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Coaching legend to retire at end of season

One of college baseball's coaching legends has announced that he will hang up his spikes at the end of this season.

Mississippi State coach Ron Polk is in his 29th year with the Bulldogs and 35th overall as a head coach. He announced last week that he will resign at the end of this season.

Polk has had a tremendous amount of success during three decades in Starkville. His 1,360 wins ranks him fifth among active coaches and is in the top 10 all time. He has been named to the American Baseall Coaches Hall of Fame and is a two-time National Coach of the Year.

He led the Bulldogs to the postseason 23 times, including each of the last five years. Under Polk, Mississippi State has played in eight College World Series. Their trip to Rosenblatt Stadium last year was the team's first since 1998. They also made the journey to Omaha in 1971, 1979, 1981, 1985, 1990 and 1997.

Polk has been critical of the NCAA over recent rule changes, including the switch to a uniform start date. According to an Associate Press story, Polk told MSU athletic director Larry Templeton before the season started that this one would be his last.

Stadium negotiations hit a snag

There is trouble in paradise again regarding the possible building of a new downtown stadium in Omaha.

The board that oversees Qwest Center and its parking lots is on board with giving up two of its lots for the construction of a $140 million stadium northwest of Omaha's new arena. The problem, though, is that they want a guarantee from Omaha Mayor Mike Fahey that the city won't demand future construction on any other parking lots MECA has leased from the city.

It's a guarantee that, according to the city's legal team, no mayor can make.

The City of Omaha owns the property that includes the Qwest Center and its adjacent parking lots. It agreed to a 99-year lease with MECA, but the power of eminent domain still rests with the city on that property.

The Nebraska Legislature has granted cities power to assume eminent domain, and for Fahey to sign away that option would violate state law, attorneys for the city said in an Omaha World-Herald story.

Fahey has assured MECA that the city has no plans, either immediate or in the future, to develop the parking lots used by MECA, and the city will not develop or redevelop on those properties leased by MECA without first getting written consent from the board.

In an agreement submitted by Fahey, he urges future mayors and city councils not to use the city's power of eminent domain in regards to Qwest Center property. MECA board members David Sokol, however, wants it written in stone that such an event does not occur.

"If the mayor doesn't waive eminent domain," he said in the World-Herald, "it's not going to happen on lots C and E."

Those two lots, of course, are the lots the city would use to build the new stadium. Therefore, it remains to be seen whether this is a true deal-breaker or just a hiccup that will get worked out between the two entities.

Whatever the case, the city has until the end of April to make their final proposal to the NCAA on the future of the College World Series, which will continue at Rosenblatt Stadium through 2010. Fahey has gone on record as saying the College World Series will be played in a new stadium in 2011, either in Omaha or another city.

CWS team to watch -- Missouri

It's been a while since the Missouri Tigers have been part of the discussion of teams that are in contention for a trip to the College World Series.

The Tigers are looking to qualify for regionals for the sixth straight year in 2008. Last year, they hosted a regional touranment and were upset by Louisville in the finals, so coach Tim Jameson and his troops are looking to take that next step and make the short trip northwest to Rosenblatt Stadium.

It's a trip the Tigers haven't made in over 40 years. They have made the trip on the road to Omaha six times, winning it all in 1954 and finishing as runner-up to Holy Cross in 1952, USC in 1958 and Minnesota in 1964. However, since falling to the Golden Gophers in the 1964 championship, the Tigers haven't been anywhere close to getting back to the College World Series.

This year, the Tigers have the makings of a team that could end that 44-year drought, led by all-conference pitcher Aaron Crow. Crow is one of three starting pitchers back from last year's 42-18 team, and he's off to a good start with a perfect 5-0 record that includes a 1.03 earned-run average and a team-leading 51 strikeouts.

Also back on the mound is starter Rick Zagone and sophomore Kyle Gibson, who is making a solid transition from the bullpen to a starting nod with a 5-0 record and 1.83 ERA early in the season.

