Regionals: Observations on the 64-team field

A few observations regarding the 64-team bracket for the NCAA Div. I baseball tournament:

Bumpiest road to Omaha -- You'd think getting the No. 1 seed in the tournament would mean something, but not in the case of the Miami Hurricanes. We're not sure if they have enemies on the selection board, but they sure didn't get an easy regional to host.

The Hurricanes must wade through Ole Miss and Missouri -- both of whom are talented teams with very solid pitching staffs -- just to get out of regionals. If they survive that, they face the winner of a regional that includes a solid Michigan team, a salty Kentucky squad and a surging Arizona team.

The eight teams that reach the College World Series are all deserving, but the winner of this part of the bracket may be the most deserving of them all.

Team nobody wants to face -- The hottest team in the field right now, without a doubt, is the LSU Tigers.

Winners of 20 straight, the Tigers are back in the thick of the national race after a two-year hiatus and stormed through the Southeastern Conference tournament, far and away the toughest tournament this year.

The Tigers should have no problem getting out of their regional, and if they keep playing well you have to wonder just what kind of a fight the winner of the Nebraska regional can put up to keep the Tigers from making the trip to Omaha.

Most undeserving seed -- Would somebody explain to us how Georgia, who two-and-'cued the SEC tournament, got a No. 8 seed ahead of Oklahoma State, who was playing much better at the end of the year?

Of course, had Oklahoma State not stumbled against Kansas State in the Big 12 tournament, the whole point would be moot and the 'Pokes would be sitting pretty in the No. 8 slot.

There's also a case to be made for San Diego, who won a tough West Coast Conference and have arguably the best 1-2 pitching combination in the country. Georgia just simply doesn't impress us as a No. 8 seed.

Most undesrving regional host -- Texas A&M very easily could have been left out of the regional race, in spite of its high RPI, after losing its last six regular-season games and its first two in the Big 12 tournament.

Again, San Diego was probably more deserving of a regional host site and, quite frankly, is a better team than the Aggies. The Toreros stand a good chance of winning the Long Beach Regional -- the Aggies, on the other hand, should thank their lucky stars if they can survive their own part of the bracket.

It would not surprise us to see to either advance to super-regionals or take the early exit -- it depends on which Texas A&M team shows up this weekend.

Easiest road to Omaha -- We're going to jinx North Carolina with this honor. But don't sell the Tar Heels short -- it's not that their part of the bracket is easy so much as their talent level and experience is so far and above the other teams that stand between them and another trip to Omaha.

North Carolina should get through their regional without any problem, and the super regional is going to be either Coastal Carolina -- who upset the Heels early in the season -- or East Carolina. While both teams are solid, they're just not at the Heels' level.

Anyone can win -- The one regional to watch is the Long Beach regional, where we feel any of the four teams can come away with the trip to super regionals.

Long Beach is the favorite and has played very well at home this year, but faces a pretty salty Fresno State team in the first round. The other half includes two teams that have been in and out of the top 10 this year in California and San Diego.

The winner here will have to face Arizona State, who could very well be the team to beat if they make it to Omaha and play at the level they were competing at early in the year.

Don't be surprised if -- UC Davis comes out of the Stanford regional. Although they finished sixth in the Big West, the Aggies have held their own pretty well and could win what might be a deceptively-strong regional with Arkansas and Pepperdine on board.

We also think TCU and Houston have good shots at winning their regionals at Oklahoma State and Texas A&M, respectively. Coming out of those regionals would be nice feathers in the caps of the Mountain West and Conference USA conferences.

Then there's Louisville, who made it to Omaha last year and are the third seed behind the two Georgia schools at Georgia's regional. With their returning experience, seeing them advance wouldn't be that big of an upset.