Here is the full interview with Boston College coach Mike Gambino yesterday. He was entertaining and informative.

Is the humidity down here a concern for you?

“I didn’t really notice it. You know, honestly we were in Georgia two weekends ago and the ACC tournament down in Carolina last weekend and the last week-and-a-half in Boston has been really hot. It was 93 (degrees) when we practiced last week. It’s not going to be a factor as long as our boys do a good job staying hydrated. If they don’t do a good job, if they are drinking soda instead of Gatorade and water, then it will be an issue, but we played a doubleheader two weeks ago to get us into this whole thing at Georgia Tech that was just like this, and for two games the guys did a great job.”

What is your impression of Tulane?

“They are a really good ballclub. They are solid, and I mean this as a compliment. They don’t have one guy that jumps out at you. It’s a solid lineup and a solid pitching staff. I don’t mean that as a knock on them. It’s a top to bottom really good baseball club. Their lineup can be scary 1 through 9. They’ve got three guys that can run the ball out of the park at any time. They’ve got two to three guys who can steal bags at any time. They are really balanced, and then with that staff, we are going to face a really good arm tomorrow, and they have quality guys coming out of the bullpen. You don’t know exactly what the combination is going to be, but you see that with the number of games they’ve won. And coach Pierce has won everywhere he has been and constantly gotten teams in the postseason. It’s a real quality team that’s very well coached, and we’re excited about that. That’s why everybody is talking about this being the toughest regional. It’s just four really good clubs that are coming together the same weekend.”

What prompted you to move Jason Dunn to the starting rotation?

“What happened was we had Florida State at our place and only played one game because some weather came in, so it was kind of the perfect time to make an adjustment. Our pitching coach came to me and said here’s what I’m thinking, what do you think? It was a great call by him. I said let’s go with it. We always believed he was really truly a starter. We had him in the back of the game at that point because we had three guys we thought could give us a chance to win (as starters) and then Justin would help us win two games every weekend. Starting the season we though him closing out two games every weekend was our best chance.”

He went nine innings in his last start. Can he go as long as needed against Tulane?

“We’re very cautious with our guys. You see the pitch counts. As long as needed, yes, but really, we don’t run our guys very high at all. We had one kid get to 120 this year and that was because the last batter was a 10-pitch at-bat. Justin finished the game at Georgia Tech when we needed him, and he was at 84 after the eighth. We had the bullpen moving out a little bit, and it was a hot day. I went to check with him, and he said, ‘sit them down, I got it.’ I said, all right, go get them, dude.”

What makes him so dominant?

“The first thing that would jump out at you is the fastball velocity, but I don’t think that’s what makes him dominant because early in his career when that velocity started coming, he was throwing it flat and getting knocked around. As he’s sort of learned how to pitch, he went to a four-pitch mix. He was a kid with a good arm as a freshman, and he can pitch now. That’s what makes him dominant. His pitchability. It’s electric stuff, but in the ACC, the SEC, there are a lot of guys with big arms. It’s big stuff with pitchability.

“And the thing about Justin beyond that is he’s such a high-character kid. He’s one of the kids you’ll ever be around. As good as you see him on the mound, he’s even better as a kid.”

How does going through the rigor of the ACC prepare you for tournament play?

“Every weekend is playoff baseball in the ACC and every weekend is playoff baseball in the SEC. Especially for us, we were playing great early and then scuffled in the middle, we’ve essentially been in playoff baseball for six weeks now. This ballpark is one of the best places to play college baseball in the country. This town, these fans here, it’s awesome, and our boys are excited to play in it. They’ve talked about how much they are excited to play in this ballpark and play in front of these fans. They’re great fans, but it’s not something to be in awe of because you see it a lot in the ACC. So they are excited about it, but they are not going to be in awe of it.”

You were picked last in the ACC. What allowed this team to exceed those expectations?

“We understand that. We knew we were going to be picked last going into the year and we sort of laughed at it. We knew that most people outside of us aren’t going to understand what we’re doing here, and the way we handle that is all we care about is us. We’ve got a clubhouse full of guys that care about each other, that believe in each other, that believe we have a chance to go to Omaha. As do the other 63 teams, but we don’t get ourselves concerned with what people outside of our clubhouse are saying. And honestly, part of the reason we scuffled early was all of a sudden people started saying we were good after about 25 games, and it shocked the guys and we started paying attention to what people were saying. Whether they are saying good things or bad things, we just worry about us and worry about what we’re doing.”

I confirmed today that Boston College will throw junior right-hander Justin Dunn against Emerson Gibbs on Friday in Oxford. Clearly, Dunn could give Tulane major headaches with his fastball that has gotten past 95 miles per hour and a microscopic ERA, but it will be interesting to see how he fares.

Not once has Dunn started a series opener, so he could feel more pressure than normal in the regional. He was a bullpen guy who was elevated to Saturday starter with seven weeks left in the season, and although he was lights out, pitching 37 innings while giving up only five earned runs, he never went longer than seven innings until tossing a complete game against Georgia Tech on the final weekend of the regular season. He also has not had to deal with southern heat like he will face Friday (assuming the game is not delayed by rain), so it is questionable how long he can last.

Tulane has fared well against power pitchers this year. In fact, it almost seems like the Wave is bothered by junk-ballles more than fast ball guys. Pitchers who hit their spots generally don't give up much to Tulane, so the pivotal part for Dunn will be location. Even though he has great stuff, too many pitches over the plate likely would turn into a home run or two.

Emerson Gibbs pitched poorly against Houston last Thursday, but he can dominate Boston College if he keeps the ball low like he normally does. The Eagles don't have much power and like to manufacture runs, but a sharp Gibbs would not allow many base runners. David Pierce told me today he likes the matchup of Gibbs the best against Boston College, with Corey Merrill right behind him.

It should be a good game. Aaron Fitt and Kendall Rogers of D1Baseball.com label the Oxford regional the toughest of them all, citing Tulane's pitching depth, Boston College's all-around ability and Utah's status as Pact-12 regular season champion. But if Gibbs hits his spots, I really like Tulane's chances in a low-scoring game.

I left my house at 7 this morning and made it just in time for interviews at Swayze Field. Missed about two minutes of David Pierce because I thought interviews were in the press room and not on the field but got the rest. I did not ask all the question, just some of them.

PIERCE

On Corey Merrill:

"Corey’s been a bulldog for us for three years. We’re using him a little bit more out of the bullpen and you may see him start this weekend."

Who does Justin Dunn remind you of?

"Doc Gooden." (a little laughter afterward)

Who does he remind you of of the guys you've faced?

"I recall (Cory) Sedlock (of Illinois) and A.J. Puckett (of Pepperdine) that were both very good with velocity and good breaking balls. Both had very good years. I think he has their type of stuff."

What is the biggest challenge against a guy like that?

