Omaha.
It’s finally a destination for Ole Miss and not a punch line to what seemed like a never-ending joke.
Let’s all say it together. Omaha stands for: Ole Miss At Home Again.
Not this time, though.
The Rebels ended an excruciatingly painful 42-year drought in the College World Series Monday night with a 10-4 pounding of Louisiana-Lafayette.
With the final out, Ole Miss players rushed the pitcher’s mound for a celebratory dog pile after rallying for two wins following a game one defeat.
“It was an awesome feeling,” Ole Miss catcher Will Allen said of the dog pile. “It was stressful when you can’t breath. Bodies are getting bent in different ways. I feel bad for (pitcher) Josh Laxer to start out with me on top of him.”
Ole Miss coach Mike Bianco said: “This was really for everyone. ... As a university, we deserve this.”
Bianco deserves it too.
He has taken his fair share of unwarranted criticism from his previous four super regional failures.
Bianco, given a not-so-ringing endorsement of a one-year extension after last season, has done his greatest coaching job in his 14 seasons in Oxford.
The Rebels went quietly in the postseason a year ago with a 1-2 mark in regional play and started the 2014 season picked sixth in the SEC West by the league’s coaches.
Bianco, though, has done more than any coach in Ole Miss history to elevate the baseball program. Now, maybe folks, including many Ole Miss fans, will get off his case for never taking a team to Omaha and wake up and see just what a great coach he is.
The Rebels (46-19) are now among the final eight teams remaining in the postseason after handing ULL (58-10) its first back-to-back losses of the season. Ole Miss faces a tough first draw in the College World Series, facing Virginia at 7 p.m. Sunday.
But you can bet Virginia isn’t real stoked about the matchup either.
That’s because Ole Miss has just what it takes to win it all in Omaha. And that starts with a talented, deep pitching staff.
That’s one of the main reasons the Rebels made it out of Lafayette against a team with gaudy offensive numbers. ULL was ranked second nationally in batting average (.319) and home runs (66).
But the Rebels held the Ragin’ Cajun offense pretty well in check after the first game.
Laxer and Scott Weathersby were dominant out of the bullpen Monday. ULL pitchers, on the other hand, issued eight walks and hit three batters.
Judging by social media, Ole Miss fans are basking in the glory of this long-awaited trip back to the CWS.
Omaha, get ready for a red-and-blue invasion. It’s headed your way.
And, oh, yeah, a few “Hoddy Toddy” cheers also.
