUKE JOHNSON
Tiger Rag Assistant Editor

He hasn’t thrown a pitch in a game setting since May 22, but that doesn’t mean it hasn’t been an eventful couple of weeks for LSU sophomore pitcher Cody Glenn.

The southpaw was suddenly removed from LSU’s Regional roster a day before the start of NCAA tournament play after violating an unspecified team rule. If he watched LSU sweep the Regional, he did it away from the ball park.

His teammates voted to reinstate him after the Regional, allowing him to watch LSU bust out the brooms against Oklahoma from the dugout. But his rusty practice session didn’t inspire enough confidence from coach Paul Mainieri to make him the Game Two starter.

But as the 2013 LSU team readies for an attempt to cement itself in LSU lore, Glenn is ready to play an active role.

Mainieri said Glenn was back to form in a simulated game he threw earlier this week and, depending on the matchup, could take the hill for the Tigers in the second game of the College World Series.

“He’s not as nervous now,” Mainieri said. “What he showed me (Monday), he’s back to being the guy that he was.”

That guy came out of nowhere this season to prove to be the missing piece a dynamic weekend rotation.

Glenn went 7-2 with a 2.41 ERA and overcame some early inconsistency when pitching on the road. By the time he had fired the last of his seven innings of shutout ball against Alabama to start the Southeastern Conference tournament, he was easily LSU’s second-best starter.

It was a long climb from where he was a year ago, when he wasn’t sure he’d throw another pitch in purple and gold.

“When I left LSU last summer … I wasn’t even sure that I was coming back,” Glenn said. “I wasn’t sure that coach (Mainieri) wanted me back at LSU.”

In some respects, Mainieiri didn’t want him back. At least Mainieri didn’t want the same Cody Glenn back.

Glenn struggled as a freshman. Before the season started, Mainieri said he wanted the talented Houston native to secure the midweek starter’s role. That never materialized as Glenn struggled with his command and with his maturity.

He posted a 5.62 ERA in his freshman season, allowing nearly two base runners for every inning pitched. He was rearing back and throwing the ball as hard as he could, which had disastrous consequences.

Essentially, Glenn was throwing batting practice, and opposing hitters feasted.

“I overthrew everything,” Glenn said. “My velocity was up last year but it didn’t have much movement and I had no idea where it was going. It was easy to hit.”

His poor performance combined with the lack of dedication to take his game to its highest levels prompted a clear message from his coach.

“I was disappointed in him, and I let him know that,” Mainieri said. “I told him, ‘Look, I’m not about mediocrity. I don’t like guys that want to stick around and be average. I want greatness. And if you don’t want to be great, this is the wrong program for you, so you ought to be somewhere else.’”

“’But if you want to rededicate yourself and come back here to be a difference maker, then you go away this summer and prove to me that you have a different level of commitment.’ And that’s exactly what he did.”

He left for summer ball as his teammates started the postseason, unsure if he was leaving for good. When he got to Wisconsin to pitch in the Northwoods League, he dedicated himself to changing who he was as a pitcher.

The straight-line fastball was ditched in favor of a sinking fastball. His devil-may-care pitching style ditched in favor of precision. He decided he would return to prove he had what it took to pitch at LSU.

He started fall camp with a different arm slot and some run on his fastball. More importantly, he was in control and that caught LSU pitching coach Alan Dunn’s eye.

“Going away this summer and pitching was a big part of his development,” Dunn said. “We saw a more mature pitcher, understanding some of the stuff we were trying to get him to do. … I felt like with his stuff, if he just threw it in the strike zone, he was going to have a chance.”

Dunn approached Mainieri and told him to “keep an open mind” about Glenn. Mainieri listened, but he wasn’t about to hand Glenn a job as a starter.

The season began with Glenn as the midweek starter and senior Brent Bonvillain taking the mound for the Tigers on Sundays. As Glenn continued to thrive in the midweek role, it became clear he was the man for the Sunday spot.

“I made him earn his job and that’s the best thing that’s ever happened to him,” Mainieri said. “It’s the best thing that happens to every kid … because that gives them the self confidence that can’t be broken.”

A confident Glenn turned it on down the stretch, posting a 1.01 ERA while pitching at least 6.2 innings in each of his last five starts. He pitched 35.1 innings in that time frame and struck out 18 batters against four walks.

He did it by trusting his pitches and trusting the defense to work behind him. His sinker forces batters to hit the ball on the ground to the defense that led the SEC in fielding percentage.

