OMAHA, Neb. -- They told Tim Corbin not to waste his time in Nashville, Tennessee. It's a baseball graveyard. The locals would rather listen to aspiring country singers at The Bluebird Cafe than watch college baseball. It's barely a foundation of a program.
Consider Vanderbilt built.
The Commodores beat Texas 4-3 on Saturday night in the College World Series, exiting their side of the bracket right into the championship series. After just its second extra innings game this season, Vanderbilt (49-19) will take on Virginia, beginning Monday at 8 p.m. ET at TD Ameritrade Park. The Commodores have continued the SEC's build, too, now seven straight conference teams in the World Series finals.
Corbin has aggressively built a program, as aggressively as Tyler Campbell hustled down the first base line to beat out the walk-off infield single that plated Rhett Wiseman.
Asked about the program's rise in his decade there, Corbin, as expected, turned no attention to himself.
"Well, I don't know if I can put everything in words in terms of how far we've come. We've progressed in years," Corbin said. "I think just proud of how the kids developed. I'm not just talking about baseball, I'm talking about everything else. I mean, I love how the kids perform in our program, not just on the baseball field but what they do off of it."
It will be two teams looking for the same prize. Neither Vanderbilt or Virginia has been where they are going. Both have been on the College World Series stage -- Vandy in 2011 -- but not on its peak.
Pitching-strong Vandy was able to overcome adversity to go where so many great pitchers haven't been able to -- Mike Minor, David Price, Casey Weathers, Grayson Garvin and Sonny Gray on that list.
Carson Fulmer started, aiming for his second dominating start in Omaha. A week after the sophomore handcuffed Louisville with 5 1/3 innings of six-hit baseball. He struck out six that night. Saturday, at the brink of going home, Fulmer struggled. He allowed two runs on four hits in 4 1/3 innings. He walked six batters, three more than he struck out. After allowing Casey Clemons' tying two-run single in the fourth, his doom was the fifth inning, three walks and a wild pitch.
But freshman Hayden Stone came in to save the day. With one pitch, he left the bases juiced thanks to a grounder off Ben Johnson's bat. He pitched 5 2/3 innings to earn the win, allowing one run on three hits with eight strikeouts and a walk.
It took his defense, too, namely Wiseman running down C.J. Hinojosa's fly to left as he slid onto the warning track in the top of the 10th inning. Wiseman also had an RBI double.
But Stone was filthy, an 85 MPH slider to strike out Tres Barrera with a man on in the 10th. The freshman put his name in Vanderbilt lore.
After the game, Corbin sat on the bench in the dugout and watched his team celebrate.
"It's the best feeling in the world," he said. "I said it last week, it's the parent just watching your kids open the Christmas gift. You don't hustle under the tree and start opening yours with them. I don't want to be in that mess, I just want to watch it. I think that's the part that coaches get. That's the gratification of watching your kids celebrate moments like that and just being able to take it in and I just enjoy it.
"I enjoyed it when we got the moment to come to Omaha. That was fun and I enjoyed watching them tonight. And we'll enjoy this tonight emotionally and then we'll get back to business again tomorrow, because this tournament keeps on moving. But you gotta celebrate moments like this. If you just walk away from them, then you're not taking in really what this whole tournament is about."
Vanderbilt has the pitching to make the dream become reality, even if Fulmer can't go on short rest for an if-necessary Wednesday game. Tyler Beede, the first-round pick of the San Francisco Giants will likely get Monday's nod. The hitting has, overall, been very good in Omaha and the Commodores are averaging nearly two more runs in the postseason than they did in the regular season. Third baseman Xavier Turner won't be involved after his undefined suspension was announced on Friday.
Vanderbilt had been to three NCAA tournaments and no Super Regionals before Corbin came to town. This was Vanderbilt's 10th postseason under Corbin, a guy you have to cheer for. The always-polite New Hampshire native is constantly thanking people, praising players -- his and other team's. He tweets notes to fans -- a bunch of them who made the long haul from Nashville to anchor down in Omaha. He cleaned up the Powerade cups from the podium table.
He has rewarded the fans, who now care, with nine consecutive NCAA tournaments and four Super Regionals in the last five years. The Commodores were No. 1 in the nation for much of last season and ranked every week of this regular season in the Baseball America Top 25. The baseball is better. The facilities are better. Nashville is better with Corbin.
It continues when players put away their collegiate jerseys. Under Corbin, there have been 112 Major League Baseball draft picks, some of them undeniable stars as mentioned above. Corbin said after losing to Texas on Friday that Saturday's game was not an elimination game, it was a chance to move on. His attitude is contagious.
"But in terms of being here and being in this moment right now, I don't know if I can sum it all up, because you have to play well," Corbin said. "You have to have some breaks and you have to be a confident team."
Corbin and his Commodores are now two wins away from putting an NCAA championship trophy right smack in the middle of that graveyard he was forewarned not to coach in.
