The game 2 pitching matchup would appear to be set, with Clemson (the homem team today) sending junior righthander David Kopp (6-2) to face MSU's Justin Pigott (6-6) in the all important matchup. The Dogs will be facing the second highly drafted pitcher in as many days, as Kopp was the 71st selection overall in the MLB draft. Moskos of course was the #4 overall draft. It is a testament to the Clemson program that they had 11 players drafted this year.

Like yesterday, pitching and defense will be the key for Clemson, while offense will be the key for State. Having Pigott on the mound gives State a crafty vet who who was the MVP of the Tallahasee Regional, and who generally unflappable. It will be another gargatuan task trying to tame the Tiger hitters who reached out for 2 homers yesterday.

Clemson showed yesterday why they are a top 5 team, as they took the early lead with solid hitting and aggressive base running. They also showed their muscle with the 2 deep shots that accounted for 3 of the 6 runs. This is not a team to be taken lightly at the plate.

For Kopp, the job is simple: stop the bink bats, and take some of the confidence the Dogs are getting at the plate now. In the last 2 games, Brandon Turner has shown a return to the form that had him in the thick of the SEC batting racec until his injury in April, and Connor Powers is regaining his hitting stroke and confidence that made him a fan favorite (he has his own fan club already - Connor's Cuties) this season.

And of course, the fans will be out in the thousands again for today's 11 AM CDT start (1 PM EST). 12, 620 were at the stadium yesterday. Today, the school is limiting walk up sales to only 1200 additional tickets. They are expecting a near cpapity crowd of 15,000 today. Any overflow that can not get a ticket will be able to view the game in Humphrey Coliseum which is adjacent to the stadium.

It's about time for me to wander around this cathedral that is Dudy Nobel and check out what some of the early bird fans are doing. The sun is shiningg brightly, the birss are singinng, but not as loud as the Jimmy Buffet blaring from the rig in front of me. The grounds crew is hard at work putting the finisihng touches on the field, and we are a scant 3 hours away from Game 2.

BTW, for those who were not able to attend the game, or watchi ti on TV, here is alink to some shots I took yeasterday.

Touching the Bases will return at the end of the game with complete analysis and a wrapup of today's game. To follow the action with live pitch-by-pitch information, head to Gametracker