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 We had a chance to participate in a hockey camp loaded with
professional & up & coming junior players last week in Chicago. Then
we were cordially invited (bet you didn’t know that the LDN is well
respected in certain college sports circles-at least enough to get
invitations to championship events) to the last College World Series
to be played at world famous Johnny Rosenblatt Stadium in Omaha,
Nebraska. In this special edition of Mutterings we’ll share our
insights, discuss Logan County connections & implications &
basically just get our wonderful LDN readers pumped up for the rest
of the summer.
South Carolina sweeps UCLA
Of course I could break down the two spectacular games I witnessed
between these two outstanding teams. However, you can get that same
information & from more knowledgeable sources all over the newspaper
world. I’d rather share the sights & sounds & what it was like being
there for the final hurrah.
First, I had more than my fair share of trouble getting there. I
don’t know if I punched in the wrong coordinates or if the GPS just
had a mind of its own but I found myself a few blocks away from
Rosenblatt Stadium at the new Stadium. By the time I discovered the
error I was buried in rush hour traffic, but did finally make my way
to the parking lot in time for some of the pre-game festivities.
From the time I got out of my car till the time I left I felt a
sense of excitement I have not felt since I was a little kid…
To give you some of the back story here…I have wanted to go to the
College World Series in Omaha for several years, maybe decades. When
I was younger I just didn’t have the funds or the wherewithal to
pull it off. Heck, it ain’t cheap now. When I was working at the
college, it always hit us at a bad time. Whether we were conducting
summer events, training camp teams, or getting ready for a big
convention, I could never get away to go even IF someone were to
offer free tickets.
And what’s funny is people think that Greg Taylor & I stop what
we’re doing at the drop of a hat & just go to games right & left.
And while we may have attended a few more contests than the average
Joe, the reality is we get to fewer games every year. We don’t
forego our responsibilities at home or at work hardly ever…of
course, there are exceptions to every rule.
When I moved north I secretly hoped that would open the door for me
to “Go west young man!”…but it didn’t. I quickly discovered that our
schedule up here is similar to the college’s. Spring just blends
into summer & no one stops to take a breath. So, as I wind down
spring studies & classes I have to ramp up summer offerings & there
is basically no gaps in the schedule.
I’ve learned covering sports that I probably won’t ever be
able to cover every sporting event that I’d like to report back to
our great fans. But one thing I have loved about the LDN & I will
always cherish is when one of our readers calls or e-mails & says
that they were inspired by one of our articles to attend a game
we reported on, or play a course that we profiled or visited a
locale that we said was a “can’t miss,”…that really gets my juices
flowing. But I digress…anyway it was looking like for the 4th year
in a row up here that I was NOT going to be going to Omaha.
That was until my boss said what are you doing the next couple of
days? I told him that I had a pile on my desk from being gone
speaking at camp last week that needs my attention. Then he
surprised me. He said since you/the LDN has been given a special
invitation this year to the last tournament at Rosenblatt Stadium, I
think you should go…I may have knocked him down on the way out the
door.
So I motored down the highway…I-39 to I-88 to I-80 are basically all
you need to know & that almost takes you to home plate of the
stadium. Of course that is hours later…a little over seven hours
later, but it could be a lot worse. They could hold the tourney in
Walla Walla, Washington!
…now getting back to getting out of the car…the smells, the aromas
were just intoxicating. It reminded me a little of the pre-game
tailgating at Miller Park the home of the Milwaukee Brewers. The
smell of all kinds of meat being grilled filled the air as thousands
of general admission fans scurried for good spots in line. T-shirt
vendors pitched tents & were lined-up wall to wall all over 13th
street in much the way I had imagined it.
Even the famous “dugout” store or tent was like I thought it would
be with shirts & memorabilia that would make any baseball fan proud.
And of course all these tents surrounded one of the most talked
about eateries around…Zestos! Their ice cream, well actually their
shakes, were pretty much out of this world.
Our host, J.D. Hamilton who is the assistant director of
statistics for the NCAA & long-time friend, encouraged me to drink
one of the products. His wife Cindy delivered a hot fudge rendition
to my seat on press row during the Tuesday night championship
clincher & I almost forgot I was there to watch & cover baseball…I’m
pretty skeptical about highly rated things especially food, but if
you have to go to Omaha for any reason, you’d be crazy not to grab
one of their shakes. Its well worth the time & money! On a side
note, I also made it over to the Twisted Fork restaurant…you will
not be disappointed there either!
