| Season | 1976 |
|---|---|
| Teams | 34 |
| Finals site | |
| Champions | Arizona (1st title) |
| Runner-up | Eastern Michigan (2nd CWS Appearance) |
| Winning coach | Jerry Kindall (1st title) |
| MOP | Steve Powers (Arizona) |
The 1976 NCAA Division I baseball tournament was played at the end of the 1976 NCAA Division I baseball season to determine the national champion of college baseball. The tournament concluded with eight teams competing in the College World Series, a double-elimination tournament in its thirtieth year. Eight regional competitions were held to determine the participants in the final event. Seven regions held a four team, double-elimination tournament while one region included six teams, resulting in 34 teams participating in the tournament at the conclusion of their regular season, and in some cases, after a conference tournament.[1] The thirtieth tournament's champion was Arizona, coached by Jerry Kindall. The Most Outstanding Player was Steve Powers of Arizona.
Regionals
Seven of the eight regionals were played as 4-team double-elimination tournaments. One regional was played as a 6-team double-elimination tournament. The winner of each regional moved onto the College World Series.
Atlantic Regional
Games played in Columbia, South Carolina.
| First Round | Semi-Finals | Finals | ||||||||||||
| Clemson | 13 | |||||||||||||
| Furman | 2 | |||||||||||||
| Clemson | 10 | |||||||||||||
| South Carolina | 4 | |||||||||||||
| South Carolina | 7* | |||||||||||||
| Virginia Tech | 6* | |||||||||||||
| Clemson | 6 | — | ||||||||||||
| Furman | 2 | — | ||||||||||||
| Lower round 1 | Lower final | |||||||||||||
| South Carolina | 1 | |||||||||||||
| Furman | 5 | Furman | 12 | |||||||||||
| Virginia Tech | 4 | |||||||||||||
Rocky Mountain Regional
Games played in Tempe, Arizona.
| First Round | Semi-Finals | Finals | ||||||||||||
| Memphis | 6 | |||||||||||||
| Minnesota | 0 | |||||||||||||
| Memphis | 4 | |||||||||||||
| Arizona State | 11 | |||||||||||||
| Arizona State | 13 | |||||||||||||
| Gonzaga | 2 | |||||||||||||
| Arizona State | 12 | — | ||||||||||||
| Minnesota | 5 | — | ||||||||||||
| Lower round 1 | Lower final | |||||||||||||
| Memphis | 4 | |||||||||||||
| Minnesota | 4 | Minnesota | 17 | |||||||||||
| Gonzaga | 0 | |||||||||||||
Mideast Regional
Games played in Ypsilanti, Michigan.
| First Round | Semi-Finals | Finals | ||||||||||||
| Illinois State | 5 | |||||||||||||
| Southern Illinois | 2 | |||||||||||||
| Illinois State | 0 | |||||||||||||
| Eastern Michigan | 3 | |||||||||||||
| Eastern Michigan | 6 | |||||||||||||
| Michigan | 0 | |||||||||||||
| Eastern Michigan | 3 | 6 | ||||||||||||
| Michigan | 5 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Lower round 1 | Lower final | |||||||||||||
| Illinois State | 4 | |||||||||||||
| Southern Illinois | 0 | Michigan | 5 | |||||||||||
| Michigan | 2 | |||||||||||||
South Regional
Games played in Tallahassee, Florida.
| First Round | Semi-Finals | Finals | ||||||||||||
| Auburn | 10 | |||||||||||||
| Middle Tennessee | 5 | |||||||||||||
| Auburn | 2 | |||||||||||||
| Florida State | 1 | |||||||||||||
| Florida State | 6 | |||||||||||||
| Jacksonville | 1 | |||||||||||||
| Auburn | 7 | — | ||||||||||||
| Jacksonville | 5 | — | ||||||||||||
| Lower round 1 | Lower final | |||||||||||||
| Florida State | 7 | |||||||||||||
| Middle Tennessee | 5 | Jacksonville | 9 | |||||||||||
| Jacksonville | 8 | |||||||||||||
Midwest Regional
Games played in Edinburg, Texas.
