Chapelboro.com’s coverage of Carolina baseball in the Men’s College World Series is proudly presented by High & Rubish Insurance Agency.
The unique format of the Men’s College World Series means that, unlike in the NCAA Regionals or Super Regionals, teams get to enjoy an off day in between games. And when that team is coming off a win the previous night, it makes the off day that much more enjoyable.
Head coach Scott Forbes was so pleased with his team’s performance against Ole Miss Friday that he let the players sleep in Saturday morning. But that’s not exactly newsworthy. Forbes has his players’ health and wellness down to an exact science, and that includes sleep.
“Minimum of eight hours,” Forbes said. “But a lot of times, I want them to try and get in nine, ten hours.”
After that extended sleep, the work started immediately. When Forbes walked down to breakfast in the team hotel, his staff was already hard at work preparing for Sunday night’s game against No. 16 West Virginia. Once breakfast was finished – and after talking with the local media in one of the hotel’s many ballrooms – it was off to practice away from the hustle and bustle of downtown Omaha. Forbes indicated the practice wouldn’t be as long as a normal session, to keep his team fresh — but no less intense.
“They know how important practice is,” Forbes said of his players. “This is a bought-in group. They’ll be locked in. We’ve already talked about what we’re doing. It’ll be shorter, but we have to be present. We have to get better. We have a saying that you’re either getting better or you’re getting worse.”
For a team to win the College World Series, it has to keep up that mentality for two weeks. For UNC, that timeline extends all the way back to August, when the Diamond Heels met as a team for the first time. Ten months later, they find themselves a win away from the national semifinals — somewhere they haven’t been since 2013.
But that’s not to say Carolina can’t have some fun out here. The city of Omaha goes all out for the College World Series, and Forbes wants to make sure his players get to enjoy themselves.
“When you get to Omaha, there’s just a lot thrown at you,” he said. “It seems like you always have something to do… but you also want to give your guys a little bit of time with their families and a little time in the hotel just to rest.”
“It really just comes down to making sure guys know to not do too much,” said Gavin Gallaher, one of the few UNC holdovers from its previous trip to Omaha in 2024. “It’s easy to get caught up in all the stuff outside of the games, and if you let that happen, it’ll catch up to you. So just making sure that guys know to enjoy it and take it all in, but when it’s time to be locked in, to be locked in.”
Striking that balance is the key to turning an Omaha weekend into an extended stay. It’s something UNC hasn’t been able to capture in its recent trips here: Carolina won its first game in both 2018 and 2024, then lost its next two to crash out of the College World Series. In fact, UNC has not won its first two games in Omaha since 2006, when the Diamond Heels came within a game of the national title.
That’s the task ahead for Forbes’ program. It’s one he’ll drill into his players at today’s (abbreviated) practice. It’s what he’ll tell them before sending them to their mandated eight hours of sleep.
But between now and then, the Diamond Heels will try to simply enjoy where they are. Only a small percentage of college baseball players get to experience what the NCAA is now calling “The Greatest Show on Dirt.” Before Friday’s game against Ole Miss, Gallaher said he didn’t remember much about his trip to Omaha in 2024. Forbes acknowledged the same. This year, the team isn’t repeating that mistake.
Forbes can only hope there are several more days of memories to come.
Click to find more Carolina baseball coverage from Chapelboro.com, onsite in Omaha! Proudly presented by High & Rubish Insurance Agency.
Featured image via Associated Press/Vera Nieuwenhuis
Chapelboro.com does not charge subscription fees, and you can directly support our efforts in local journalism here. Want more of what you see on Chapelboro? Let us bring free local news and community information to you by signing up for our newsletter.
UNC Baseball Balancing Work, Relaxation During Omaha Off Day Chapelboro.com.
Hence then, the article about unc baseball balancing work relaxation during omaha off day was published today ( ) and is available on chapelboro ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( UNC Baseball Balancing Work, Relaxation During Omaha Off Day )
Also on site :
- LIVE: Qatar vs Switzerland – World Cup 2026
- NBA Star James Harden Arrested and Charged
- The 9 Childhood Snacks You Grew Up Eating That Were Quietly Banned