Then the inning-ending double play that got South Carolina out of a bases-loaded, no-outs jam in the ninth inning?
How about the throw home and diving tag that kept Florida from scoring the winning run in the 10th?
Those who didn’t see probably saw someone tweet about it or heard someone talk about it.
Monday’s extra-inning opener to the national-championship series gave some general-audience wow factor to the College World Series, and the series is another big wow for the SEC.
Members Vanderbilt, South Carolina and Florida were among the final four teams playing in Omaha. Carolina and Florida playing for the title, guaranteeing an SEC team will win major college baseball’s national championship for the third consecutive year.
The Gamecocks clinched their second consecutive national title Tuesday, winning 5-2 in Game 2 for a best-of-3 sweep. They also gave the SEC its sixth team national title for the 2010-11 school sports year.
It means more chants of “SEC! SEC!” within the league’s footprint and more teeth-gnashing everywhere else.
Recapping the 2010-11 school sports year that’s about to end, we see Auburn’s football team making it five consecutive Bowl Championship Series titles for the SEC and six in the past eight years. We see Auburn quarterback Cam Newton giving the SEC its second consecutive Heisman Trophy winner and third in four years.
There was lots of good news for the SEC in sports that matter only when they can bolster a boast. Since the start of the school year, the SEC has won national titles in women’s gymnastics (Alabama), women’s tennis (Florida), men’s indoor track (Florida) and another sport that would make quite the trivia buster.
Yes, Kentucky brought home the prize in rifle.
There were credible finishes in sports where the SEC didn’t win it all.
In a down year for men’s basketball, the SEC got Kentucky and Florida to the Elite Eight and Kentucky to the Final Four. Connecticut won the national title, but SEC got more teams to the Elite Eight than the Big East, which got a record 11 bids.
Overall, the SEC finished second to the Pac 10 in Division I team titles. Among the Pac-10’s nine champions, Arizona State‘s softball team scored in the most visible sport.
The Sun Devils beat Florida in the final series.
What does this all say?
The SEC won’t match the Pac-10’s greatness in men’s and women’s water polo. The SEC doesn‘t even sponsor water polo.
Then again, it’s another year to validate the SEC as the conference to watch in sports that mean the most to the most people. Even in basketball, which doesn’t mean so much at most SEC locales, it’s been just four years since Florida won back-to-back titles.
Fittingly, this school sports year ended with two SEC teams playing for major college baseball’s title. Florida and South Carolina did it in a most attention-getting way.
Joe Medley is The Star’s sports columnist. He can be reached at 256-235-3576 or jmedley@annistonstar.com. Follow on Twitter @Jomedstar.
