Danny Hultzen will lead UVa into dangerous Seminole country.

Yep, conference play starts already.

It just doesn’t seem right, does it? It seems like conference games shouldn’t start for at least another three weeks or so. Non-conference weekends have become members of the endangered species list. Go ahead and call the World Wildlife Fund… I’ll wait.

Of course, this big problem was brought on by the money-hungry conferences grabbing the cash cows of over-membershiping their maximums. Some leagues have just gotten too big if you ask me – 12-teams, 14-teams, and the Big East basketball chase involves 16 teams, c’mon – it means that intriguing non-conference play gets squeezed out like a rat by a boa constrictor. Sure, Alice Cooper would love it. But not me.

(Be sure to catch Part 2 of the Weekend Preview below)

And of course, that also means it’s the college baseball fans that lose out here. ‘Coz I don’t know if you’re like me, but I love when teams match up from different sections of the country. But those kind of things are becoming few-and-far between.

Yeah I know, it’s not all bad. The ACC ramps up this weekend with some tasty matchups. They lead the Atlantic Sun, Southern Conference, Southland Conference, Sun Belt and SWAC all kicking into full gear with a full slate of games this weekend.

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FIVE QUESTIONS GOING INTO THE WEEKEND.
These are the biggest questions that will be answered on the diamond this weekend.

1- Who is the legit national title contender, Virginia or Florida State?
UVa is road tested already. FSU can make some huge legitimacy points here.

2- Can Houston prove last week was no fluke?
Coogs are 5-5, but coming off a 3-0 mark in the Houston College Classic and now make the long trek to Cal Poly.

3- Is the Big East for real?
With Louisville going to Ole Miss, UConn playing at the Tennessee Tournament and St. John’s playing three at 9-1 Liberty, this is the Big East in the white-hot spotlight.

4- Can East Carolina shake its west coast blues?
The Pirates enter this week having lost their last 11 games west of the Rockies. And now they’ve lost their first two to CSUN and Pepperdine already.

5- Are Fullerton and UC Irvine really that bad?
With both teams sporting unlikely 7-5 and 4-6 marks going into this weekend, they both go on the road and need some wins.

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THE TEN BEST PLACES TO BE THIS WEEKEND.
If you’re a fan of college baseball, get your ass out to a game in your area, or else… Here are a few of the better places to be in the next few days.

10- The Mid-Major conference kickoffs.
Underrated, but not to be underemphisized. The Southland and the Southern Conferences kick off in-league play this week with some big matchups. More on this below.

9- Tennessee Tournament, Knoxville.
Tennessee, Ohio State, Marshall, Connecticut.
This weekend round-robin got a lot more interesting when UConn went out to Northridge and USC and went 4-1 last week. The Vols are hurting a bit and can make up some ground with good showings against the Huskies and also a win over the Buckeyes. Also, keep tabs on where OSU coach Bob Todd uses his ace Alex Wimmers, since they play Marshall on Friday, the Vols on Saturday and UConn on Sunday.

8- The SDSU Tournament, San Diego
No. 26 Cal State Fullerton, San Diego, San Diego State, UAB, San Francisco, Fresno State.
This one could be dubbed the “Terrible Disappointments” Tournament. All six teams have had their bummer moments. Fullerton needs to go unbeaten in this tournament more than any other team in the field. Same could be said for the Toreros, who at 6-7 on the season, seem to be having their offensive problems again (hitting just .283) and A.J. Griffin (1-3, 8.02) hasn’t yet locked things down.

7- Wichita State at Long Beach State.
These two teams have had some good showdowns the last few seasons, with each team winning five of the last 10 meetings. This time they’ll do it again at Blair Field. Wondering if ANYone can cool down Shocker catcher Cody Lassley, who leads the country in batting average (.643), slugging (1,214%) and on-base percentage (.667).

6- Kansas at No. 1 LSU.
This will be the Tigers’ first real test of the 2010 season, as the Jayhawks come in sporting a decent 9-3 mark. Still, losses to Eastern Michigan in the season opener and a bad blowout loss at Arkansas are still etched deep in my mind. And as I stated in my baldcast from Tuesday night, the biggest drag will be not being able to see the Anthony Ranaudo vs. Tony Thompson showdown since both those players are out with injuries.

Wazzu coach Donnie Marbut confidently takes his Cougars into the pit known as Olsen Field.

