Been there, done that: Texas baseball team counting on NCAA experience as regional opens
When Texas found out Monday that it would open the NCAA baseball tournament at a regional hosted by the Miami Hurricanes, the team tweeted, “Party in the city where the heat is on.”
The line was borrowed from “Miami,” Will Smith's 1998 hit song. The reference, though, was lost on many of the Texas players.
“What’s that?” asked junior Dylan Campbell, when the song was mentioned during a media availability.
Noted junior Lucas Gordon: “I’ve never heard of it.”
Eric Kennedy, how about you?
“Come on, yeah. I’m a vet,” said the Longhorns' fifth-year outfielder. “I know good music.”
When Texas faces Louisiana in Friday afternoon's Coral Gables Regional opener, the Longhorns won't just need Kennedy's experienced ears. He also possesses a veteran bat and glove.
Kennedy is one of the few remaining ties to Texas' last two College World Series teams. Even though his first two years of college did not feature a postseason — UT missed the Big 12 Tournament in 2019, and the 2020 season was cut short by the pandemic — Kennedy has 18 NCAA Tournament games on his résumé. He has homered at the College World Series and has beaten South Florida in a super regional with a walk-off double.
Kennedy isn't the only Longhorn with postseason experience. Dylan Campbell and Mitchell Daly have started multiple games at the College World Series, and Lucas Gordon, Tanner Witt and Zane Morehouse have pitched in Omaha as well. Outfielder Porter Brown appeared in seven NCAA games while playing at TCU from 2019 to 2022.
"We have several guys on this year's team that have been on the biggest stages in Omaha, and we've been on the road for supers," Kennedy said. "Having that experience for the younger guys and teaching them how to handle things is going to be crucial for us. It's going to be a great environment here, and we're going to need every advantage we can get."
After the roster was picked apart in the offseason — six Longhorns were drafted, including staff ace Pete Hansen and outfielder Austin Todd, costing the team 78.8% of its RBIs and 76.2% of its hits from 2022 — Texas entered this season with more questions than answers. The Longhorns weren't ranked in D1Baseball's preseason poll, and conference coaches picked them to finish fourth in the Big 12.
Texas, though, has won 38 games.
"A lot of people saying things about rebuild and stuff like that, but we just found a way to win," pitcher Tanner Witt said after the Longhorns won a share of the Big 12's regular-season championship May 20.
Been there, done that
But Texas (38-20) still will be breaking in some newcomers. Freshmen Jared Thomas, Jalin Flores and Rylan Galvan all could see significant playing time in Coral Gables. Starting infielders Peyton Powell and Jack O'Dowd were reserves last year. Power-hitting catcher Garret Guillemette is a junior, but the USC transfer will make his NCAA Tournament debut Friday.
That's where the experience of UT's veterans might come into play. They can even provide insight into playing on the road in the NCAA Tournament since Texas won last year's super regional in front of a raucous East Carolina crowd. When asked if that experience will help, Campbell — whose walk-off single at Clark-LeClair Stadium kept Texas alive in that super regional — responded: "Definitely. I wouldn't assume that Miami's as crazy of an environment, but there's definitely some good teams in there, so it'll be fun."
This weekend's game plan
Texas coach David Pierce said Thursday that he will start left-handed pitcher Lucas Gordon (6-1, 2.55 ERA) against Louisiana. That leaves Lebarron Johnson Jr. (7-3, 2.82) in line to start Saturday.
Gordon started three times during last year's postseason run, while Johnson logged just 1⅔ innings of relief work. Johnson, however, was on the team the past two years, so perhaps that experience by osmosis can't be overlooked.
Take O'Dowd, for example. The third-year second baseman was a reserve his freshman year at Vanderbilt and was again last season with the Longhorns. Both of those teams ended up in the College World Series, and O'Dowd said he learned a lot from the dugout about leadership and handling postseason environments.
"I always told myself when I was in Omaha, when I was in these tournament runs the past couple years, I'm going to try to get as much out of it as I can so that when I am on the field and playing, I'm going to be ready and I'm going to be able to help not only the team, but help younger guys with that experience as well," O'Dowd said. "I feel like that's one of the biggest things I took out of it, and I'm really glad that I looked at it that way because I feel like I'm in a good position moving forward now."
Friday's game
Texas vs. Louisiana, 1 p.m., LHN, 104.9
Coral Gables Regional
Friday-Monday, Coral Gables, Fla.
Friday — (Game 1) Texas vs. Louisiana, 1 p.m., LHN, 104.9; (2) Miami vs. Maine, 6 p.m., ESPN+
Saturday (TV, radio TBA) — (3) Game 1 loser vs. Game 2 loser, 11 a.m.; (4) Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner, 5 p.m.
Sunday (TV, radio TBA) — (5) Game 3 winner vs. Game 4 loser, 11 a.m.; (6) Game 5 winner vs. Game 4 winner, 5 p.m.
Monday (time, TV, radio TBA) — Game 6 teams' second game, if needed
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Texas baseball opens NCAA Tournament armed with postseason experience