"For us it’s to be aggressive in the strike zone and stay away from the chase. We’ve worked on it really well all week and it’s kind of been the thing that we’ve had to work on all year. We get a little overly aggressive, and stuff will do that to you because you have to cheat to a fastball every now and then when it’s 96. That’s something we’re going to have to be conscious of—seeing the fastball down and the breaking ball up."

Will it help to face him in the heat of the day?

"You tend to see velocity a little better in the daylight, but it doesn’t really matter. We’re from New Orleans, so there’s plenty of heat there, so we’re OK with that."

But won't Boston College be affected by the heat?

"I’m not going to go there. Game 1 they’ll be totally fresh."

JAKE ROGERS

What are your thoughts about playing the regional here?

"It’s exciting. We didn’t really know where we were going. We could have had a toss-up. We thought for sure LSU or Lafayette. but it was awesome coming to Ole Miss and this beautiful venue."

What do you expect from Dunn?

"It’s going to be tough. We’re going to have to have good ABs. He’s good. He’s got the velo, he’s got the breaking stuff, so we’ve got to come ready to play and have confidence going up there."

What has made Emerson Gibbs so effective this year?

"He throws strikes. He commands all his pitches and that’s going to help us."

GIBBS

What do you need to do against Boston College?

"My plan is just to control them on the bases and make them earn 90 feet. I can’t walk them and I can’t hit them. If they get hits, then they get hits. I just have to let the defense play behind me and control the game."

Is the biggest start you've ever made?

"It’s got to be top five if not the biggest start I’ve ever made."

How much will having been a Friday starter all year help tomorrow?

"It helps a lot, but at the end of the day it’s just a game. Whether I throw on Sunday or Saturday or Friday or midweek, they are all pretty much the same. I’ve got some nerves until I throw the first pitch. It’s just an ordinary game, and you have to go out there and not get too involved in the situation, just keep cool and play the game the way you know how to play it."

How much confidence have this team gained from winning the AAC?

"We’re finding ways to win. It seems when our pitchers aren’t on, our hitters do real well, and when our hitters aren’t doing so hot, our pitchers are doing well. We’re playing consistent defense all year. It’s really just finding ways to win somehow, and we need to keep that going."

STEPHEN ALEMAIS

What's the biggest challenge of facing Dunn?

"All year we’ve done a good job and thrived against good pitching. When we tend to struggle, it’s against average pitching. We pretty much bring our A game a lot when it comes to the top pitchers. Our job is to stay short, make contact and we should be fine."

What are your thoughts on Boston College?

"They are hot right now. They’ve been playing well. They’ve awarded us the toughest regional for a reason, so it’s going to be tough."

You're from New York. How tough is it to adjust to this weather for guys up north?

"Absolutely. They are from up north, too, so it’s kind of hard to get the ball rolling, but I’ve been playing in this for a while now. The game’s going to be the same. The two teams are going to be playing in the same conditions, so it’s going to be fun."

What are your thought on the infield surface here?

"I think it’s the best surface we’ve played on all year. Some of the guys like this place more than LSU, so it’s going to be a lot of fun. It’s a really good surface.”

How do you think you guys will handle the atmosphere?

"It comes to experience. A lot of the freshmen have never witnessed the postseason. A lot of the older guys, we went to LSU so we know what to expect. The atmosphere over there is tremendous. The experience of last year is going to help us this year."

HUNTER WILLIAMS

What do you have to do to hit Dunn?

"You can’t try to do too much. You just have to go up there with a simple approach, take a short swing and try to find the barrel. But you have to swing at pitches you can hit. When you’ve got a guy that has good stuff, if you hjelp him and chase out of the zone, he’s going to make it tough on you."

Alemais said this team is better against fastball guys than junk guys. Do you agree?

"I don’t know what it is, but definitely you can see that a little bit. We’ve faces some really good arms already this year—Romero from Houston, Sedlock from Illinois—and we hit them pretty well. Guys go up there and don’t try to do too much against guys like that. When guys aren’t throwing too hard, your swings get a little big and it kind of breaks down a little bit."

Your offense has been mostly home runs in the second half of the year. Can that work here?

"The goal is to score in multiple ways. The long ball has been working for us and if we can keep it going, we’ll definitely have to ride that out, but that’s definitely not just the only way we want to score."

How much confidence do you have in Gibbs?

"Every time Gibby goes out on the mound, we know we are going to have a shot to win. He’s one of our best arms. I love it when he’s out there and I love playing defense behind him. We think he matches up good with anybody we could possibly play."

How much does Gibbs' fielding help?

"It definitely helps a lot. We don’t have to cover nearly as much ground. We know he’s going to cover the ground when the ball’s in the dead area instead of having to worry about the third basemen or me going to get the ball from first base."

First off, no one really knows other than the people on the committee, but based on history, I do not expect Tulane to end up in Baton Rouge. Until last year, when it clearly made sense for the Wave to play in Alex Box for the postseason, it had gone elsewhere the last two times it could have ended up in Baton Rouge. In 2004, Tulane went to Oxford and in 2008 Tulane went to Tallahassee (The Wave hosted in 2005, LSU did not make the NCAA tournament in 2006 and Tulane did not make the NCAA tournament in 2007).

Having just been to Baton Rouge last year, I expect Tulane to go to either Lafayette as a No. 2 seed or Hattiesburg as a No. 2 seed. Only if neither of those teams get regionals do I see Tulane going to Baton Rouge, and even then Oxford and Starkville would be viable options. It makes sense for La Tech or Southeastern to go to Baton Rouge as a No, 3 seed. (La Tech is a lock for an at-large bid, and I expect SLU to squeeze in with one of the last picks)

The way I see it, seven SEC schools are locks to host (Florida, Texas A&M, Miss St., Ole Miss, South Carolina, LSU and Vandy) at least five ACC schools will host (Miami, Louisville, Clemson, FSU and probably Virginia) with a possibility of a sixth (NC State) and Texas Tech will host.

That leaves as many as three open spots to be divided up among a West Coast school as a No. 2 seed, ULL, USM, TCU, Coastal Carolina and the sixth ACC school. No one else is in the picture.

My best guess is the final spots will be filled by Arizona (highest RPI among west schools who submitted bids), TCU and ULL, although I would not be shocked if one of the others got it instead. TCU won the Big 12 tourney, has a high RPI and a spectacular 21-8 record against top 100 teams (although that number is less impressive when you break it down more closely). ULL is the only regional bubble team to win a regular season and tournament title and also has an RPI of 15.

As for the others, NC State faded down the stretch, Coastal Carolina had a losing record against the top 50 and is 13-11 versus the top 100 and USM should not be given full credit for winning its tourney since it was on its home field.

That means I see Tulane going to ULL as the No. 2 seed. I don't do prediction for the rest of the potential bracket because it's a crap shoot, but playing in Lafayette would give this team a good shot to advance (ULL would still be the slight favorite in my view). The best option would be Hattiesburg because I simply don't think USM is as talented as Tulane despite its home success this year. But ULL would still be a better destination that LSU, Ole Miss or Mississippi State, all of which are loaded.