Offensively, the Tigers are getting some solid play from all-conference designate4d hitter Jacob Priday, who leads the team in average (.387) and is second in homers (5) and RBI's (26). Outfielder Kurt Calvert is hitting the ball well and Aaron Senne leads the team in homers (6) and RBI's (32) as the Tigers have gotten off to a 19-4 start.

The Tigers came out of the gates hot early on, beating Cal and playing preseason-ranked San Diego tough on the road. Missouri had a 13-game winning streak until earlier this week, when they dropped back-to-back games on the road at Minnesota.

Missouri currently leads the Big 12 Conference race, kicking off the conference docket with a solid three-game sweep of a very good Baylor team. Tiger fans are hoping it's the start of a journey to

Missouri currently leads the Big 12 Conference race, kicking off the conference docket with a solid three-game sweep of a very good Baylor team. Tiger fans are hoping it's the start of a journey to Rosenblatt Stadium for the 2008 College World Series, a trip Missouri fans haven't been able to make in over four decades.

Great series on tap for this weekend

The Southeastern Conference has several intriguing matchups that highlight this week's look into some key series in college baseball:

Kentucky at South Carolina

The Wildcats were one of the last undefeated teams in Div. I before a rough week brought them down to earth. They will find out just how good they are against a tough Gamecocks team that is No. 7 in the CWS Tickets' Race To Rosenblatt rankings.

Arkansas at Vanderbilt

The Commodores have stumbled out of the gate in defense of their SEC title from last year. They have a chance to get back in the SEC East Division race against the Razorbacks, who are in the thick of things in the early going.

LSU at Florida

The rebuilding Tigers have a chance to take a big step forward against the East Division-leading Gators.

Nebraska at Texas

The Cornhuskers swept Kansas State and went 2-0-1 against Oklahoma to open Big 12 play. They'll find out just how good they are on the road against the Longhorns, who sit 1 1/2 games behind Nebraska in third place in the Big 12.

UCLA at Arizona

The Bruins started the year ranked very high, but have not played up to those lofty expectations. They open Pac 10 play against Arizona, ranked No. 3 in the CWS Tickets' Race To Rosenblatt rankings.

Long Beach State at Cal

The Dirtbags are No. 6 in our rankings this week, and they put that on the line against a very good Bears squad who could find themselves in our rankings next week with a good showing.

Some of these teams could very well make their way to Rosenblatt Stadium for the 2008 College World Series. Don't wait until it's too late -- order your CWS tickets now at Ticket Express, where no College World Series game is ever sold out.

Plenty of shifting in Baseball America rankings

Arizona State continues its hold on the No. 1 spot in the Baseball America rankings as a lot of movement was seen among the top 25 teams.

With the exception of the Sun Devils, every team in the top 10 saw some movement. The big winner was Missouri, which leap-frogged over North Carolina and jumped two spots to No. 2. Miami and Long Beach State also got two-spot promotions, moving ahead of Arizona, which dropped four spots.

Texas and San Diego both made four-spot moves upward this week. The big drop was from UCLA, which dropped three games to Long Beach State and fell 12 spots to No. 23.

In the end, only East Carolina dropped out of the ratings, replaced by Florida, who took two out of three from Ole Miss, which fell seven spots and dropped out of the top 10.

This week's Baseball America rankings are as follows (record and last week's ranking in parenthesis):

1. Arizona State (22-1, 1), 2. Missouri (18-2, 4), 3. North Carolina (18-4, 3), 4. Miami, Fla. (17-2, 6), 5. Long Beach State (16-3, 7),

6. Arizona (13-5, 2), 7. UC Irvine (16-2, 9), 8. Florida State (19-2, 10), 9. Vanderbilt (14-6, 5), 10. South Carolina (15-5, 13),

11. California (15-4, 12), 12. Rice (17-6, 15), 13. Texas (16-6, 18), 14. San Diego (16-7, 19), 15. Ole Miss (15-8, 8),

16. Wichita State (14-3, 20), 17. Stanford (9-5, 17), 18. Kentucky (20-2, 16), 19. Nebraska (17-3, 22), 20. Baylor (13-7, 14),

21. Virginia (19-4, 24), 22. Coastal Carolina (18-4, 21), 23. UCLA (10-8, 11), 24. Florida (17-4, NR), 25. Michigan (9-6, 25).

