(05-29-2017 01:29 PM)DFW Owl Wrote:  

(05-29-2017 12:20 PM)WRCisforgotten79 Wrote:  Perhaps Walt can address this, but I find it a bit perplexing that the #6 conference (C-USA) gets 2 bids (with matched regions), while the #7 conference (B1G) gets 5.

Of course though bids are for individual teams not for conferences. A weaker overall conference could be top heavy and get more bids. I am not saying though that the at-large bids were necessarily correct. There probably is some big conference/school bias, especially for ones in the North.

I had thought along these lines. Tournament results may have been a difference maker for LaTech and ODU. I think CUSA's problem was that roughly four teams were on the outside of the bubble region RPI-wise, entering tournament play. Here are the RPI results from boydsworld...

NCAA Division I Baseball -- Pseudo-RPI's

Quote: 10 0.592 48 14 45.6 14.0 48 14 Southern Mississippi
25 0.569 33 22 32.1 20.2 33 22 Indiana
34 0.559 37 21 33.7 17.7 37 21 Maryland
36 0.557 31 29 30.7 29.9 31 29 Rice
42 0.555 42 15 38.4 15.3 42 15 Michigan
43 0.555 35 20 34.1 19.4 35 20 Nebraska
48 0.552 36 20 33.6 18.8 36 20 Louisiana Tech
50 0.548 37 21 32.5 21.3 37 21 Old Dominion
58 0.545 35 21 30.5 20.1 35 21 Florida Atlantic
69 0.539 36 21 35.4 23.7 36 21 Minnesota
76 0.535 29 23 30.5 22.1 29 23 Michigan State
87 0.530 31 27 28.9 27.9 31 27 Florida International
90 0.528 36 20 33.0 18.8 38 20 Iowa

edit: bolded teams got bids, bold-italic-underline were auto-bids.

(05-29-2017 02:38 PM)waltgreenberg Wrote:  

(05-29-2017 12:51 PM)I45owl Wrote:  I think this is the best bid of any if the possibilities. A history of doing reasonably well against LSU, decent matchups in 2,4 seeds, and a known opponent in the supers...

Gotta quibble with that. They gave LSU the absolutely weakest #4 seed in the tourney in TSU, and for all practical purposes two #3 seeds. SELA was a bubble in team, with a quality RPI (#27), but not much else on their resume. By giving LSU TSU in the opener, LSU can go with their #3 or even their #4 starter, and save their co-aces, Lange and Poche, for the following two games. And their offense is downright scary.

I'm not sure how much you're quibbling. By extension, Rice also faces one of the weaker #2 seeds and a very weak #4 seed. #1 seeds are always going to be tough, so Rice's path was always going to be tougher than LSUs. Past years' results are irrelevant, but Rice has a history of either upsetting or giving LSU all they could handle at the regional/super-regional level... perhaps not so much in Omaha from my recollection. Ultimately, the comparison is such that you'd have to pick another regional that would be a better path for Rice... Perhaps the Houston or Kentucky regionals?

(05-29-2017 02:28 PM)Tomball Owl Wrote:  

(05-29-2017 02:18 PM)Volente Beach Owl Wrote:  Kramer Robertson's arrogance (and weirdo Mom) should also serve as motivation.

An Aggie friend refers to her as Skeletor.

I'd forgotten about he and his mom. How does she get the title "weirdo mom"? It seems like she has a kind of busy career of her own...

I'd be careful about talking bad about her too close or she'll punch you in your face.

(05-30-2017 06:41 AM)Fort Bend Owl Wrote:  I'd be careful about talking bad about her too close or she'll punch you in your face.

You win the internet today. I LOL'd.

(05-30-2017 12:45 AM)Rick Gerlach Wrote:  

(05-29-2017 09:51 PM)skycatcher Wrote:  JP does a great job for rice athletics...and he loves rice....an unusual trait for recent rice athletic hires :stir the pot"

I enjoy JP. He's entertaining that's for sure. I don't know if I'd say he's prone to malapropisms, contradictions or just sometimes hard to follow . . . or some combination of all 3. Tank might be a good nickname (Jeff Millar/Bill Hinds fans should get this).

He does grow on you.

I like JP too, and I've been listening to him regularly since he came to Rice (and moreso now that I don't make it to games in person much). But (as Rick summarizes well) he does have a style.

(05-30-2017 10:52 AM)texd Wrote:  

(05-30-2017 12:45 AM)Rick Gerlach Wrote:  

(05-29-2017 09:51 PM)skycatcher Wrote:  JP does a great job for rice athletics...and he loves rice....an unusual trait for recent rice athletic hires :stir the pot"

I enjoy JP. He's entertaining that's for sure. I don't know if I'd say he's prone to malapropisms, contradictions or just sometimes hard to follow . . . or some combination of all 3. Tank might be a good nickname (Jeff Millar/Bill Hinds fans should get this).

He does grow on you.

I like JP too, and I've been listening to him regularly since he came to Rice (and moreso now that I don't make it to games in person much). But (as Rick summarizes well) he does have a style.

Traveling around to cross-country and track meets, or baseball games, and back, I frequently listen to Rice games on the Internet, often with my son in the car.

I think the most common thing I say in response to the broadcasts seems to be:

"What did he just say?"