Regardless, this clearly is Tulane's best chance to win a regional since 2005. I will go wherever they send the Wave and can't wait for Friday.

The season is not over for the Wave by any means but the MLB draft is coming up in less than two weeks-- a time during which several of our players could greatly increase (decrease?) their prospects.

By my count, Tulane has twelve seniors and fifteen other players completing their third year of college who could theoretically be chosen in that draft.

Seniors (12):

Emerson Gibbs: Gibbs doesn’t have overpowering stuff but he has excellent control and a steady hand on the throttle. I doubt he’ll be an early draft choice, but I’d be surprised if he isn’t drafted. He’s a tough kid who has improved greatly since arriving on campus.

Alex Massey: Not that he's had a bad year (he hasn't), but Massey hasn’t had quite the year I'd hoped for coming off of last season. But he has good stuff, improved control, and had some very good games. I think he could be drafted fairly late. If not, I expect he’ll get a shot at signing as a free agent.

I don’t think any of our other seniors are likely to be drafted but I wouldn’t be surprised if Duester or Simms has a chance at free agency. Both have pretty good stuff but have suffered from control problems. Since MLB signs on “potential,” either might have a shot, though, at age 24, Simms time has probably past. Of course, Duester is 22, so the same might be said of him. I don’t see Carthon, Yandel, Gross, Pierce, Burns, or Braud getting the opportunity. Additionally, two redshirt juniors, Rankin and Steele, were honored on senior day and are apparently foregoing their redshirt senior season to start life outside of baseball.

Juniors (10):

Stephen Alemais: Alemais has tremendous range at short stop and a major league arm, though he seems to “blow’ some relatively “easy” chances. He has good speed and is a threat to run, though I doubt he’ll be a major threat in the pro’s. At bat, he’s very aggressive. And, I don’t have any problem with him hitting the first good pitch he sees, but he swings at too many “bad pitches” early in the count. Nonetheless, he’s a solid prospect and, in my opinion, could go in the early mid-rounds. I expect him to sign with someone, regardless. It’s almost guaranteed he won’t be back.

Jake Rogers: Rogers is another junior virtually guaranteed to be drafted fairly early. His strength is as a defensive catcher who blocks a lot of bad pitches and has a spectacular arm. He releases quickly, accurately, and puts something on it. Can’t ask for much more! Better still, his batting has improved markedly over three years. He hit .202 as a freshman and .227 as a sophomore, but has raised that to .260 so far this year, with his power numbers increasing in similar fashion. Yet, he is still not a great threat at the plate. Depending on the money he is offered, I think he should consider returning for his senior year to improve his hitting even more. The only downsides to that are potential injuries and the reduced leverage he would have after a senior year. Tough choice; again, depending on the money. I certainly wish him the best regardless of his choice. Would love to have him back but don’t expect it.

Hunter Hope: After his sophomore year when his batting average dropped from .261 to .230 and he struck out almost 40% of the time, I wasn’t sure he’d even start this year. After a slow beginning to the season, he had a strong streak through most of March, April and early May. Unfortunately, a recent slump has seen his batting average drop from above .300 to the current .271 and he still strikes out far too often (38% so far this year). But, his fielding is “top tier.” He makes all of the plays, has good range, and a very strong arm, while, like Alemais, occasionally “blows” an easy chance. I think he could be drafted in the later rounds and might receive enough money for him to sign. HIs upside in staying in school revolves around achieving better plate discipline and cutting back on his strikeouts. If he could do that and retain his obvious HR potential, he could really increase his draft stock after next season. Hope to see him back.

Corey Merrill: Through the first few games he pitched this year, Merrill looked like a sure early round draft choice. Following a year in which he posted a 2.12 ERA, he was pitching at least as well. His control was actually better and he was striking out more than one man per inning—good numbers. Then, the injury. Since his return, his numbers continue to be excellent and his ERA for the year is down to 1.99 and he’s striking out 10.7 men per nine innings. Depending on his perceived health (which appears to be good), I expect him to be drafted. I personally think he’d be better off getting 100% healthy, increasing his arm strength, and returning to Tulane next year, but who knows? A lot of us dreamed of playing professional baseball and turning down the opportunity, even when it’s likely only to delay it, has to be a tough decision.

Jeremy Montalbano: Montalbano could also be drafted and, though I doubt it, I don’t think it would be a big stretch. To me, he simply doesn’t yet have a position to play, and his offensive output, while good (.276 with 11 HR's), hasn’t been such to generate the necessary interest for a DH-only guy at the start of his career. Even before his injury, when he started three games, we had at least two catchers who were better defensively. And catcher is what he needs to play to improve his MLB potential. Even in the unlikely event he is drafted, I think he has a great chance to up his position with another year. He’s obviously a patient young man, sitting out last year to play for the Wave. I hope to see him back.

Lex Kaplan: Kaplan has bumped his batting average up from .173 to .243. to the current .271 over the past three years, which says a lot about his effort and the coaching he’s received. That he came back from a season-threatening injury says even more about his toughness and dedication. He still has a lot of trouble with lefties but has improved significantly. He’s another guy who I doubt gets drafted and, if so, I would recommend returning to Tulane for his senior season. A .300+ season with ten or more home runs next year could improve his status.

Hunter Williams: Williams was our second best hitter last year (based on batting average) but started this season going 0-13 and then missing 22 games due to injury. Since then, despite a recent slump, he’s hit .300 with some impressive, and important, HR’s. He’s also become a very good defensive first baseman. I’d be surprised (shocked) if he were drafted and expect him back next year.

Jake Willsey: Jake’s had a big year. He’s a solid defensive second baseman and really good making the pivot on double plays. After showing no power his first two years, he’s hit 10 HR’s so far this year and after getting his batting average up to .300, has settled back to .281. Could he be drafted? Unlikely, but possible. He swings at a lot of bad pitches and strikes out a lot. His 56 K’s and 19 BB’s is roughly the same ratio as Hunter Hope’s. I look for him to come back next year and have even a bigger year.

Our other juniors—DeHart, and Colletti, are simply not potential draftees at this point. Neither one had very good years. Who knows after another year?

Redshirt Sophomores (5):

J.P. France: As a true freshman, France began his career as our Friday night starter, pitching seven innings of shutout ball on opening day, 2014. He didn’t fare as well in his next few starts and ended that season in the bullpen. After sitting out 2015 with an injury, he has come back strong this year and, before a rough start against Houston, had an ERA below 3.00. Even now, it’s a very respectable 3.22, and he is a key element in our pitching staff. I’d be surprised if he is drafted, but he is eligible and there is an outside possibility. If I were him, however, I’d be coming back next year to show what I can do as a weekend starter. He’d still have the leverage of another year.

