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NU and B1G mentions in weekly baseball chats (D1Baseball, Baseball America)

Alum-Ni

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Tim (SLC): Is Max Anderson in consideration for the top 10 freshmen in the country? .344/.413/.552 in the middle of a solid Nebraska lineup.

Teddy Cahill: Helpfully, we have a weekly Freshman of the Year watch, tracking the top 10 freshmen in the country. Max Anderson has not made the list yet, but he's absolutely having a solid year. The freshmen class is just stacked.
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Tim (SLC): Does Georgia get in the Top 25 with series wins over Missouri and Auburn? Or would they need to be able to prove it in their brutal finishing stretch of Arkansas, Florida and Ole Miss?

Teddy Cahill: Maybe? The thing about the Top 25 is that these things don't happen in a vacuum. Georgia is a team we've had around the discussion the last two weeks, but it's not just about the Dawgs. What does Nebraska do in that stretch? What about Gonzaga, or Miami or UCLA? Not to mention the teams in the Top 25. If Georgia keeps winning series, they'll get more and more into the mix. It has one of the best series wins in the country and that is carrying a lot of weight.
 
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JFK: Since Nebraska isn't in the current Top 25, where do you see them right now? Top 30? Top 40? Just curious as to whether they have a chance at a regional.

Kendall Rogers: JFK -- Nebraska is literally team #26. We were debating taking Oklahoma State out and putting the Huskers in. As for the Huskers -- I tend to think the location/balance will likely give the most worthy Big Ten champion a host site regardless of the RPI. We'll see, though. Nebraska is in very good shape to make the NCAA Tournament.

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Luke: I don't know if this has been announced yet, but is the NCAA going to have blanket capacity requirements for the postseason or will each host use their local rules?

Kendall Rogers: Luke -- the NCAA is planning to dive into this soon. I know the basketball tournaments were at 22-25% capacity, but a source at the NCAA told me that outdoor sports would likely be different and more. How much more? I hope it's 75 percent, personally. I have zero issue at this point with massive outdoor crowds. Indoor is a little different.

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Dimer: The Big Ten looks like it is being treated like a mid-major in the Top 25 (and deservedly so), and even its sole rep (Michigan) has two wonky losses. Two questions: How difficult is it to rank any of them each week and is there ANY chance that the committee spurns them with less than three bids?

Kendall Rogers: Dimer -- I actually think the Big Ten is pretty solid at the top. I think the league deserves four bids this year -- Nebraska/Michigan/Indiana are obvious ones for me, and I think Trenton Wallace and Iowa are most certainly postseason worthy. There's a legitimate argument to make for Ohio State, too. I think four teams is the sweet spot.

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Bilo: Northwestern-Indiana series thoughts? Indiana obviously has proven regional status and Northwestern shows promise. They have been close in a bunch of losses and seem to have a really strong starting rotation and offense. Would love to hear your thoughts please?

Aaron Fitt: Big weekend for the Hoosiers. I still feel like Indiana is the Big Ten team that I think could wind up making the best postseason run because of their pitching -- they're fifth in the nation in ERA! Northwestern has held its own this year, middle of the pack in ERA and scoring.....but they need to play better defense. Last in the league in fielding.

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Kevin: As a fan of a Conference USA team, I can tell you that these 4-game conference weekends are brutal. I know the AAC is also going with 4-game weekends. Do you think the selection committee will view the weekend performance of those teams differently than teams playing traditional 3-game weekends?

Aaron Fitt: You raise a great point here Kevin, and I really, really hope the committee does cut these teams a little extra leeway because it's just so damn hard to win three out of four or more, as opposed to two out of three. Four-game series inevitably lead to lots of splits, which drag everybody closer to .500 overall. But that's why we've been so impressed with what Charlotte and Old Dominion have done, and why we've brought them into the rankings. Hopefully the committee will consider all the extenuating circumstances facing teams in a variety of conferences through no fault of their own -- the ACC having to play 36 conference games instead of 30 has crushed those teams, and the Big Ten having to play every game in conference has been a major challenge, and those four-game weekends in a bunch of leagues. Teams that are playing conventional schedules have a huge advantage.

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Paul: What will it take for Georgia Tech to get back into the Top 25?

Aaron Fitt: Jackets are very close -- if we had a couple open spots this week, they probably would have gotten back in, along with Nebraska. That was a huge series win. It's been an uneven road, but heck, playing two extra weekends in the ACC created a ridiculous grind for all those teams. Credit GT for sitting 14-10 in the league. Still a lot to like about that club.
 
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