Back to the story…I made my way to my seats & my food (delicious
traditional ball park delicacies) & then went down to walk on the
field during batting practice. The field is in great shape
considering that eight teams have been beating it up for more than a
week. They have been playing at Rosenblatt Stadium for some 61
years. I should’ve scooped up some dirt & sold it in vials, but I
simply took pictures as I strolled around.
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Then I ran into Orel Hershiser, the former great LA Dodger
pitcher, who is one of the TV broadcasters. I reminisced with him
about some of his great moments in the past & he couldn’t have been
nicer to me. That was a lot of fun. His broadcast partners were
there too, but I didn’t even get a chance to speak to Robin Ventura.
I did sit 3 or 4 seats down from the “ol ball coach” himself, Steve
Spurrier. He is currently the football coach at South Carolina. UCLA
football coach Rick Neuheisel was also in attendance, but I couldn’t
get near him.
Anyway, the sights & sounds were grand & there is just something
special about college sports. Here in this venue eight teams
survived regionals & super regionals to make it to the grand stage
and then these two teams, UCLA & South Carolina, both deserving in
their own right, slugged it out to be remembered as the last team
ever to win the National Championship at Rosenblatt Stadium. The
Gamecocks pulled off the sweep & will live in immortality!
Logan County Connections
As far as Logan County connections & what it may all mean to you…did
you know that the grandson of some of our county’s finest folks &
the nephew of my favorite Illinois hairdresser (Denise Costello)
made it to the final Great Eight?! That’s correct…Cameron Seitzer is
the star first baseman for the Oklahoma Sooners. He was 2nd on his
team in homers with 15 & in RBIs with 52. His homer total placed him
4th in the Big 12 conference. How’s that for star power for you?
According to OU’s media guide Seitzer was a 2010 All-Big 12
honorable mention candidate & was tabbed by the Oklahoman as a 1st
team member! I’m pretty sure that he got at least one hit and one
RBI this past week, so he will always be a part of the grand history
of the ball park! Nice going Cameron! Congratulations! (Ed. Note:
Due to work obligations I did not get there in time to greet Cameron
or his family & hope to remedy that in the future)
Many folks in Lincoln have talked about going to Omaha for the
series & it’s really easy to do. You can go on the website at:
http://www.cwsomaha.com/
& just navigate around till you find what you want. There’s info
about Omaha, getting tickets, etc. Also, there are plenty of tickets
for sale in the streets if you just make a Mayfield-move & decide to
go at the last minute. TD Ameritrade Park, a sparkling new $128
million facility to be completed in the spring of 2011, is
designated to be the home of the College World Series for the next
25 years. Maybe we’ll see you & some of your friends at next year’s
premiere college baseball event!
CWS Links
http://omaha.com/article/20100625/CWS/706259802
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncaa/news/story?id=5341890
Some quick words about Hockey Camp
If you know anyone who plays hockey and would love to have a great
summer hockey experience, then Payne & I would recommend HMI’s
hockey camp in Chicago hosted at (but not affiliated in any way
with) Wheaton College. The hockey portion of the schedule or the ice
time rather was held at Center Ice of DuPage. The hockey players get
outstanding skills training from professional, junior & college
players who also live & eat with them in the dorms. It is a
faith-based program, but who couldn’t use the character development
& other positive traits they try to instill in these campers?
I made the mistake of volunteering to serve in any way & they took
me up on my offer. I was utilized as the morning speaker & it is
sometimes difficult to pump life into 70 or more campers &
counselors at 7:30 in the morning, especially if they got very
little sleep the night before. I have attended athletic camps for a
variety of sports in the past. And when those camps invited pro
players in they usually arrived in a fancy sports car….spoke for
15-20 minutes, signed a few autographs, & then took off with their
tires screeching.
Not at this camp. Noah Welch of the Atlanta Thrasher organization &
Derek Whitmore of the Buffalo Sabres organization practiced on ice
with the kids…but, they also ate with them & hung out with them. It
made for a very enjoyable week for the kids. I would love to see
some camps like this in Central Illinois, but it will take a lot of
campers to pull it off.
Well kids, that’s gonna have to be all for me on this edition. I’ll
weigh-in after the all-star break sometime later this summer to see
how the Cubs, White Sox & Cardinals are doing in their respective
divisions. We’ll also try to get you some updates on Illinois &
other local sports to see what the buzz is. Until then, have a great
summer everyone! [Jeff Mayfield]
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