Rowland, Brown, Bjorngjeld, and Oakley are also completing their third year but won’t be drafted.

Incoming Players

I really don’t know too much about our incoming players, but several are well thought of by Perfect Game. The most impressive may be Brandon Fraley, who is the younger brother of LSU star, Jake Fraley. Brandon is rated a 10.0 by Perfect Game, has a 92+ mph fastball and the fastest bat speed I’ve seen in a long time. He’s a right handed pitcher/hitter who could be our first true two way player in a while-- if he makes it to campus.

Roll Wave!!!

I like Tulane's chances today. It's never easy to beat a good team twice in a row, but with J.P. France going in the first game and Ross Massey going in the second against some combo of Andrew Lantrip, who has struggled since having arm problems, and Mitch Ullom, whom the Wave pounded last Friday, it's advantage, Tulane in the starting pitching department.

The keys will be not going into another prolonged hitting funk during the game and Massey pitching better than he has recently.

Most of the news from the other tournaments has been bad. As of late Friday night, the four teams I believe Tulane is competing with the most for one regional hosting spot (maybe two) are all undefeated in tournament play. ULL only has to beat mediocre Arkansas State once tomorrow out of two to get to the Sun Belt title game. Coastal Carolina already is in the championship game of the Big South. TCU is cruising in the Big 12 tournament and only has to beat Texas 1 out of 2 tomorrow to reach the championship game against either West Virginia and Oklahoma, which will be supremely motivated since neither has a shot at an at-large berth, but the Horned Frogs are just better than either one of them. USM is enjoying the home cooking in the CUSA tourney and just has to beat Marshall 1 out of 2 tomorrow to advance to the championship game. At least the Golden Eagles are likely to face tournament tested Rice when they get there.

Here are the key games for Saturday. I'm not putting ULL losing twice to Arkansas State on there because it ain't gonna happen.

1) Marshall needs to beat USM twice in the CUSA Tourney

Good look with that, but the Herd will be very motivated because it probably won't get an at-large bid without winning the CUSA title even though it finished ahead of USM and only a half-game out of first place in the regular season. The RPI and number of good victories are too low. USM beat Marshall 9-3 on Thursday.

2) Liberty needs to beat Coastal Carolina in the Big South championship game.

Liberty was swept by Coastal Carolina at home by the combined score of 43-12 this year, so it's a long shot, but the Flames will be motivated knowing they have to win to make the NCAA Tourney. Coastal Carolina now has the highest RPI of any team not in the SEC or ACC (12).

3) Memphis needs to beat UConn and then lose to the Huskies in the AAC tourney

I'm probably over thinking this, but Memphis is within striking distance of the top 200 at 210 and might climb into the top 200 with a win and a loss to No. 48 UConn. That would erase Tulane's only loss against a sub-200 team but still give the Wave a chance for an RPI boost of beating UConn for the title. A different line of thinking says pull for Memphis to win twice in a row because Tulane would have a much better chance of beating the Tigers than beating the Huskies after running out of arms by Sunday. But there's no way Memphis will beat UConn twice in a row.

Tulane's best case is as a double-winner of the AAC regular season and tournament titles, something TCU and USM cannot claim. ULL can, though, so that's why it is so vital the Cajuns come up short in the Sun Belt tourney.

The hard part of getting into regional hosting position involves Tulane winning four games in four days to come out of the loser's bracket and win the AAC tourney, but with the Wave's pitching depth, getting at least to the championship game is not impossible (no idea who would start Sunday, but they'll worry about that if they get there).

Here's what needs to happen elsewhere today to help Tulane's chances of hosting.

BIG 12

Texas Tech needs to beat Oklahoma (3:15), Texas needs to beat Oklahoma State (7:00)

Rationale: Texas Tech is good enough to come out of the loser's bracket and beat TCU in the championship game (TCU is the clear favorite to get there). Oklahoma is not. Oklahoma State still has an outside shot at hosting if it wins four in a row to win the tourney, which would include two wins over TCU. Might as well eliminate that possibility now and keep TCU from getting another good RPI win to boot.

PAC 12

USC beats Arizona State (9)

Rationale: If the West Coast teams with regional hosting chances keep losing, they can't have more than one regional out there, opening up another spot for the rest of the country. Arizona State, which is hot, has gotten into range to host as a No. 2 seed but can't afford any more losses.

Big West

Long Beach State beats Cal St. Fullerton

Rationale: same principle as with Arizona State. Fullerton's RPI may be too low to host anyway, but a championship in a decent league (the Big West does not have a tournament) would give them an outside shot. If they lose the last two to Long Beach, Long Beach will win the league, and Long Beach did not put in a regional bid.

Sun Belt

Texas State beats Louisiana-Lafayette (11:30 a.m.)

This game was rained out yesterday. If ULL wins, it almost certainly will get to the Sun Belt title game. If it loses, it will be in Tulane's position. This is the biggest game of the day for the Wave's regional hosting hopes, assuming Tulane wins.

Obviously, Tulane needs to take care of business in what will be a very tough game against Houston, which has to win the AAC tournament to play in the NCAA tournament despite clearly having regional-caliber talent.

If Tulane wins, here's what else could help the Wave in its bid to host a regional:

1) Oklahoma State beats TCU (start time: 7:30) in Big 12 winners' bracket

TCU has a better RPI than Oklahoma State and a much better record against the RPI top 50, so it would help Tulane for the Horned Frogs to lose even though Oklahoma State is in the running to host a regional, too.

2) Marshall beats Southern Miss (start time: 7:30) in CUSA winners' bracket

USM has been very good at home all year, and that's where the CUSA tourney is being played. A loss to Marshall would make it very unlikely the Golden Eagles can come back to win the tournament and get back in the hosting conversation.

3) Texas State beats Louisiana-Lafayette (start time: 7:30) in Sun Belt winners bracket

This is by far the most significant game because Tulane definitely is competing with the Cajuns for a regional hosting spot. Texas State is better than Arkansas State and took one of three in Lafayette during the regular season, dropping the rubber game by one run. ULL probably will win because it is a really good team, but an upset would not be a shocker.

4) Connecticut beats South Florida (6:00) in AAC winners' bracket

Not that it is a realistic possibility, but if South Florida reaches the championship game, Tulane would get next to no RPI bump for beating the Bulls. UConn is in the top 50 despite having no significant series win to speak of this year (The Huskies are NCAA regional worthy on talent but not on their results), so Tulane would get a decent bump by beating them.

The last time Tulane played a big-time program other than LSU was Alabama in 2008, when Tulane outgained the Crimson Tide but lost 20-6 in a game that was close almost all the way. Alabama went 11-0 in the regular season.