| First Round | Semi-Finals | Finals | ||||||||||||
| Missouri | 5 | |||||||||||||
| Texas A&M | 3 | |||||||||||||
| Missouri | 1 | |||||||||||||
| Arizona | 10 | |||||||||||||
| Arizona | 5 | |||||||||||||
| Texas–Pan American | 0 | |||||||||||||
| Arizona | 8 | — | ||||||||||||
| Texas A&M | 2 | — | ||||||||||||
| Lower round 1 | Lower final | |||||||||||||
| Missouri | 3 | |||||||||||||
| Texas A&M | 2 | Texas A&M | 12 | |||||||||||
| Texas–Pan American | 1 | |||||||||||||
South Central Regional
Games played in Arlington, Texas.
| First Round | Semi-Finals | Finals | ||||||||||||
| Oklahoma | 11 | |||||||||||||
| Miami (FL) | 3 | |||||||||||||
| Oklahoma | 3 | |||||||||||||
| Texas | 2 | |||||||||||||
| Texas | 3 | |||||||||||||
| Lamar | 2 | |||||||||||||
| Oklahoma | 5* | 4 | ||||||||||||
| Texas | 6* | 1 | ||||||||||||
| Lower round 1 | Lower final | |||||||||||||
| Texas | 5 | |||||||||||||
| Miami (FL) | 6 | Miami (FL) | 0 | |||||||||||
| Lamar | 0 | |||||||||||||
West Regional
Games played in Pullman, Washington.
| First Round | Semi-Finals | Finals | ||||||||||||
| Cal State Fullerton | 7 | |||||||||||||
| Northern Colorado | 1 | |||||||||||||
| Cal State Fullerton | 1 | |||||||||||||
| Washington State | 5 | |||||||||||||
| Washington State | 8 | |||||||||||||
| Pepperdine | 2 | |||||||||||||
| Washington State | 1 | 7 | ||||||||||||
| Cal State Fullerton | 13 | 2 | ||||||||||||
| Lower round 1 | Lower final | |||||||||||||
| Cal State Fullerton | 11 | |||||||||||||
| Pepperdine | 4 | Pepperdine | 3 | |||||||||||
| Northern Colorado | 2 | |||||||||||||
Northeast Regional
Games played in Storrs, Connecticut.
| First Round | Second Round | Third Round | Semi-Finals | Finals | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Seton Hall | 8 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| St. John's | 0 | Seton Hall | 3 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Penn State | 2 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Temple | 6 | Seton Hall | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Columbia | 2 | Maine | 3 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Temple | 3 | Maine | 4 | — | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Maine | 6 | Seton Hall | 2 | — | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Maine | 11 | Seton Hall | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Penn State | 4 | St. John's | 3 | Temple | 0 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Columbia | 5 | Temple | 4 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| St. John's | 12 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
College World Series
Participants
| School | Conference | Record (conference) | Head coach | CWS appearances | CWS best finish | CWS record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arizona | WAC | 51–16 (12–6) | Jerry Kindall | 9 (last: 1970) | 2nd (1956, 1958, 1960) | 17–18 |
| Arizona State | WAC | 62–8 (17–1) | Jim Brock | 7 (last: 1975) | 1st (1965, 1967, 1969) | 26–11 |
| Auburn | SEC | 37–13 (12–7) | Paul Nix | 1 (last: 1967) | 4th (1967) | 2–2 |
| Clemson | ACC | 35–13 (10–2) | Bill Wilhelm | 2 (last: 1959) | 5th (1958, 1959) | 2–4 |
| Eastern Michigan | MAC | 43–14 (12–3) | Ron Oestrike | 1 (last: 1975) | 6th (1975) | 1–2 |
| Maine | Eastern Collegiate | 27–7 (n/a) | John Winkin | 1 (last: 1964) | 3rd (1964) | 3–2 |
| Oklahoma | Big 8 | 62–17 (4–1) | Enos Semore | 5 (last: 1975) | 1st (1951) | 9–8 |
| Washington State | Pac-8 | 42–13 (16–2) | Chuck Brayton | 3 (last: 1965) | 2nd (1950) | 5–6 |
Results
Bracket