Plenty of shakeups, but Sun Devils still No. 1

It was a weekend of shake-ups in the CWS Tickets' Race To Rosenblatt rankings, but when the dust settled it was still Arizona State who holds down the top spot.

The Sun Devils did lose their first game of the year, dropping a decision to Northern Colorado at a tournament in Tempe, Ariz. But the Sun Devils rebounded with a pair of wins, including a win over UC Irvine, and with all that happened below them we think the Sun Devils are still the team to beat at this point.

Missouri had a very impressive weekend and made a strong case for themselves after dominating a very talented Baylor team over the weekend. The Tigers did not allow a run until the last inning of Sunday's finale, and with all the shakeups of last week, we like the Tigers as the No. 2 team right now.

Both Arizona and North Carolina suffered defeats over the weekend. The Tar Heels lost one of two at Maryland, while the Wildcats dropped the first game of a three-game set with USC before rebounding to win the last two. They both drop one slot this week to No. 4 and No. 3, respectively.

The bottom half of our rankings is where the big moves occurred. Three teams bounced out, with Vanderbilt and Ole Miss lost weekend conference series, while UC Irvine fell to Arizona State in a tournament at Tempe. Miami, Florida, did survive and moved up to the No. 5 slot. The losses around them allowed Long Beach State and Florida State to enter our rankings for the first time, and South Carolina is back in after a dominating weekend of play.

This week's CWS Tickets' Race To Rosenblatt rankings are as follows:

1. Arizona State

2. Missouri

3. Arizona

4. North Carolina

5. Miami (Fla.)

6. Long Beach State

7. South Carolina

8. Florida State

Beware the Dirtbags

Long Beach State came up with three runs in the ninth inning of the opener and blasted UCLA in the nightcap to sweep a key doubleheader and highlight weekend college baseball action.

The Dirtbags got the game-winning run Friday when T.J. Mittelstaedt tied the game with a two-out, two-run double, then scored the winning run on an error to give Long Beach the 3-2 win. They swept the nightcap behind the pitching of Vance Worley, who struck out nine and scattered six hits in a 10-3 win. Those victories, coupled with a 13-3 triumph Friday in Los Angeles, gave Long Beach the weekend sweep against the Bruins.

Another up-and-comer making some big noise over the weekend was Missouri, who dominated Baylor in a weekend sweep in Columbia, Mo. Baylor didn't allow a run until the final inning of the final game, sweeping the Bears 7-0, 3-0 and 12-2 in the Tigers' Big 12 Conference opener.

South Carolina, which fell out of the CWS Tickets' Race To Rosenblatt rankings last week, may have played themselves back into our top eight after a weekend sweep of Mississippi State, beating the Bulldogs 9-1, 4-1 and 10-3. And the Miami (Fla.) Hurricanes, a recent entry into our rankings, proved they belong after obliterating Wake Forest in two games, scoring 40 runs in their sweep of the Demon Deacons.

And we found out this weekend that top-ranked and previously undefeated Arizona State is human after all. The Sun Devils dropped their first game of the year, losing a 6-3 decision to Northern Colorado in the Schafer Invitational at Tempe, Ariz., on Friday. The Sun Devils did bounce back, though, beating Florida International and UC Irvine to finish 2-1 in the tournament.

Two teams in our rankings did come up on the wrong end of the ledger this week and could be making exits from the RTR rankings. Both Vanderbilt and Ole Miss lost two of three in Southeastern Conference play. The Commodores dropped the final two of a weekend series with Alabama (9-7 and 10-3) after taking Friday's opener by a 2-1 margin. Ole Miss also won their opener with Florida (5-4) but lost the final two by scores of 6-4 and 10-2.

Look for the CWS Tickets' Race To Rosenblatt rankings later this week to see where we rank the nation's best college baseball teams. And don't wait to order tickets to the College World Series this summer at Rosenblatt Stadium in Omaha. Reserve your tickets now with Ticket Express -- where no College World Series game is ever sold out.