The last time Tulane played a team from the Big Ten was Rutgers in 2014 in the Scarlet Knights' first year in the league. But if you go past that one, the previous time Tulane played a team that was in the Big Ten at the time the game was Michigan in 1972. The Wave was ranked 18th and Michigan was ranked 8th, and the Wolverines won 41-7 in Ann Arbor. Incredibly, that was the last regular season game Tulane played where both teams were ranked. The only other game since then was the Bluebonnet Bowl in 1973, which Houston won 47-7 when the Cougars were 14th and the Wave was 17th.

Tulane also played Rutgers in 2010 and 2012 when it was still a member of the Big East and Maryland in 1995 when the Terrapins were a member of the ACC.

Teams earn regional host slots by what they do, and by what their competition does not do. While Tulane has the day off today to get ready for its pivotal matchup with Houston, here are some results that could help the Wave's hosting chances.

1) Louisiana-Lafayette loses to Arkansas State (approximate start time: 7:30)

ULL probably is ahead of Tulane in the race for hosting rights, but tournament action could change that order. The Cajuns won two of three from the Red Wolves on the road in the regular season. Arkansas State is .500 overall and 13-17 in the Sun Belt. An upset is unlikely, but possible.

2) TCU loses to Baylor in the Big 12 opening round (approximate start time: 4)

I'm higher on TCU's hosting chances than most, but I believe I am right in reading the selection committee's normal though process. The Horned Frogs finished third in a down Big 12 and have few series wins of note, but their RPI is high and their record agains the top 50 and top 100 is very good. Those often are the two most important criteria for the selection committee, but a quick exit from the Big 12 tourney would end TCU's chances.

3) Southern Miss loses to Old Dominion in CUSA opening round (approximate start time: 4)

I do not think the Golden Eagles deserve to host even if they win the CUSA tournament since it is on their home field, but the selection committee may feel differently. I've felt USM was overrated all year, and today could prove my point. ODU has a good team and easily could knock USM into the losers' bracket.

4) Oklahoma State loses to Texas in the Big 12 opening round (approximate start time: 7:30)

If the Cowboys win the Big 12 tourney, they could steal a hosting spot since they finished second in what somehow is rated the third best league in the country. Their other metrics aren't great, but why take any chances? Let's get rid of them as quickly as possible.

5) Nebraska loses to Michigan State in Big Ten opening round (approximate start time: 1)

I don't buy the idea the committee will put a regional in the north for geographic balance, but if I'm wrong, Nebraska has the strongest case as a hot No. 2 seed if it makes a deep run in the Big 10 tourney. A loss to Michigan State would put the Huskers in the losers' bracket and kill that talk.

6) Coastal Carolina loses to Gardner-Webb in Big South winner's bracket (approximate start time: 7)

I don't think Coastal Carolina will host, and I don't think Coastal Carolina will lose in a weak conference it has dominated all year. But if the Chanticleers somehow lose twice in this event, their hosting chances will officially be kaput.

It also would help Tulane if East Carolina or Connecticut reaches the championship game in the AAC. The RPI bump for beating them would be much better than beating Memphis or USF, The best-case scenario is ECU, which has a higher RPI than Tulane but would have no chance of hosting over the Wave if Tulane won the regular season and tourney championships.

Gotta love this team. Gutsy,gutsy win. WTG WAVE!!!

I don't like it, but I give David Pierce tremendous leeway because he almost always makes the right decision, and obviously I have not watched Simms' practice sessions.

My concern is that Simms has never been good anywhere he's been. He had a 22.40 ERA while barely pitching for Rice (2 innings) in 2012. He had a 5.40 ERA at Weatherford College covering 11 appearances and nine starts for 43.1 innings in 2013. He had a 7.56 ERA in 8.1 innings in 2014 for West Virginia. He has walked 45 batters in 68.1 innings while hitting another 27 in his college career. Those are concerning numbers.

His stuff is electric, but Tulane may be the team that gets burned if he goes out wild and gives up four runs in the first inning while searching for control. Obviously there will be a quick hook, but it's a lopsided pitching matchup on paper with UCF throwing the AAC's ERA leader.

I do prefer using Simms at the start of an inning because his wild pitches don't count until someone is on base, but Patrick Duester and Dan Rankin appear to be safer choices.

Simms pitched a perfect inning in relief when Tulane faced UCF in Orlando, and maybe Pierce saw something there.

The good news is Tulane put up four runs against Robby Howell in Orlando, all earned. He did not give up more than two earned runs in any other AAC game, and his high in non-conference games was three. Maybe Tulane can win 4-3 behind Simms, Duester, Rankin, Yandel and Bjorngjeld. Merrill could be available in short relief, too. He threw nearly 80 pitches in his stint on Friday, and Pierce is still careful not to over-extend him after his arm soreness earlier in the year.

If Tulane gets by UCF, I give the Wave an 80 percent chance of reaching the championship game. Emerson Gibbs has been lights out and would be facing Houston or Cincy's No. 2 pitcher on Thursday. Pierce would have his choice of starters on Saturday morning against whatever team emerged from the losers' bracket, and he would not run out of quality starters through the championship game.

But it all hinges on the performance tomorrow. If the Wave loses, it has to come back on Wednesday night with Gibbs on two days' shorter rest than he is accustomed. A win there would give the Wave Thursday off, but it would need to win Friday morning, twice Saturday and again Sunday to take the championship.

Tulane has hit 58 home runs while giving up 16 this year, the third best differential in the country behind Coastal Carolina's plus-59 (85/26) and Missouri State's plus-50 (68/18).

The 58 homers rank in a tie for 20th nationally, but today I looked up where Tulane ranked in home runs allowed, which required going to all 31 baseball conference's websites and checking the stats. That is the 15th fewest total in the country, and most of the teams ahead of Tulane are from low-major Northeastern conferences. The only teams on that list that have a chance to make a regional are Creighton (14), which plays its home games in the cavernous stadium that hosts the College World Series, Lamar (11), Bryant (15) and Navy (15), which just won the automatic bid from the Patriot League.

David Pierce admitted recently he was not sure why Tulane had given up so few home runs, but it is an impressive stat when combined with Tulane's power surge this year. The Wave is almost assured of finishing among the top 10 in school history for homers with bats that don't compare to the ones used before 2011.

Congrats to the Wave Baseball team for achieving this fantastic goal! CHAMPS!!!! sure has a nice ring to it.

To win the title on the road against a very hot Houston team makes it even sweeter. Way to go guys!!!!

I'm not an expert and don't have inside info here, but after going over the candidates, I have to believe Tulane is in the running despite its RPI of 27 at the end of Saturday's play.

The Wave is 8-2 against the RPI top 25, a remarkable record. The Wave is 18-10 against the top 100, a solid mark. Tulane lost only one weekend series, and just one team, Kent State, went the whole year without losing any. And Tulane won the regular season title of the No. 6 RPI conference.