| Upper round 1 | Upper round 2 | Upper final | Semifinals | Preliminary final | Final | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Clemson | 9 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Auburn | 4 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Clemson | 2 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Eastern Michigan | 310 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Eastern Michigan | 3 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Maine | 2 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Eastern Michigan | 2 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Arizona State | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Arizona State | 710 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Eastern Michigan | 6 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Arizona | 6 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Arizona State | 9 | Arizona | 7 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Washington State | 3 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Washington State | 6 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Oklahoma | 1 | Eastern Michigan | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Arizona | 5 | Arizona | 7 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Lower round 1 | Lower round 2 | Arizona State | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Washington State | 3 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Auburn | 8 | Maine | 6 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Arizona State | 7 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Maine | 9 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Maine | 0 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Clemson | 6 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Arizona | 10 | Arizona | 10 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Oklahoma | 2 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Game results
| Date | Game | Winner | Score | Loser | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| June 11 | Game 1 | Clemson | 9–4 | Auburn | |
| Game 2 | Eastern Michigan | 3–2 | Maine | ||
| June 12 | Game 3 | Arizona State | 7–6 (10 innings) | Arizona | |
| Game 4 | Washington State | 6–1 | Oklahoma | ||
| Game 5 | Maine | 9–8 | Auburn | Auburn eliminated | |
| June 13 | Game 6 | Arizona | 10–2 | Oklahoma | Oklahoma eliminated |
| Game 7 | Eastern Michigan | 3–2 (10 innings) | Clemson | ||
| Game 8 | Arizona State | 9–3 | Washington State | ||
| June 14 | Game 9 | Arizona | 10–6 | Clemson | Clemson eliminated |
| Game 10 | Maine | 6–3 | Washington State | Washington State eliminated | |
| June 15 | Game 11 | Eastern Michigan | 2–1 | Arizona State | |
| June 16 | Game 12 | Arizona State | 7–0 | Maine | Maine eliminated |
| Game 13 | Arizona | 11–6 | Eastern Michigan | ||
| June 18 | Game 14 | Arizona | 5–1 | Arizona State | Arizona State eliminated |
| June 19 | Final | Arizona | 7–1 | Eastern Michigan | Arizona wins CWS |
All-Tournament Team
The following players were members of the All-Tournament Team.
| Position | Player | School |
|---|---|---|
| P | Bob Chaulk | Arizona |
| Bob Owchinko | Eastern Michigan | |
| C | Ron Hassey | Arizona |
| 1B | Ken Phelps | Arizona State |
| 2B | Dan Schmitz | Eastern Michigan |
| 3B | Brian Petroff | Eastern Michigan |
| SS | Russ Quetti | Maine |
| OF | Ken Landreaux | Arizona State |
| Dave Stegman | Arizona | |
| Pete Van Horne | Arizona | |
| DH | Steve Powers (MOP) | Arizona |
Notable players
- Arizona: Ron Hassey, Dave Stegman
- Arizona State: Gary Allenson, Chris Bando, Floyd Bannister, Mike Colbern, Bob Horner, Dave Hudgens, Darrell Jackson, Ken Landreaux, Chris Nyman, Bob Pate, Rick Peters, Ken Phelps, Gary Rajsich
- Auburn: Joe Beckwith, Terry Leach
- Clemson: Ron Musselman, Chuck Porter, Kurt Seibert
- Eastern Michigan: Glenn Gulliver, John Martin, Bob Owchinko, Bob Welch
- Maine: Jack Leggett, Bert Roberge
- Oklahoma: Terry Bogener, Keith Drumright, George Frazier, Gene Krug, Roger LaFrancois
- Washington State: Dave Edler, Eric Wilkins, Tom Niedenfuer
Tournament Notes
- The Arizona State team featured 13 future Major League players – a record matched by the school's team from the previous year.
- Arizona head coach Jerry Kindall became the first person to win a College World Series as both a player (1956, Minnesota) and a coach.
- Keith Drumright appeared in his fourth College World Series.
- Eastern Michigan was the last northern school to play in the final game of the College World Series for 43 years, until Michigan in 2019.
See also
References
- ↑ "NCAA Men's College World Series Records" (PDF). NCAA. 2009. p. 195. Retrieved August 22, 2014.