Originally Posted by oxfordreb

Several glaring factors were evident in yet another super regional loss for the Rebels. Here's my take at coaching blunders and other mishaps that contributed to us folding again:

1) Game 2, pitching Goforth. Why? Why do you let Goforth, a freshman with a wicked fastball but uncontrolable at times, come in to close a game (a role he has been seldom used for, especially in important situations)? Why do you pitch him when you have a junior lefty in Nathan Baker that is more accustomed to the spotlight and pressure? This is the biggest coaching blunder of the weekend in my eyes. I can maybe see giving Goforth a chance to face a guy or two and see how he reacts, but why do you let him stay in there when he's struggling like heck to hit the strike zone? It makes no sense to me. Bianco said Saturday that he did not want this to go to three games, so why not use your best when you can?

2) Why was Basham not catching all weekend? I know that Henson was in there for his bat, but when you got their guys stealing bases at will, why do you not play the better defensive guy? Henson could play DH and you just take your chances with Bash at the plate. That's better than letting every single they hit turn into more or less a double by stealing second. Henson couldn't hit a bull in the butt with a hand full of peas...

3) Evan Button's second game error. How does that happen? You're standing 15 ft. away from your first baseman and you 3-hop it to him? The runner wasn't even in a rush to get to first. That was the defining moment for me in this series, I knew as soon as that happened that we were doomed. I realized that even if we did get to Omaha we'd choke like a dog on a ham bone. Virginia was CLEARLY the better coached team, not better players parsay, but much better coached.

4) Mike Bianco's lack of character building ability. Something that to me is important in a coach is getting your players to believe in themselves. After the first inning on Sunday, the players looked like they'd rather be anywhere than where they were. They weren't in the game. They didn't have that rip-your-jugular-out attitude that most home teams have, especially when they have over 10000 fans there barking with them. Ole Miss had everything they needed to win this series, except for the most important thing: confidence. This team was beat before they ever took the field Sunday. They were HOPING to win, they didn't EXPECT to win.

5) No offense. 8 runs in 3 games says it all. I don't care if they are one of the best pitching teams in the country, there's just no excuse for that crappy of an offense. Again, coaching comes into play. Our guys can hit a fastball all day long, but couldn't time a changeup right to save my life. Our teams for a while have not been able to hit junk pitches at all, and until that changes, we'll NEVER be in Omaha. Reinstetle needs to go, and if that doesn't fix it, well, you fill in the blank: _______________________ goes.