Unless the committee goes for geographic balance and awards a regional to someone in the north or midwest (Bryan? Minnesota? Don't think so), I believe the primary contenders for non-SEC/ACC regional are Tulane, Louisiana-Lafayette, Coastal Carolina and TCU at the moment. Forget C-USA. USM finished third, Rice finished fourth and both got swept this weekend. Marshall, the No. 2, might not even make the field. And FAU, the No. 1 has a weak facility in a state that almost certainly will get three regionals.

My guess is TCU would be the most likely to get a regional if nothing changes during conference tournament play, which is impossible. The Horned Frogs check most of the boxes the committee considers--RPI of 17, non-conference RPI of 11 and an impressive 19-8 record against the top 100 with no losses to sub-200 teams. The drawback is the distant third-place finish in the Big 12, but champion Texas Tech will be a national seed and the Big 12 is the No. 3 conference, so I think the committee would overlook the conference finish.

ULL, with an RPI of 18, is in the picture because South Alabama collapsed, blowing a four-game lead with five to play by losing twice to ULL and then dropping two to Troy while ULL swept ULM, handing the No. 1 seed in the Sun Belt to the Cajuns. ULL went 19-13 against the top 100 and played the No. 1-rated non-conference schedule (which goes strictly by winning percentage). ULL has no wins over top-25 teams but did split with Tulane.

Coastal Carolina has an RPI of 14, past pedigree and dominated its league and was a respectable 15-12 against the top 100 with wins over Virginia, UNC Wilmington and North Carolina. But the Chanticleers were swept at Georgia Tech at the beginning of May, and Georgia Tech finished 13-16i n the ACC.

If Tulane gets to the AAC Tourney final (and who the heck is going to pitch Tuesday night? My initial guess is Duester, which is scary) and TCU and ULL don't in their leagues, the Wave's case will be a lot stronger than most people realize. The RPI probably won't climb much with Houston at 71, Cincinnati at 108 and UCF at 148 but the other metrics are good.

Some of the teams ahead of Tulane in the RPI have zero shot at hosting over Tulane. North Carolina did not make the 10-team ACC tournament. Duke went 14-15 in the ACC. ECU finished behind Tulane in the AAC. Wake Forest went 13-17 in the AAC. If that RPI number climbs to the low 20s with a 3-0 start in the AAC tourney, I like the Wave's chances depending on what happens in the other tournaments. The teams to pull against are TCU and ULL.

I conducted this interview in the car on my way to the Tulane-LSU game, so it might not be as thorough as some others I have done, but Tulane is very interested in Marist (Ga.) OT Charlie Clark, who is under the radar nationally but fits what Willie Fritz and his staff want to do.

Here's what he said. His answer about the facility upgrades being planned was by far the most interesting thing he said.

When did you visit Tulane?

“It was the 23rd, so that was a Saturday. It went very well. I had already been looking at Tulane as a student, but I hadn’t really heard anything from their last staff, and when I got offered by Georgia Southern, that really kind of sparked an interest from them. I loved coach Fritz and his staff and coach (Alex) Atkins and their facilities. They showed us their basketball ones, which we’ve done, and the football ones will be done soon. The campus was great. I like what they are doing there on offense and the kind of offense they are bringing over from Georgia Southern.

What other schools are you interested in?

“My top three are probably Tulane and Georgia Southern and then Florida Atlantic?”

Do you see yourself as a guard or a tackle at the college level?

“It’s kind of half and half. Right now I play tackle, and coach Atkins said they offered me at tackle, but Georgia Southern’s offer is at guard and some people want me to play center, too. I’m all over the board here.”

What do you like about the Tulane coaches?

“I would say they really know what they’re doing. They run a tight ship. They are really knowledgeable. I’ve heard from a lot of people that they’re good coaches and they really know what they’re talking about. They’ve turned a lot of programs around, and they have a plan in place I think is going to be really good. They just know what they’re doing.”

With the coaches’ history, do you think they will at Tulane pretty quickly?

“Definitely, yeah. I watched them a lot when they were at Georgia Southern when they just took a wishbone team and turned them into a winning machine. I think they are going to do really well at Tulane. They have their first game at Wake Forest and are like 18-point underdogs, but that’s kind of off in my opinion.”

Where is Marist, Ga., your hometown?

“It’s kind of North Atlanta. Marist is in DeKalb County.”

When do you expect to make a decision?

“I’m definitely going to make it before the season, but I really have tried to think about but I’m not sure. It will be sometime this summer probably.”

Do you anticipate any other school getting into the mix?

“I’ve got some other FCS offers, but I’m really looking to FBS. I’ve done ACC schools like Wake Forest and Georgia Tech, but even if they offer me, I don’t know. I would really have to think about it.”

How long have you started?

“As a sophomore I was a backup to Sage Hardin, who now plays at Georgia. That was my first year starting last year.”

Is that a reason you’re not rated by Rivals.com?

“I think I’m really unknown by all the services. I don’t know why I’m kind of really unknown.”

What is your best asset on the football field?

“Definitely my run blocking. If you watch my tape, I’m really just coming out of my four-point stance because we run triple option. I’m not as big as most D1 recruits, but I have some speed and agility, too.”

You list yourself at 6-4, 270 on your Hudl page. Is that accurate?

“Yes.”

Have you taken a visit to FAU yet?

“No. I’ve been to Georgia Southern a couple of times.”

Who to start on the mound Tuesday?

The best thing about finishing the game on Saturday is our team “won” the conference championship on the field and didn’t “back into it” by not playing for whatever reason. The worst thing about it was that we had to use France for an extended period. Had we legitimately “rain shortened” the game without any controversy over the call, France would almost assuredly be starting the Tuesday game against UCF. He’d be fully rested and ready to go. Moreover, everyone else would be set to go over the rest of the tournament. That didn’t happen.

As it is, thanks to Thursday's rain out, Gibbs, Ross Massey, and Merrill all pitched on Friday. That would give them only three days rest to start Tuesday. Gibbs threw the most and might require more rest than the others but who knows? Major League pitchers used to pitch on three day’s rest routinely in the 1960’s, but it’s very rare now, except for playoff and World Series’ situations when “aces’ occasionally are asked to do such. But those guys are generally “grown men” of 30 years old, who normally come back on four days rest, not 20 year olds used to six days off between starts.

Still, who to throw? Alex Massey threw 63 pitches on Saturday and France threw 59, but they will only have two days rest come Tuesday. Of the “three-days rest guys,” Merrill threw the least but I’m sure we’re very protective of his arm. Gibbs threw the most and Massey is the youngest and least experienced so those have to be entered into any decision also.

The opposition may also make a difference. We’re playing UCF who we swept previously and they are, on paper, the worst team in the league, but… While we’ve shown we can beat anyone, we’ve pretty much established a capability to lose to anyone also. We’re in the regionals as a second seed virtually regardless—even going 0-2 in the AAC tourney. But we need to sweep the tourney to have a chance to “host.” Does that mean we save our best arms for Houston/Cincinnati and eventually a championship game against probably ECU?

