Brains collide
in College World Series
By The Associated Press
OMAHA, Neb. Stanford and Rice have gone to the top of the
class, on the field and off.
Not only are they the College World Series finalists, they also boast
championship reputations in the classroom.
``This is something the presidents like to see,'' Dennis Poppe, the director
of the baseball championship, told Rice coach Wayne Graham on Friday.
Graham said it was a special tribute to the players, who are challenged both
in school and on the field.
``There have been cases in college athletics where emphasis has been put on
just athletics, and the classroom is neglected,'' Rice outfielder Chris
Kolkhorst said. ``Having two teams like Rice and Stanford here is great for
college baseball and great for college athletics.
``Coach Graham does a great job, he really takes pride in our team GPA and
he has to get on some of us at the end of semesters if we're not living up
to the standards we've set.''
The same standards are kept at Stanford.
``It's something we definitely take pride in,'' Cardinal pitcher John
Hudgins said. ``Every one of our guys graduate. We all work hard to get
ahead in school. And Coach Marquess really pushes us academically, going
over classes every quarter with us and trying to get us through just because
baseball isn't the end of life.
``Both institutions here definitely realize that. It's a great thing. It's
what college athletics is all about. You get a college degree and you get to
play.''
CHAMPION GRAHAM: Rice coach Wayne Graham
knows about national championships. He's won five of them.
The 67-year-old coach won all those titles while at San Jacinto Community
College in Texas. He coached there for 11 years after a successful high
school career. He won his last national junior college title at San Jacinto
in 1990, after earning 62 victories that season. Two years later, he took
over at Rice.
Graham has had 30 consecutive winning seasons on the high school, junior
college and Division I levels winning nearly 80 percent of his games. He
passed the 500-career win mark this season in his 12th year at Rice and
enters the championship series with 533 victories.
At Rice, he won 43 games and qualified for regionals his fourth season. He
won the Southwestern Conference tournament and qualified for regionals again
the next season. He made his first College World Series appearance with the
Owls in 1997.
In 1999, Graham made a return trip to the CWS and earned Rice's first win in
Omaha. Rice was back last year but went home following two early losses.
The Owls have never won a national title of any kind. They are in the
baseball finals for the first time.
FANS AS STARS: Fans visiting the College
World Series can make their own game-winning plays just outside Rosenblatt
Stadium.
NCAA Beyond the Game, an interactive site sponsored by CBS Sports, provides
a sporting challenge for fans in six tents. Some 6,000 to 7,000 fans have
stepped up for the challenges each day of the College World Series, site
manager Dave Adcox said.
Fans are able to step into live NCAA athletic situations, trying to
duplicate plays that made many college athletes famous.
The baseball tent features an outfield fence similar to those of Rosenblatt
Stadium. A pitching machine lobs a ball toward the top of the fence, giving
the fan a chance to make a home-run stealing catch.
Adcox said the tents also are intended to let fans know there is more to
NCAA athletics than just football, basketball and baseball. Lacrosse and
crew are among the activities.
``There are 23 NCAA sports,'' he said.
Copyright 2003
The Associated Press. Bonesville.net contributed to this report. All rights reserved. This material may not be
published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
02/23/2007 10:44:54 AM
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