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The Rice Thresher
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by Jose Luis Cubria thresher editorial staff
In the latest polls released Monday, Collegiate Baseball ranked the Owls - who are off to an impressive undefeated start - the No. 1 team in the nation. The other two polls aren't yet convinced. Baseball America has Rice rated No. 6, while the Baseball Weekly/ESPN Coaches poll put the Owls at No. 5. And they're not the only ones who disagree with Collegiate Baseball. Rice head coach Wayne Graham also has some doubts. "It's an honor, but I'm not real comfortable with it right now," Graham said. "I do think we're a good team, but we're not a great one yet. There are a lot of issues to address if we are to become a great team." The ranking marks the first time since 1999 that Rice has been No. 1 in one of the three major polls. That year, the Owls became the first team in school history to receive the No. 1 ranking in any sport. They spent seven weeks atop at least one poll before finishing the year at No. 5. This time around, the Owls received the distinction on the heels of a sweep of last weekend's Crowne Plaza/Rice Invitational at Reckling Park. Rice went 3-0 in the tournament with victories over the University of Nebraska (ranked as high as No. 4 entering the weekend), the Georgia Institute of Technology (ranked No. 1 in all three polls) and Lamar University. Coupled with a come-from-behind win over the University of Houston Tuesday, the Owls are 8-0 and off to their best start since going 14-0 to begin the 1993 season. Considering Rice's tough schedule - which includes wins over four ranked teams - there is a valid argument for rating the team No. 1. But the Owls know they've still got room to improve. "We're No. 1 in the nation according to some people, but we're not perfect yet," senior catcher Phillip Ghutzman said. "There's no doubt we've had some difficulties. With bunting, with the defense, we could still do some fine tuning with stuff like that." Never were those deficiencies more apparent than against UH. Thanks to poor hitting, questionable defense and a complete inability to execute plays as routine as a sacrifice bunt or a hit-and-run, Rice trailed the Cougars 2-1 entering the ninth inning. But coming through when they need it most has become the Owls' trademark. Two weeks ago, they got a game-winning home run to beat Baylor University in the 10th inning. Last weekend, they mounted a two-out, two-run rally to edge top-ranked Georgia Tech. Tuesday, Rice loaded the bases with nobody out, and Ghutzman came through with a go-ahead grand slam to give the Owls their first lead. Junior reliever Philip Tribe (1-0), who had held UH scoreless since the fifth, made the lead hold up in the ninth to pick up his first win of the year. "I'm proud of the fact that we came back," Graham said. "You're always proud of a team that shows a world of perseverance. It gets in their head that they can always do it and they won't ever quit. "That's the kind of team that's going to win the national championship, the one that just won't quit. There are maybe 10 teams that can win it right now, but the one that wants it the most will win it." Although the Cougars are a markedly worse team now than a year ago, history was against Rice. The day after they were ranked No. 1 two years ago, the Owls lost a road game to a local rival, dropping a 5-1 decision against Lamar. For eight innings Tuesday, it looked like deją vu all over again. "Every win is good, but this one is particularly because last time, right after we were named No. 1, we got beat the next day," Graham said. "And we didn't want to do that again. We don't want to hear that 'You're overrated' stuff again." In part, Ghutzman said Tuesday's struggles - much like the 1999 loss to Lamar - could be partly attributed to being ranked No. 1. "I'm not going to say we were tight and I'm not going to say that that was 100 percent the problem," Ghutzman said. "But there's no doubt it was part of it. You're going to tell yourself that it's not important, but of course it's in the back of your mind. You look on the computer or in the paper and see your name at the top of the list and that gets to you. "Luckily there are a lot of older, experienced guys on this team who know there's a long way to go. It's not like college football, where you have to be No. 1 or No. 2 to get to the show in the end. We know it's a long season."
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