Feb. 19, 2012
MORE THAN A GOOD VIEW
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By Marc Daniels
UCFAthletics.com
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - Despite the sprinkling of rain, UCF's leaders and fans celebrated the expansion of the baseball complex over the weekend. Friday's ribbon cutting ceremony was more than just an addition of over 1,000 seats to a ballpark. It was another statement by UCF that a commitment to building the best facilities is a high priority and providing the resources for Knight teams to compete at the highest level is not just talk.
For Terry Rooney the new expansion is also a carrot. A carrot in the sense that now Rooney can dangle more than a winning team that plays in the one of the top conferences in the country. He can also offer a selection committee something they have stated publicly they would like to see, that being new sites to host NCAA Regionals. For now, the UCF baseball must do its part which is to win and stay in national polls throughout the season and make that selection committee look beyond the almost automatic habit of awarding regionals to same list of schools and hopefully keep UCF in its own backyard.
We've got lots of notes this week, so here comes the 4-1-1, which I believe is another way of saying the information.
Knights notes: The view from new second deck is outstanding and when packed really raises the volume in the ballpark and fans saw firsthand there is a new space to hang under when there is rain. That would below the new second deck...On the field, Terry Rooney has his deepest pitching staff. Sophomore Ben Lively is a big key. Lively started strong last year before struggling in the second half. He threw well Saturday and if he is on is simply nasty in a good way...Redshirt junior Chris Matulis returned after missing a season with an injury and the transfer from LSU pitched six strong innings in his debut. If Brian Adkins, Lively and Matulis stay healthy, UCF boasts a solid weekend rotation...D.J. Hicks hit his face Saturday. No, Hicks is not hurt, but his first homer of the season was crushed by Hicks to right field where it his image on the scoreboard...Big weekends also for Travis Shreve, Alex Friedrich and Chris Taladay highlighted the offense during the sweep of Long Island-Brooklyn...Next up is top-ranked Florida in what becomes a huge early season game. It's big for national exposure, RPI and confidence. It may be only February, but the Knights play a late-May type game in their fourth game of the season...Donnie Jones' basketball team posted its 19th win completing the regular season sweep of East Carolina with a 64-55 win Saturday night. Keith Clanton posted 16 points with a variety of moves in the post. A.J. Rompza looked like he did early in the conference schedule with a solid performance scoring 11 points, five rebounds and five assists and only one turnover in 35 minutes. Freshman Kasey Wilson continues to earn quality minutes and produced again with nine points and six rebounds in 12 minutes...With losses by Memphis at home against UTEP and Southern Miss to Houston, UCF finds itself one back in the loss column as the Knights, Tigers, Golden Eagles and Tulsa battle for the top four spots with Marshall right behind in fifth place. All that makes Wednesday's road game at Rice a big battle with an improved Owls squad. At 19-7 overall and 8-4 in league play, UCF is among those under consideration for an NCAA at-large berth if they do not win the Conference USA Tournament in Memphis in two weeks...College football scheduling has never been more complicated with conference realignment. There are many schools still looking for not one, but two games and in a few cases three games in time for the 2012 season. Among those seeking multiple games are several BIG EAST schools. Talk of Rutgers and Syracuse playing twice was squashed by Syracuse who still needs two more games to complete a schedule. The Orange can call Florida State, who is still looking for a game after West Virginia paid their way out of coming to Tallahassee because of their move to the Big 12. Syracuse already has USC coming to the Meadowlands and a home game with Northwestern and a road game at Minnesota...Speaking of Florida State, the Seminoles are likely not going to Morgantown in 2013 after the Mountaineers pulled out of their game this season. So FSU would likely be seeking a new opponent for that 2013 game. Little birdie tells me the folks in Jacksonville at the Gator Bowl would love to pit UCF vs. FSU. The original FSU-West Virginia game was scheduled for Sept. 14, 2013. UCF currently has four non-conference games set for 2013, but is not scheduled to play on Sept. 14. The Knights would need to drop someone from a list that includes Akron, Bethune-Cookman and South Carolina at home and a road game at FIU...Regarding the BIG EAST and the conference trying to get an eighth football member for the 2012 season, most have speculated about Boise State. School officials in Boise have repeatedly stated it is highly unlikely they could move in time for this fall. A big reason for that is the status of the WAC. The conference, where Boise State would place its non-football teams, might be fighting for survival. The recent plans by Conference USA and the Mountain West Conference to merge and form a new league will likely impact the WAC as the new league plans to expand to as many as 24 teams. If the WAC loses several schools, there may not be a conference for Boise State to place its programs. Which means keep an eye on San Diego State. The Aztecs might be the best candidate for a move to the BIG EAST if someone is joining early. San Diego State already has a deal with the Big West Conference to move its non-football teams beginning in 2013. Hawaii is already moving its non-football programs to the Big West for 2012 and San Diego State might be able to do the same. The Aztecs would still need to get out of the Mountain West, but anything is possible as we've seen these days...Final thought: If you are the guy holding up the fast food drive thru lane because you cannot physically remove two small pickle slices from your cheeseburger on your own then re-access your life right now.
Marc Daniels' From the Press Box runs several times per month on UCFAthletics.com. Listen to Marc during UCF football, men's basketball and baseball radio broadcasts on the UCF Sports Network. Each weekday, Marc hosts The Beat of Sports on ESPN Radio 1080 in Orlando.