5- Wash. St. at No. 29 Texas A&M.
Two teams that are a little off the radar in their respective conferences, this will be a huge series for RPI points. Wazzu enters at 9-1 and has a couple of decent wins over Texas Tech and Bethune-Cookman. Obviously, this would be their marquee out-of-conference wins if they can pull out some Ws. But A&M (11-2) is still lethal at home, where they have been blowout artists so far this season.

4- Auburn at No. 3 Arizona State
Okay, time to see where the John Pawlowski Project on the Plains now stands. Hell, while we’re at it, it’s also time to see where the Tim Esmay Project in the Desert is for the Devils. Team War Eagle hits a stout .373 with 15 home runs. This will be a huge test vs. the Josh Spence-less Devil arms.

3- Whataburger Classic, Corpus Christi
UCLA, Oklahoma, Mississippi State and T&M-CC.
That Sunday matchup with the Bruins and Sooners could be really tasty, since I’ve seen both teams play and have both in my Top 10. Also, keep in mind that the Bulldog program could really turn a corner here under John Cohen, considering their 9-3 start.

2- Louisville at No. 20 Ole Miss.
As stated here before, the Dan McDonnell road show returns to Oxford for the first time since he left the Rebel program to take over in Muhammad Ali-town. Although they got a nice series win at Tulane, the Rebs still need to prove they can beat a good team and look good the entire weekend.

1- No. 4 Virginia at No. 2 Florida State.
Yesssss!
Plenty of angles to this ACC opener, but I’ll be keeping a keen eye on the UVa pitching (3.79) with Danny Hultzen, Robert Morey and Kevin Arico, going up against the mighty ‘Nole bats (.353, 15HRs), led by Tyler Holt, Stephen Cardullo and Stuart Tapley.

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THE MID-MAJOR SPOTLIGHT.
- UT-San Antonio (7-4) at Southeastern Louisiana (12-1)
Too bad this one has to come on the first weekend of Southland Conference play. These two could be battling it out at the end of the season for the top seed in the post-season tourney. So this series would be a huge boost to those hopes. But the Road Runners come into the weekend with a host of problems, like an offense that hits just .260, while their opponents are clipping along at .324. Now you see why SLU sluggers Jeff Harkensee (.426, 9doubles) and Justin Boudreaux (.417,6-for-8SBs) are smiling so big.

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THE MID-MAJOR SPOTLIGHT II.
- Western Carolina (10-2) at The Citadel (8-3)
Just like the game above, this one is also a conference-opening weekend in the SoCon with two of the top contenders butting heads right off the bat. Both teams own some good wins and some impressive losses (if there is such a thing). WCU’s three weekend starters Vance Chavis, Jason Sullivan and Kyle Stewart are holding opponents to averages of .200, .165 and .255 respectively. The Bulldogs big three of Nick Orvin (.432), William Ladd (.417) and Matt Simonelli (.389) have their work cut out for them.

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THE UNBEATENS.
Here are the teams in Division I that are still unscathed going into this weekend, and their chances of staying that way. We’ll use the competitive diving “degree of difficulty” scale that goes 1.0 to 4.0 in easiest to hardest.

- LSU (12-0)
Best win: Series sweep vs. William & Mary
Closest call: Tigers have won four one-run games.
Up Next: vs. Kansas
Degree of Difficulty: 2.8
This will be the Tigers first challenge against a team with a pulse – thought it might be Pepperdine, but they’ve struggled. But even when you think about this series, that opening-game loss KU had to Eastern Michigan and that ugly blowout loss to Arkansas make me think LSU should win this going away.

- Florida State (12-0)
Best win: 10-5 vs. Florida
Closest call: None. FSU has won each game in blowout fashion, except a 2-0 win at Jacksonville, where the Noles held the Dolphins to one hit all game.
Up Next: vs. Virginia
Degree of Difficulty: 3.7
The only way this series could be more of a test for the ‘Noles would be if it came on the road. UVa will be balls-out tough. This could also be a series featuring two teams that will end the season as national seeds.

- Arizona State (12-0)
Best win: 6-4 over Oregon State
Closest call: 5-4 win over Towson, the Tigers outhit the Devs and had the tying run touching home plate when the last out was made.
Up Next: vs. Auburn
Degree of Difficulty: 3.5
The Devils are still without Aussie ace Josh Spence and will welcome a hot-hitting SEC team to Packard Stadium. THIS should be fun.

