If you’re looking for a reason to believe that Tennessee can win the College Baseball World Series, look no further than Game One. Perhaps you heard of what happened on Friday night. Perhaps you haven’t considered just what a legendary win can do for a team. Let’s take a look back.
The Vols’ 12-11 win over Florida State on Friday was reminiscent of some other monumental Vol wins that led to championships, which haven’t exactly been coming in droves nowadays despite the positive growth of Tennessee’s athletic department. Looking for a comparison to the Vols’ win on Friday night? Let’s go back to 1998 when the Vols nearly lost everything before they played for it all.
Tennessee’s football team won the national championship in 1998 but it almost didn’t happen after a scare from Arkansas in November. The Vols needed a huge defensive play to force a fumble and eventually win the game 28-24 despite being down 14 points in the second half. Countless Tennessee players have said that once they beat Arkansas, winning a national title was fate. Tennessee’s baseball team seems to be following the same destiny.
That season also marked the first in six seasons that Tennessee beat Florida. The Vols got some breaks in that game – as they did against Florida State on Friday – but that didn’t matter. The die of confidence was cast for a team that not much was expected of.
That, of course, is one thing that Tennessee’s 2024 baseball team does not have in common with the Vols’ football team in 1998. Unlike the 1998 football team, this year’s baseball team has had big expectations. Real big. The Vols have been No. 1 for much of the season and were one of the favorites headed into the College World Series. Tennessee has dealt with that before when they last won a major championship.
The Lady Vols had high expectations when they won a national championship in 2007-08, but they nearly fell short of even making the championship game before overcoming a fiesty LSU team 47-46 in the semifinals of the Final Four. Then, the Lady Vols easily dispatched Stanford 64-48 in the national title game.
There are a few teams that can easily roll through a season, win a championship and be unscathed. That’s extremely rare. Practically every championship run has a close call, a comeback or cause for concern along the way. That’s what happened to the Vols on Friday.
Falling into the loser’s bracket after one game is a surefire way to make an early exit from Omaha. The Vols didn’t do that. They survived. Now, the goal is not to survive, but thrive. That means the Vols have to win a championship to make Friday’s game really mean something. Having avoided a disastrous beginning, I think Tennessee will do just that.
It was debatable if it was all-or-nothing for the Vols before the College World Series. Some thought Tennessee would be defined by what was in their trophy case following the annual midwest event. Some thought a good run would be enough. However, now everything has changed. It’s national title or bust after the Florida State game. Anything else would be disappointing, if not a failure.
After winning two games, showing that their power still works on a bigger field, that they can win with small ball when they have to, having an improved pitching staff and more confidence, there’s no reason Tennessee shouldn’t bring home the ultimate prize from the College World Series. Think Tennessee coach Tony Vitello is popular now? Just wait until he has a national title (or more) in the back pocket of his orange uniform. Mayor Vitello has a good ring to it.
2 Responses
Go vols!! Go big orange!!! Been a volunteer fan for almost thirty years and praying that they can nail this thing down.
The Vols have all the tools they need to nail this thing down. If there are four tool players this is a four tool team. Go Big Orange!