Many props to Uconn for coming from the losers bracket to make the Super Regionals. Nothing would stand up for northeast baseball like a northern team making the final 8. No one can argue that the north is better than the south as a whole right now, but there needs to be trend-setters like Uconn who start to tilt the balance.
First came George Mason, then came the VCU's and Butler's of the basketball world. Now mid-majors make it deep into March Madness all the time. Teams will start to replicate what a school like Uconn doea ( in baseball), and soon enough every year there will be a "Uconn" or two sneaking into the College World Series.
You will very rarely get all final four teams in basketball to be mid-majors, but it is no longer rare to see a team from a smaller conference in the mix. I think the same thing is now happening in baseball. If I am a northerner and know that a school like Uconn has top of the line facilities and a real chance to make Omaha, all of a sudden I don't need to go to LSU anymore.
And on a final note, what a year for Uconn. BCS game in football, National Championship in basketball, and Super Regional in baseball! ( and these are only the major sports that come to mind right away)
Ken Jacobi
Author of "Going with the Pitch: Adjusting to Baseball, School, and Life as a Division I College Athlete"