A Day at the Ballpark

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The University of Louisville athletic program is something to be extremely proud of. Louisville is the first school ever to win a BCS bowl game, appear in the men’s and women’s basketball Final Fours, and appear in the College World Series in the same school year, doing so in the 2012-2013 season. Even though this occurred during a stint in the American Athletic Conference, a time when the athletic department was reconfiguring and working towards joining the Atlantic Coast Conference, the teams and coaches worked hard to make sure that the standard of excellence and winning spirit still continued in every aspect. Even though the University of Louisville athletic department has been prone to change and progression throughout the years with advancement from the Big East Conference to the American Athletic Conference, the program has done surprisingly well to adapt to challenges. With the beginning of the spring semester, it is no surprise that everyone is already watching and waiting to see what the Louisville baseball has in store for the season.

As of April 14^th though, Louisville had its highest ranking in school history at No. 3 in this week’s Perfect Game Top 25. Louisville won its sixth straight ACC series while extending its Atlantic Division lead to five games after winning two of three games against Duke in Durham. The Cardinals have won 16 of their last 18 games, while the 16-2 mark in Atlantic Coast Conference action is the best 18-game league record in school history.

Dan McDonnell has been the program’s head coach since the start of the 2007 season and as of the end of the 2013 season, the program has appeared in seven NCAA Tournaments and three College World Series. It can be clearly understood that his presence on the team is crucial to making sure that this 2015 season, as a newcomer in the ACC, is successful. Coach McDonnell is not the only reason behind the beginning success of the Louisville cardinal baseball team. The players seem to be working harder than ever to make sure that this season is one for the record books. Interested in finding out about the life of the players on the team, our group took a different approach to searching for the secrets of success off the diamond.

Sutton Whiting is the current shortstop for the Louisville Cardinals and his stats alone are a lot to handle, along with his ability on and off the field. Whiting finished his high school career at Ballard High School and was selected in the 44^th round (1346^th overall) of the 2011 MLB Draft by the Atlanta Braves. Turning down this offer, he began playing for Louisville. In his profile, he is recognized as making his debut appearance for the Cardinals as pinch runner who scored in the Cards’ win over Eastern Kentucky University in February of 2012. Since then, he has worked hard to achieve accolades that include: 2013 Second Team All-Big East, 2014 Team Captain, and 2014 Louisville Regional All-Tournament Team. Currently a senior, Whiting has the maturity and devotion to lead the Cardinals to a great introductory season in the ACC.

As a curious question, the interview with Whiting began about his decision to play college baseball rather than signing with the Atlanta Braves right out of college. Whiting explained that he was interested in continuing to learn the game better and wanted to wait and educate himself and grow personally before committing to the professional league. Whiting discusses how both experiences of being able to play college baseball has been a blessing, as well as the experience of being offered to play professionally. He added that in hindsight he was happy to have chosen to play college baseball. As a follow up question, Whiting was also asked why he decided to play for the University of Louisville. Whiting said he based his decision on the memories of growing up around baseball and watching his older brother Boomer Sutton, who was a four-year letter winner and an All-American outfielder for Louisville from 2003-2007. He also loved the facilities and the program that was ultimately began by McDonnell around the same time his brother ended his senior year at the University of Louisville. Short term goals for Whiting include playing for a National Championship this season and potentially being named an All-American while long-term, he would like to sign with major league team and become an MVP. These goals have the potential to come to fruition seeing as how he is in the top 10 senior recruits to follow within the ACC according to SB Nation and Minor League Ball statistics.

Junior Danny Rosenbaum, 1^st baseman for the Cardinals, has a pretty extensive career as well. Starting in 24 games during his freshman year and played in 39. His first career hit was an RBI triple against USF in February 2013 against University of South Florida. Last season, he was named American Conference Player of the Week and again had a high number of starts and appearances, 37 and 54 respectively. Rosenbaum has a lot more to offer the team than just stats, his dedication and constant commitment to this team and coach are admirable. When asked about his decision to join the program at Louisville, he said that he liked the area and saw the makings of a developing program that could be successful. His commitment to the Cardinals may have a little something to do with the advice and guidance of Coach McDonnell, who he states constantly reminds him that players can’t cut corners and McDonnell strives for his players to always give 100% in everything; academics, baseball, etc. Whiting and Rosenbaum have a lot in common though, including the overarching goal of achieving a National Championship this season while continuing to work hard and staying positive every single game.