Race To Rosenblatt led by Arizona State again

It has been an interesting week in college sports as March Madness hits high gear. In the world of college baseball, this past week has meant a different kind of madness as there has been some movement in the CWS Tickets' Race To Rosenblatt rankings.

Miami (Fla.) and UC Irvine have both found their way among the top eight in this week's rankings, replacing Baylor and South Carolina, both of whom ran into tough weeks last week.

The Anteaters, the Cinderella team in last year's College World Series, went 4-0 last week and also moved into Baseball America's Top 10. They enter our ratings at No. 8, one spot behind the Hurricanes, who debut on the heels of a 4-1 effort last week.

The top three remain the same, as the Sun Devils have solidified their hold with a perfect 17-0 mark. Playing through some controversy has made the Sun Devils a solid pick early in the season.

Right behind the Sun Devils are in-state rival Arizona and two-time CWS runner-up North Carolina, who maintain their rankings this week. Missouri leapfrogs over Vanderbilt into the No. 4 slot, while the Commodores' SEC rival, Ole Miss, moves up one spot behind Vandy.

Teams that could be knocking on the door next week include Long Beach State, Florida State and Cal. And quietly making their way into contention is the only other undefeated team in Div. 1, the 18-0 Kentucky Wildcats.

This week's CWS Tickets' Race To Rosenblatt is as follows:

1. Arizona State

2. Arizona

3. North Carolina

4. Missouri

5. Vanderbilt

6. Ole Miss

7. Miami (Fla.)

8. UC Irvine

Omaha mayor trying to build stadium support

Omaha's mayor is sure of one thing -- the College World Series will be played in a new stadium in 2011.

Now the question is -- will that new stadium be in Omaha? Or will it be somewhere else?

After a week's worth of public forums where a vocal group of people made it clear they don't want to see the College World Series moved from Rosenblatt Stadium, the mayor is going ahead with plans to build a new $140 million downtown stadium located just northwest of Qwest Center.

To do that, he's going to have to get the support of the Omaha City Council, who obviously are in a difficult position having to approve a series of measures that may very well go against the wishes of those they represent.

The City Council will be voting on a variety of measures relating to the new stadium. The first one on the list will be the demolition of a city-owned building near the Qwest Center that would be cleared for future parking space. Eventually, the council will have to approve a measure that would convert two parking lots into the new stadium.

Fahey is meeting with all of the council members to try and drum up support for the construction. Some council members who were on the fence are leaning toward approval, while at least two members remain steadfastly opposed.

Key matchups this weekend

It should be an interesting weekend as many of the major conferences begin inter-conference play.

Here are some of the key weekend matchups we'll be watching as teams continue their journey on the road to the College World Series:

South Carolina at Vanderbilt

The No. 4 and No. 5 teams in the CWS Tickets Race To Rosenblatt rankings hook up in a key Southeastern Conference showdown. The Commodores won two out of three against the Gamecocks last year on their way to winning the conference title. South Carolina will look to bounce back from an inexplicable loss to Yale on Tuesday.

Cal State Fullerton at Arizona

Arizona is our No. 2-ranked team right now, and they get their first big test at home against a talented Cal State Fullerton team. The Titans own a pair of wins over UCLA, but the Wildcats are on a 10-game winning streak after dropping their season opener to Georgia.

Ole Miss at Mississippi State

The Rebels are No. 8 in our rankings and will look to bounce back after a rough weekend. Their in-state rivals are also licking their wounds after being swept at home by Baylor. More than in-state bragging rights are on the line in this one.

USC vs. Long Beach State

The Trojans play the first and third game of this series in Long Beach, with the middle game at USC's Dedauex Field. Both teams are playing well, but Long Beach -- which was coming off series sweeps of Hawaii and Wichita State -- was shut out by Western Illinois and will need to rebound against the Trojans.

Watch your favorite teams as they continue play during the 2008 season with the goal of making it to the College World Series at Rosenblatt Stadium. And don't wait to get your CWS tickets -- order them now at Ticket Express.