The success has allowed Glenn some comfort in his second season.

“I’m feeling like I belong,” Glenn said. “Last year I felt like I had to prove myself, I wasn’t in the right mindset. This year, I focused on just pitching. I’m not worried about what people are thinking, I’m not worried about other people, I’m just worried about the hitter that’s in the box.”

It remains to be seen whether that comfort continues in Omaha. It’s been three weeks since he last took the mound, and it very well could stretch to four weeks until he sees it again.

But it’s the mental aspect that should be intriguing to watch. How will Glenn respond to playing for the first time since he was suspended?

That shouldn’t be a problem, according to Mainieri.

“I don’t think there’s any remnants at all of him missing the regional,” Mainieri said. “I don’t think he thinks about it, I don’t think he talks about it or even has any consciousness about it. He’s a full-fledged member of the team again.”

]]> http://www.tigerrag.com/?feed=rss2&p=268282 http://www.tigerrag.com/?p=268262 http://www.tigerrag.com/?p=268262#comments Wed, 12 Jun 2013 00:26:12 +0000 tigerrag http://www.tigerrag.com/?p=268262 New assistant coach comes to Tigers from UCLA

By TIGER RAG NEWS SERVICES

BATON ROUGE – LSU men’s basketball Head Coach Johnny Jones announced on Tuesday that Korey McCray has signed a contract to join the LSU men’s basketball program as a member of the coaching staff for the 2013-14 season.

McCray replaces assistant coach Robert Kirby who left last month for another assistant’s job.

McCray served the past two seasons as an assistant coach at UCLA. Prior to working at UCLA, McCray also served as an assistant coach at his alma mater, Mercer University, during the 2007-08 season. He was also an assistant coach at Chipola Junior College in Marianna, Fla., during the 2004-05 season.

“We are excited about the addition of Coach McCray to the LSU basketball program,” said Coach Jones, who is preparing for his second season as the head coach at LSU. “He will be a tremendous asset for this program in recruiting and his coaching ability on the basketball floor. He will also make a huge impact in the continuing development of our players both on and off the court.”

Prior to taking the job at UCLA, McCray also worked as a skill development trainer since 2004 with some of the NBA’s biggest stars based in Atlanta and surrounding Georgia communities. McCray created tailor-made offseason training programs for players including Dwight Howard, John Wall, Javaris Crittenton, Anthony Morrow, Jarrett Jack, Acie Law, Von Wafer, Mario West and Damien Wilkins, among others.

“I’m thrilled to be an LSU Tiger,” said McCray Tuesday. “I can’t wait to get to Baton Rouge. I’m so grateful that Coach Jones is giving me this opportunity and I am looking forward to coming in, working hard and representing the University extremely well.”

While at UCLA, McCray helped UCLA land the nation’s No. 1-ranked recruiting class in 2012 (as rated by ESPN.com), an incoming group which was also hailed as the No. 2 class by Scout.com and Rivals.com. He was part of a staff that won the PAC 12 conference in 2013 and advanced to the NCAA Tournament.

At Chipola, the school lost in the semifinals of the National Junior College Championships.

McCray served as a graduate assistant coach at Florida State for two seasons (2002-04). During the 2002-03 season, the Seminoles advanced to the National Invitation Tournament (NIT). He earned his master’s degree in adult education with a minor in higher education from Florida State in 2004.

A four-year basketball letter winner at Mercer University, McCray served as the Bears’ team captain in 1999-2000 and 2000-01. He earned a bachelor’s degree in communications from Mercer in 2001 with a major in theatre arts and a minor in Christianity. He remains ranked fourth all-time at the school in assists with 344 and his 113 made three-pointers is tied for 10th at the school for a career.

In addition, McCray served various stints as the CEO and head coach of the Atlanta Celtics since 1999. The Atlanta Celtics is an AAU traveling team that his father, Karl McCray, co-founded in 1990 with Wallace Prather. The non-profit, grassroots basketball program looks to encourage children to make good decisions utilizing the team sport of basketball as a means to teach life-changing skills.

McCray led his 15-and-under team to a national title in 2009. During his tenure with the Atlanta Celtics, he consistently produced teams at all age levels ranked in the top 10, nationally.

The appointment of the 34-year-old McCray, who hails from Decatur, Ga., must be approved by the LSU Board of Supervisors.