Karma - this mainly has to do with dogpiles. Every CWS qualifier dogpiled except Rice, Oregon State and Arizona State - and the Sun Devils looked like they were trying. Rice and OSU had the luxury of a solid lead in their clinching game, but the sight of the Rice and Oregon State flags next to each other at Thursday's opening ceremonies was a reminder that these two teams expect to be around for one more dogpile.

History - Rice won the national championship in 2003 after finally breaking its 0-3 skid in Omaha openers. The Owls did so against Southwest Missouri State, a No. 3 seed which advanced to the CWS after beating a No. 3 seed in the super regionals. Rice's first-round opponent this year? Louisville, which is another No. 3 seed on its first trip to Omaha. I don't know how this will play out, however, because I feel Louisville might be a bit more prepared for the big stage than SMS was - the Bears gave up two first-inning runs after multiple walks and never recovered four years ago.
As for more recent history, however, Louisville is red-hot and dominating everybody and anybody. So I'm throwing history and jinxes out the window and looking forward to some legit baseball in a great setting.

Road to Omaha - This is my third trip to Omaha, but the first time I've gotten to get here by road. I'm here pretty much on my own and headed back to work on Monday regardless of how Rice does, so I road-tripped up here with two of my best friends from college. We met up in Dallas Wednesday night and drove to Omaha from 7:30-7:30 on Thursday. And the air conditioning went out somewhere in northern Oklahoma, so things were a bit sweaty. Let me tell you, I really appreciate getting here a little more after driving it. And it was pretty darn exciting to see Rosenblatt, even though I've seen almost 20 games there in person, after 11 hours of driving.

Opening Ceremonies - We parked and got past the hordes of teeny-boppers into the stadium itself, much to the excitement of my friends, who had never been to Rosenblatt before. We endured screaming Little Leaguers in the row behind us to enjoy the opening ceremonies. The fireworks were, of course, spectacular, but the moment that gave me chills was the introduction of the Bluffton University baseball team, honoring its perseverance this season after a horrific bus accident in early March that claimed the life of five players. The players on all eight teams rose to their feet even before the introduction was finished, and the fans followed suit for the longest, and most heartfelt, standing ovation of the night.

My roommates' takes
Melissa: "It was way more than I ever expected it to be. The fireworks were amazing. It's the mecca of college baseball, and we're here!" (she said this with way more excitement than I convey in writing)
Eric: "It was a long day of traveling, but when I came over the bridge from Council Bluffs into Omaha and saw Rosenblatt Stadium up on the hill, it looked pretty damn magical."

Back to my opinions ... I like Rice, UNC, UC Irvine, and Fullerton to win their openers thanks to plus pitching staffs. We'll see if Rosenblatt's wireless holds up and I can add some blogs during the games today.

Things to watch in Rice-Louisville game:
1. Starting pitching. For all the talk about Rice's advantage in experience, Louisville will start a junior against a Rice freshman in the opener. If Ryan Berry gets through the first two innings, he ought to turn in a good start, which should spell a Rice win. Watch out for first inning wildness from both starters.
2. The running game. By taking on Louisville, Rice will be facing its third 150-plus steal opponent in the last three weeks (Prairie View A&M, Texas A&M, Louisville). Those are the only three such teams in the country, but Rice catcher Danny Lehmann and the quick move to the plate of Berry should limit the Cardinals some.
3. Fan support. Will Omaha neutrals back the tournament's biggest underdog, Louisville, or stick with old favorite Rice, which has won over a number of local fans in its five previous visits, especially its last two visits (2003, 2006). I doubt it will have much impact on the game, but it will be interesting to document.
4. Bloggers. No seriously, it's not just a shameless plug. Will the Louisville Courier-Journal's Brian Bennett return to his blog and get the boot for the second game running? Will the Houston Chronicle's Joseph Duarte continue to piss off NCAA big-wigs by blogging from home while watching the TV broadcast? We'll find out soon enough.