Whiting and Rosenbaum are excellent players and off the diamond, they exude commitment and confidence to their team and city. Although many fans and spectators are watching to see what Louisville has to offer the ACC in baseball this year, there is a certainty that the Cardinals will not disappoint. On and off the field, the Louisville baseball players are high quality gentlemen who would make any fan, athletic director, and coach proud. And with this pride and determination, many are confident that this year’s Road to Omaha will lead to a National Championship.

Elite 8 Madness

The Louisville Cardinals are on their way to their 3rd Elite 8 appearance in the last 4 years. The Cardinals are close to being another dynasty led by senior forward Wayne Blackshear who is the only Cardinal to appear in all 3. The Cards played a tough game against NC State last night to complete their journey to the Elite 8. They will now face Michigan State who is the 7 seed coming out of the East regional. Rick Pitino and Tom Izzo are two of the best college coaches in the game and this matchup will be nothing less expected from the fans. Tom Izzo is entering his 9th Elite 8 in 17years and Rick Pitino is entering his 11th appearance. Both coaches are known to make great runs in the tournament and they are doing a great job by doing the same. Louisville will need all the help they can from the bench who have been struggling to score. Anton Gill helped the cause last night by scoring 7 quick points in 2 and a half minutes. The bench production on the offensive end has struggled but someones name will be called soon and they will need to step up to take care of the Spartans. Beating the Spartans will be tough but it will only better prepare the Cardinals for their 3rd Final Four in the last 4 years.

Louisville Cardinals Looking to Make Major Push to Final Four

The Louisville Cardinals mens basketball team is headed to their 4th consecutive Sweet 16. It is an exciting time around all of college basketball especially in Louisville, KY. After the departure of Chris Jones, many thought the team didn’t have it in them to win a couple of games in the tournament. Players stepping up such as Quentin Snider and Wayne Blackshear have helped the Cardinals become a stronger team overall. The Cardinals have made it past the first weekend after victories over 13 seeded UC Irvine and 5 seed Northern Iowa. Both games were very competitive and Louisville continues to look better and better. Their next matchup will be against NC State who is coming off a major upset win over number one seeded Villanova. The East region is wide open and it is anyones ball game in order to make it to the final four. More analysts are starting to believe that the Cardinals have a strong chance at making a push to the final game to match up against arch in state rival, Kentucky. This would be a championship game of the century and many think it would be the best championship game they have witnessed in the last decade. Everyone has high hopes for the team along with the coaches and fans. Behind the support of the city of Louisville, sky is the limit for the team.

Louisville finishes season strong

The start of conference play begins for all NCAA teams this upcoming week. This also means the start of the ACC tournament and Louisville’s journey to the championship. To finish off their last week of the regular season, the team was set to play #12 Notre Dame and #2 Virginia at home. Louisville had been struggling as of late dropping their team rankings to #17 in the country. After a tough loss to Notre Dame at home senior night was right around the corner and the #2 Virginia Cavilers were ready to win another game.The Cardinals started out the night to recognize seniors Wayne Blackshear and junior Montrezl Harrell who is expected to leave for the NBA draft. It was an emotional start to the night but very supportive for what each player had done for the basketball program during their duration here.  As the game started the Cardinals broke out on a run and took a comfortable lead. The Cavilers as expected battled back and kept the game close throughout the rest of the game. As the game winded down, Virginia took the lead with seconds to go. Louisville called a time out, drew a play and Mangok Mathiang drills the game winner at the top of the key! The YUM! Center had to be the loudest it has ever been in my years of college and a game fans will remember for the rest of their life. I am very proud to be a part of the University and hope the Cardinals can make a run into the tournament.

National Signing Day

February 4th 2015, when every high school star officially signs their letter of intent to play colegiately. Weather that star high school recruit is a 2 star or 5 star, sky’s the limit for their next couple of years at their college. Football receives the most media and excitement once signing day approaches and they have all the reason to be. Some of these high school stars are set to be the next big prospect that will allow them to enter the NFL draft once eligible. The recruiting system has known to be skewed from the past couple of years due to research by sports analysts. Many recruiting databases such as ESPN.com, Rivals.com and bleacher report.com for example all have different grading systems. In the past few years there have been many underrated high school recruits who have received no credit once entering college who have panned out to be great NFL players. Richard Sherman and Darrelle Revis two of the best NFL cornerbacks were both 3 star recruits entering college. JJ Watt arguably the best defensive player in the last 3 years was a 2 star recruit entering college. All of these players have been through the recruiting process and undervalued but risen to the occasion to make it in the NFL and succeed. A big piece of advice I have seen throughout all the talks is, “Don’t worry about the stars next to your name but worry about what you’re going to do when given the opportunity.”