Does that mean starting Duester? He’s well rested and probably wants to “make up” for walking in the winning run Friday night. I think it’s possible. Yandel? Wow; that would be risky. Anyone else?

I’ll be interested in seeing what Coach Pierce decides. He’s generally pushed all the right buttons since coming to New Orleans.

Roll Wave!!!

I taped Graff's interviews off the radio:

LEX KAPLAN

On catching fly for final out

"I just took off after it, and when I caught it I was just excited. It's the first conference championship in 11 years. It's great."

On special day for Kaplans, with Jon Kaplan having led Tulane to CWS in 2001

"It's a great feeling. I'm proud of him and I know he's proud of me. He's over in Spain, and we're not done yet. We're going to keep working hard and we're going to go all the way."

On knowing this was possible after last year

"We worked hard and our chemistry was great and we never gave up, even when we were down. We lost the series to Cincinnati, but we said, hey, we're not going to give up on this, we still have a chance to win the conference, and it showed. We did it."

On team meeting before USM game that Tulane won 12-0 right after losing Cincy series

"We just talked about it and said it's in the past and we're going to go on with the future, and we showed it tonight. We're conference champions, getting a pinky ring."

DAVID PIERCE

On winning AAC

"The team we just played was pretty darn hot, but I'll tell you what, our kids just gutted it up. They did so many things right this weekend. We played tremendous defense and we really pitched and we had those timely hits, and our timely hits seemed to be the long ball. We've lived and died on it, and it's been awesome to watch these kids and just watch the development of growing with each other and watching the way the program is just cultivating. The kids are hungry and they're loving it and they're loving each other and we're going to the postseason right now."

On treating Houston series like super regional and using J.P. France for four innings at end of game

"Yeah, he was unbelievable late, and that's the thing. I was asking him every inning, 'how do you feel, are you good, do you have your legs under you?' and he felt great. He wanted the ball and we wanted him to keep it, and he's just determined. That's what we did all weekend. We had some determined at-bats. Hunter Williams just killed the ball all weekend. Hits a bullet with (runners on) second and third (in the seventh inning) and we don't get them in because they catch it, but the whole weekend was a tough one. We came in and didn't get to play on Thursday. We had to go to the doubleheader, and the doubleheader was extended. I'll tell you what, that right there really exemplified this team because what you saw is them fight through that tough loss and come back and win two.

"And we did talk about a super regional because if you don't win it, you go home. We started the postseason then."

On confidence going to Clearwater

"This is the thing. We talk about different phases of the season. First of all you play a lot of your non-conference games for RPI, and then you get in your conference series, and the midweeks are also important, but the conference series at that point, every one of them is a grind, so you're in this long, dreaded thing of just trying to survive weekend to weekend, and we won the first championship. The next championship we have our eyes set on is the tournament championship, and we move on from there. They have ambition, they have desire to play for a long time for the rest of the summer. We're not guaranteed anything, but we will be right."

On being Houston alum and winning title at Houston

"Honestly, if you're going to win a championship for the first time at Tulane and the University of Houston is in you're conference, it couldn't happen at a better place.

It's just been an incredible start, and that's what it is--a start."

J.P. France (who retired the last eight batters)

On long rain delay after fifth inning

"The guys were getting cabin fever. We were ready to play about 30 minutes before they told us we were going to play. I had to get my mind right. I knew this was going to be a big win and I knew I just had to go all out. It was huge. I had the guys back me up. Willsey had a huge hit to put us up 4-3. It was just a great win for all of us."

On getting out of sixth inning with runner on second and one out after Houston tied it thanks primarily to fly ball lost in the twilight

"No doubt. Those pop-ups were hit and everybody looked up and it just vanished. It was crazy. Yeah, i had that guy on second and couldn't give them anything to hit. I just threw strikes and let the defense work for me."

Last out to Kaplan

"At first I was thinking please catch it, please catch it, and then I saw it go into his glove and just went crazy. It was amazing. Everybody gathered around me, and it was huge."

Guerry, what's the story on the basketball transfer from Vandy?

Any info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

The Marist, Ga offensive lineman I talked to last month committed today.

Here's the link to the thread with the interview from April.

https://tulane.forums.rivals.com/threads/q-a-with-ol-recruit-charlie-clark.3027/

I just got this from Tulane.

I confirmed Rickey Preston is no longer on the team, but at least Devon Breaux is returning at WR. I'm surprised Trey Scott is nowhere on the depth chart at WR, but he is still on the team.

Tristan Cooper, who did not play a down at receiver in the spring, is listed as the starter at one of the three wideout spots, which tells you all you need to know about the receivers' performance in the spring. He has been moved from safety.

As expected, Cuiellette and Bradwell are listed as co-number 1 at QB. Neither one of them earned the nod as a starter the way they played in the spring.

If you were wondering how this staff would treat the overweight players, here is the first clue: Jason Stewart is not on the two-deep at guard, getting replaced by Brian Webb, who was moved from DT near the end of spring and barely practiced there due to an injury. Braynon Edwards does not appear on the two-deep at DT.

Tulane is going with the nickel position rather than a third LB on the depth chart. Richard Allen is listed first, with Taris Shenall behind him.

Quinlan Carroll gets the not at DE over Daren Williams, who was injured for much of the spring.

They aren't shy about putting true freshmen on the depth chart, meaning they are not giving away spots by default just because a guy practiced with the second team during the spring. Chris Johnson and Darnell Mooney make the list at WR, Tyler Johnson gets there at RT, and Tre Jackson and P.J. Hall crack the list at CB ahead of returning players Dedrick Shy, Stephon Lofton and Jeremie Francis. The status of that trio bears watching over the summer.

My only problem with the whole list: the two punt returners. Hilliard and Nickerson are not good enough in that role to risk injury. Maybe they'll prove me wrong, but I would not put incredibly valuable front-line guys back there unless they were difference-makers as returners. It will be interesting to see if this holds in the preseason.

HERE IS THE OFFICIAL DEPHT CHART

OFFENSE

WR (X)

Encalade
Chris Johnson

WR (Z)

Cooper
Darnell Mooney

WR (H)

Dace
Glenn

LT

Jacquet
Devon Johnson

LG

Taylor
Brown

C

Diaz
McLeod

RG

Santa Marina
Webb

RT

Leglue
Tyler Johnson

TE

Jones
Ardoin

QB

Cuiellette OR Bradwell
Powell

RB

Hilliard OR Badie OR Rounds OR Thompson

DEFENSE

DE

Carroll
Williams

DT

Smart
Eldrick Washington

NT

Wilson
J. Washington

DE

Aruna
Kennedy

MLB

Thomas
Marbley

WLB

Marley
Bowie

NB

Allen
Shenall

CB

Lewis
Tre Jackson

CB

Nickerson
P.J. Hall

FS

Franklin
Will Harper

SS

Davis
Teamer

SPECIAL TEAMS

K

Logan
Harvey

P

Block
Carrasquero

DS

Geron Eatherley
Golub

HO

Cuiellette
Encalade

KR

Badie and Hilliard
Glenn and Breaux

PR

Hilliard
Nickerson

Tulane coach David Pierce talked on the phone about the matchup with Houston after the Green Wave bus stopped in Lake Charles for lunch Tuesday on the way to Houston. At the time, he had no idea the first game would be delayed until Friday, forcing the Green Wave to play a doubleheader on the final weekend of AAC play for the second straight year. Hopefully for their sake they will duplicate last year's feat of sweeping Memphis and wrap up the conference title Friday.