- Louisville (12-0)
Best win: the three-game sweep of LeMoyne
Closest call: a 6-5, 10-inning win over the Dolphins, where they scored four runs in the bottom of the 10th to pull out an unlikely win.
Up Next: at Ole Miss
Degree of Difficulty: 3.4
The Rebels are 9-2, but have looked sketchy at times. None-the-less, the Cards will need to amp things up a bit to win this series. But you have to love that Thomas Royse vs. Drew Pomeranz matchup on Friday.

- UCLA (10-0)
Best win: 9-2 vs. Vanderbilt and Sonny Gray
Closest call: the last two games UCLA has won in jog-off fashion vs. Nebraska and UC Riverside.
Up Next: Whataburger Classic vs. Mississippi State, Oklahoma and TA&M-CC
Degree of Difficulty: 3.2
This will be the first venture outside of the L.A. basin for the Bruins. To me, OU is a legit Top 10 team (so far). MSU may also be gathering some momentum.

- Appalachian State (10-0)
Best win: Swept Rider, 7-5, 8-5 and 8-6.
Closest call: In the middle win over the Broncos, RU had the bases loaded in the 9th before inducing a strikeout.
Up Next: at Georgia Southern
Degree of Difficulty: 3.0
This is just about as tough as it gets for a Southern Conference team. Last year, ASU dropped three of four to the Eages.

- Alabama State (4-0)
Best win: None really
Closest call: Opening game 4-3 win over Miles College.
Up Next: at Grambling
Degree of Difficulty: 1.6
The Hornets own a pair of wins over Miles and Tuskegee each. Their three-game series with Western Illinois got cancelled. Now they’ll play two games at Grambling, who is currently 1-9 with mostly blowout losses.

… and two near-misses.

Liberty (now 9-1) and Yale (now 4-1) were both on this list of unbeatens, but both lost on Wednesday to Old Dominion (5-3) and Miami Univ. (14-10) respectively.

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THE WINLESS.
Here are the teams in Division I that are still winless going into this weekend, and their chances of staying that way.

- Albany (0-7)
Up Next: at New York Tech (0-3)
Degree of Difficulty: 1.1

- Central Connecticut State (0-4)
Up Next: at George Mason
Degree of Difficulty: 3.1

- Chicago State (0-4)
Up Next: vs. Southern Utah in Palm Beach, Fla.
Degree of Difficulty: 3.4

- Hofstra (0-9)
Up Next: Villanova Baseball Bash
Degree of Difficulty: 2.3

- Lafayette (0-7)
Up Next: Strike Out Cancer Tournament (Seton Hall and New Jersey Tech)
Degree of Difficulty: 2.2

- Monmouth (0-4)
Up Next: at Navy Tournament
Degree of Difficulty: 1.1

- New York Tech (0-3)
Up Next: vs. Albany
Degree of Difficulty: 3.1

- North Carolina Central (0-10)
Up Next: vs. North Carolina A&T
Degree of Difficulty: 1.8

- North Dakota (0-2)
Up Next: at Southeast Missouri State
Degree of Difficulty: 3.2

- Princeton (0-4)
Up Next: at UNC Greensboro
Degree of Difficulty: 2.7

- Quinnipiac (0-6)
Up Next: at William & Mary
Degree of Difficulty: 3.5

- Southern Utah (0-8)
Up Next: vs. Kennesaw State
Degree of Difficulty: 3.0

- St. Peter’s (0-9)
Up Next: at Mount St. Mary’s
Degree of Difficulty: 3.7

- UMBC (0-4)
Up Next: Winter Haven Baseball Tournament (Sacred Heart, Long Island, N.J. Tech)
Degree of Difficulty: 1.2

- UM-Eastern Shore (0-12)
Up Next: vs. Binghamton
Degree of Difficulty: 3.5

- Wagner (0-6)
Up Next: at Bethune-Cookman
Degree of Difficulty: 3.0

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THE FIRST TIMERS.
Who needs the stinkin’ common start date? Not these guys. Two teams still haven’t popped the cherry on their season, but will finally lace up the cleats this weekend. Here they are:

- Cornell
First game: at Villanova in the Villanova Baseball Bash.
Degree of Difficulty: 3.7
Games with Temple and St. Joseph’s could be winnable.

- UMass.
First game: at Oklahoma State
Degree of Difficulty: 4.0
The Pokes are itching like the dickens to pad their stats some more.

(more coming in part 2)