By Chris Marler
In football, it always feels strange when an SEC team plays a true road game against an opponent they should never visit. Like Missouri at UMass last year or Alabama at Duke a decade ago—it’s as unnatural as a lion going vegan or Casey Affleck starring in a movie that isn’t depressing or set in Boston.
SEC Teams hit the road
SEC baseball isn’t the same as football. Case in point: six of the 15 games in this week’s midweek slate will feature SEC teams on the road. Some are big matchups played in neutral, minor league stadiums like Florida playing Florida State in Jacksonville and South Carolina meeting UNC in Charlotte. However, Oklahoma traveling to Oral Roberts will take some getting used to.
Here’s a look at which teams are on the road:
- Florida vs Florida State (Neutral – Jacksonville, FL)
- Oklahoma at Oral Roberts
- South Carolina vs North Carolina (Neutral – Charlotte, NC)
- Auburn vs. South Alabama (Neutral – Montgomery, AL)
- Alabama vs North Alabama (Neutral – Huntsville, AL)
- Missouri at Illinois (Neutral – Sauget, IL)
Who needs a win the most?
It’s been a tough stretch for several teams in the league. There are five teams who have one or no wins in conference play. Those teams desperately need a win this week, but who needs it the most? It has to be South Carolina or Florida.
Florida has already taken down Florida State once, but since then, they’ve dropped six games in under two weeks. Still, the answer is South Carolina. After getting trounced in Fayetteville over the weekend, they now have Tennessee looming ahead. The Vols have one of the best lineups in the country but also lead the nation in ERA at 2.23.
UNC is just 5-6 since March 4. The Gamecocks have to make them 5-7.
Who’s on Upset Alert?
Kentucky. Xavier has played the toughest strength of schedule in the country this season. The Musketeers are just 11-13 on the season. However, they have losses to Oregon State, Stanford, Tennessee, Vanderbilt, and LSU.