Here's what he said:

Houston right now is as hot as any team in the country. What are your biggest concerns?

"They are hot, they are desperate and they are confident. They are playing with a sense of urgency knowing they have to finish the season well to have any aspiration of an at-large bid and not be just completely dependent on the conference tournament championship. They are playing really well and they are playing pretty good teams. They beat Rice twice, (Louisiana) Lafayette and took two out of three from Cincinnati on the road. Not only are they playing well, but they are playing well against good teams, so it's going to be tough."

Is this as big a challenge as you could have, and how nice is it to have a guy like Emerson Gibbs pitching Thursday?

"I truly feel like every weekend series is like that right now. This one's going to have a little more at stake, but I really feel that we've played with that type of mentality every weekend, especially since conference has started. I don't think Houston plays it any different than we do. They know that they need to have a good performance and they know they need to win, but I definitely like having the opportunity with Emerson Gibbs on the mound (Thursday)."

I assume Houston is going to go with the same rotation as last weekend --Seth Romero, who has an ERA of 2.37, then two freshmen, including Mitch Ullom (ERA: 2.12) who has thrown back-to-back complete games, since it allowed only two runs to Cincinnati, but Andrew Lantrip pitched 1.2 innings yesterday against Rice. What do you foresee?

"I am. That hasn't been confirmed, but I'm assuming that right now. I would think Seth Romero would go the first game Thursday. (Trey) Cumbie (ERA: 1.33) was their midweek guy and then moved to the Sunday when Lantrip missed a start. And Ullom is a big-body kid who really fills up the strike zone as well, so both of those kids are pitching very well for them. I'm not so sure if Lantrip stays in the bullpen if he's healthy or he becomes one of the starters."

You had a team meeting right after losing 2-0 to Nicholls State. It was a really bad night at the plate, but you are still leading the AAC in runs scored per game. Is that the message you wanted to give to these guys?

"Yeah, I mean, you take last night (Tuesday), on another given night we hit three home runs. They played us deep and they were in great position to make the plays. They did a good job of that by positioning, but all we talked about was what's in front of us and try to quickly overcome the loss and start getting locked in on this coming weekend. That was the whole intent--just getting focused on our own disappointment and how we can do our own job a little bit better and go do it."

Are you going with Gibbs and then the two Masseys?

"I haven't announced, but right now that's the plan."

You are 7-1 on the road in the AAC. Is there anything to that, or is just the way things have worked out?

"I just think we've been playing well and it's been on the road. We played really confident and played great defense and threw strikes both at Central Florida and at South Florida. The UConn series was a little bit different because of the weather, but we were playing well those weekends and hopefully we'll continue that trend."

It's a big deal having a chance to win the first regular season championship for Tulane in 11 years. Do you want the guys to approach it that way or treat these as just another game to take the pressure off?

"They know the significance of it and they are excited for that opportunity. They really truly believe this is an opportunity for them to put a stamp on this program and get it back to a level that they would be proud of. They are going about hopefully with the right intent as far as playing the game the way they've been playing it, but there's that little extra motivation just to know there's the opportunity to win a championship."

The opener has been moved to 3 p.m. Does that change anything in the way the team has to prepare?

"It could a little bit just because of the travel, but the travel's pretty simple. We headed out at 10 today, and our practice schedule will be the same. Our dinner plans will be the same because we always have a team dinner on Thursday. That's moved to Wednesday, so we'll be together the rest of the day. It's a regular routine. We had to play a 1 o'clock in Connecticut. I think we played both night games in Florida, but I really don't see the 3 o'clock change being a significant issue for us."

You've struggled to find a left fielder who can consistently hit. You have four candidates for that role this weekend--Richard Carthon, Grant Brown, Jarett DeHart and Cade Edwards. Which way are you leaning?

"It's funny you asked that question because that was just discussed. If we see Romero it will definitely be one of the right-handers, either Grant Brown or Cade Edwards."

I really like Guerry's "by the numbers" columns. Here's some "add ons"

5: Consecutive games we've played against teams with RPI’s of 200 or more

4: The last four games—a bad stretch. We’ve been held to 0 or 1 run 3 times (only happened 6 times all season) and have been outscored 15-11 by truly bad teams (at least against everyone else).

3: Losses this year to teams with RPI’s of 200 or more. For comparison, the top 20 RPI teams are a combined 105-5 against such squads.

2: Losses to Nichols State (ugh!) Of course, NIchols could move into the top 199 if they win 2 of 3 from UNO this weekend.

1: Number of times we’ve been shut out this year. Last year we were shut out 7 times and the year before, 8 times. Even in 2005, with livelier bats and balls, we were shut out three times.

0: The number our chances of hosting is approaching; but we’re not there yet.
If we sweep Houston and then sweep through the AAC tournament 4-0, our RPI will likely (depending on a lot of factors) get to the low 20’s; that would do it. Not winning the conference tourney (adding two more losses to teams ranked below us) would drop us to the high 20’s even with a Houston sweep Those three losses to “bad” teams will likely offset our 8-4 record against “good” teams (RPI <50). Aaron Fitts all but dismissed our chances yesterday due to poor RPI.

We need to get back on the winning track quickly and run out the season. Our longest winning streak ever is 15 games. Let's break that record and come back from Omaha as the champs.

Roll Wave!!

As of midnight, Tulane is 33rd in the RPI after rotating between 31 and 32 all day before Nicholls State shut the Wave out 2-0.

Other teams hoping to get regionals had tough nights, too. Rice lost to Houston 24-6. Michigan lost its fifth in a row, to Oakland. Oklahoma State lost to Oral Roberts. Minnesota lost to South Dakota State.

There is not a clear frontrunner for the regional bid that will go to some team that is not on the West Coast or in the SEC or ACC. Southern Miss can become that frontrunner if it wins C-USA, but the Golden Eagles have been mediocre away from home heading into a series at FIU. I don't think Tulane is out of it, but my bigger concern at the moment is the Wave holding on to win the AAC. The way Houston is playing, a sweep by the Cougars is not out of the question. If Tulane sweeps a team that has won seven of eight and beaten Rice by the combined score of 34-6 the past two weeks, the Nicholls State loss will be long forgotten.