OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The ghosts of the old Pac-12 will be lurking at Charles Schwab Field this weekend when the College World Series opens.
Oregon State, UCLA and Arizona will be back in Omaha, where they combined for eight of the 29 national baseball championships won by the conference its previous iterations.
“This is for the West,” UCLA coach John Savage said.
The Pac-12 went all but dormant last July when 10 of its members dispersed to other conferences. The Pac-12 will ramp up again in July 2026 with holdovers Oregon State and Washington State joined by five members of the Mountain West Conference and one from the West Coast Conference.
No. 8 national seed Oregon State (47-14-1) is in the first of two years as a baseball independent and had only 19 regular-season home games because of scheduling challenges. The Beavers played eight more at home in the NCAA Tournament — the maximum possible — after coming out of the loser's bracket to win their regional and beating Florida State in a three-game super regional.
UCLA (47-16) was the Big Ten regular-season co-champion, made it to the conference tournament championship game and was 3-0 in its regional before it swept UTSA in its super regional.
Arizona (44-19) tied for fourth in the Big 12, won the conference tournament and went 3-0 as the No. 2 regional seed in Eugene, Oregon. The Wildcats had to go to North Carolina for their super regional and lost 18-2 in the opener. They won the next two, beating the Tar Heels 4-3 in the finale after erasing a 3-1 deficit in the eighth inning.
Three other former Pac-12 schools — Arizona State, Oregon and Southern California — didn't advance past regionals.
Arizona meets Coastal Carolina (53-11) in the CWS opener Friday afternoon with Oregon State playing Louisville (40-22) at night. UCLA squares off with Murray State (44-15) on Saturday afternoon and LSU (48-15) takes on Arkansas (48-13), the only remaining SEC teams, at night.
For LSU coach Jay Johnson, it will be old home week in Omaha. He's a California native who lived his entire life in the West before the Tigers hired him in June 2021. He coached at Nevada and Arizona, leading the Wildcats to the '21 CWS.
“I know the brand of baseball out there, something I’m proud of,” Johnson said. "It’s where I really cut my teeth against some of those great coaches, and it’ll be fun to see them out there” in Omaha.
Oregon State coach Mitch Canham was the catcher on the Pat Casey-coached teams that won national championships in 2006 and '07 at Rosenblatt Stadium. Casey and the Beavers also won the title at the current CWS stadium in 2018, when Canham was managing in the minor leagues.
“Omaha is in the Beaver blood, man,” Canham said. “It’ll be the first time stepping in that stadium for me and each and every one of these guys, other than Zak Taylor,” referring to his director of baseball development who played on the 2018 team.
Canon Reeder, who hit a three-run homer in the Beavers' 14-10 win over Florida State on Sunday, said he and his teammates formed a unique bond through the challenges of a season spent mostly on the road.
“To be in the position where we are, you have to take a step back and appreciate what you’ve done and where we’ve come this season," he said. "Job’s not finished. There’s eight teams left and we want to be the last one standing.”
Arizona coach Chip Hale, an infielder on the Wildcats' 1986 championship team and in his fourth season as coach, said he's impressed with how his team responded to the ups and downs of the first year in the Big 12. The Wildcats opened 0-3, won 17 of their next 18 and lost five of six late in the season.
“We hit some real roadblocks along the way and it ended up being a blessing to us because we got hot at the right time,” Hale said.
The CWS berth is especially meaningful to Mason White, who leads the Wildcats with a .332 batting average, 19 homers and 72 RBIs. He grew up a fan in Tucson, recalling that he watched every game when Arizona won the 2012 title and in 2016 when it lost to Coastal Carolina in the CWS finals. His father, Ben White, played for Arizona from 1993-96 and his grandfather, Tim White, lettered in 1968.
“To be a third-generation guy to go to Omaha, I'm the first one of my dad and grandpa to get to go," he said. “It’s almost like a dream. I just can’t believe it.”
AP Sports Writer Brett Martel is Baton Rouge, Louisiana, contributed to this report.
AP college sports: https://apnews.com/hub/college-sports
FILE - Oregon State head coach Mitch Canham fist bumps players during introductions before an NCAA college baseball tournament super regional game against Auburn, Monday, June 13, 2022, in Corvallis, Ore. (AP Photo/Amanda Loman, File)
FILE - UCLA coach John Savage is surrounded by players as he hoists the NCAA College World Series trophy, June 25, 2013, in Omaha, Neb. (AP Photo/Eric Francis, File)
