A revolution took place in the SWAC in 2011 as woebegone Alcorn State finally won its first SWAC title, signaling the rise of the East Division is finally complete. So things are wide open now. Who’s your money on? Whoever it is, that next crown ceremony will certainly be deserved.

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2011 in a Paragraph:

A little bit of good and a little bit of bad, to be honest. First off, Barret Rey led Alcorn State to its first-ever SWAC title. The Braves won both the tourney and regular season title (with a stellar 19-4 mark), Southern got the most wins (29) and the West division had the best title chase. But in the big picture, none of the SWAC teams earned 30+ wins, with only three teams (Jackson State, Southern and Prairie View) ended 2011 with winning marks. But the SWAC has made great strides in the hiring department, pulling in some positive young coaches that should pay dividends in the near future.

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Conference ISR: 30

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HOW THEY’LL FINISH IN 2012:

- The Eastern Division:

1- Alcorn State

2- Jackson State

3- Mississippi Valley State

4- Alabama A&M

5- Alabama A&M

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- The Western Division:

1- Southern

2- Grambling State

3- Texas Southern

4- Prairie View

5- Arkansas-Pine Bluff

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2012 in a Paragraph:

Last year in this space I foretold that the 2011 season might be “the most interesting SWAC season in memory”. Considering ASU won the overall regular season by 3.5 games and Southern took the West by a 2-game cushion, you can scratch that and translate that promise to THIS season. It could be a wild ride, especially in the East as Jackson State is breathing fire wanting to make amends for last season and Mississippi Valley just keeps rolling along with winning campaigns in conference play. Look for Grambling to give Southern all it can handle in the West, though I’d say the Jags have an easier rode than that donnybrook in the East. But when all is said and done, it will come down to Alcorn and Southern again. Mentor vs. prodigy in the finale. Should be another fun trip.

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Favorites: Alcorn State, Southern

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Contenders: Jackson State, Grambling

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Darkhorse: Alabama A&M

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Can’t-Miss Series of the Year: Anytime Alcorn and Southern get together, especially if there is a rematch in the SWAC tournament this May.

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Best Non-Conference Series: The Urban Invitational, Feb. 17-19 (Southern, Texas Southern, Prairie View, UC Irvine)

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Hot Coach: Barret Rey, Alcorn State

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Hot Seat Coach: None.

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The “You Gotta See” Pitcher: RHP Quintavious Drains, Jackson State

The “You Gotta See” Player: OF Kendall Logan, Jackson State

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Three Non-Conference Series SWAC Opponents Better Take Seriously:

1- Alcorn State at Southern Miss, April 5-7.

2- Alcorn State at Oklahoma State, May 11-13.

3- Prairie View at Dallas Baptist, April 6-7.

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Eastern Division:

- ALABAMA A&M (10-39, 6-18)

2011 ISR: 296

Starters Returning: 5

Weekend Starters: 3

Mid-Week Starters: 0

Key Relievers (20+inns.): 2

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All Conference Candidates:

RHP Manny Lora (2-6, 5.31, 2svs)

LHP Sanchez Tucker (3-10, 8.42, 1sv)

OF Juan Lopez (.245, 12SBs)

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The Good News:

Top assistant Michael Tompkins takes the reigns of the program. He’ll have a rotation of Manny Lora, Sanchez Tucker and James Brown (1-2, 9.90) as a base to build around. The offense returns OF Lamar Bridges (.272, 10SBs) and Juan Lopez to set the table with a lot of speed and experience. Speaking of, look for the offense to use its speed a lot, having a low batting average (.246), but also stealing 65 bases last year.

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The Bad News:

Well obviously, having head coach Ed McCann resign due to health reasons in January was a real bummer. Also, going from 17 wins in 2010 down to 10 last season wasn’t exactly expected. Could more headaches be ahead before things get turned around? Probably. The pitching staff returns a host of arms but with the team ERA hovering around 10.30 and issuing 304 walks last season, you see the problem. The defense didn’t help out much as it posted a .933 fielding percentage and will have a few holes to fill this spring as well. Yikes.

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Schedule Note:

Serious problems ahead.

Give it to coach McCann, he’s not afraid to take his charges anywhere to play just about anybody. The Bulldogs will play at Oklahoma State, at Texas Tech and at Auburn this season. On top of that, A&M will play only three home games from April 19th onward.

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- ALABAMA STATE (14-29, 6-18)

2011 ISR: 294

Starters Returning: 3

Weekend Starters: 1

Mid-Week Starters: 1

Key Relievers (20+inns.): 0

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All Conference Candidates:

OF Jordan Mims (.333-2-24)

RHP Anthony Ricciardi (3-5, 6.08)

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The Good News:

Well there was no bigger off-season hire in all of college baseball than the one ASU announced in June of last summer. That small tremor you felt was the fact that Hornet administrators opened up the check book and yanked Mervyl Melendez away after his uber-successful 12-year stint at Bethune-Cookman. (Insert record scratch sound effect here). Wow! This is a culture-changer here people. Coupled with the fact that they opened up a new baseball complex last season, you know this is a program that will eventually raise the profile big time. Coach Melendez will have Jordan Mims, a senior, and Anthony Ricciardi, the teams’ most-used ace as leaders moving forward.

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The Bad News:

The last time the Hornets had a winning season was way back in 2000, so coach Melendez, you’ve got your work more than cut out for yourself. There may still be some rough bumps here and there since the cupboard is nearly bare for returnees. 2B Darrion Pedro (.268-2-30, 12SBs) and 1B Kelly Lloyd (.263) are the only other starters coming back. ASU was horribly outscored last year – as you might suspect – but it was egregiously bad from the 1st to the 4th innings, outscored 167-to-90. So the Hornets must be able to get better starts from the pitching staff or else that mountain gets tougher to climb.

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Schedule Note:

Going back to the Urban Invitational

Coach Melendez will keep one thing the same, he’ll be taking a team to the Urban Invitational, just like he’s done the last few years with his Bethune-Cookman teams. In the opening weekend of the season they’ll go to Houston to play UC Irvine, Grambling and Southern.  They’ll also play top-notch teams like Auburn, Kennesaw State, Stony Brook, Gardner-Webb, Georgia State and Troy this season. Oh, there’s also a three-game road trip to Oklahoma in late April. Tough slate.

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- ALCORN STATE (27-30, 19-4)

2011 ISR: 221

Starters Returning: 7

Weekend Starters: 2

Mid-Week Starters: 0

Key Relievers (20+inns.): 5

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All Conference Candidates:

1B Eduardo Gonzalez (.344-4-48)

OF Brandon Hollins (.282, 38SBs)

INF Antolin Morales (.300)

RHP Steve Easter (8-6, 4.82, 5CGs)

RHP Troy Williams (7-6, 5.01)

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The Good News:

How about that 2011, huh? That was a cold slap of ice water to the face, man. A regular season title, a tournament title and a trip to the NCAA tournament. Not even the legendary Rat McGowan was able to get the Braves to that high air during his tenure. But give all the credit in the world to what coach McGowan was able to leave a good base to build from and then to coach Barret Rey for inspiring his troops to new levels of success. He’ll have a senior-based team to work with this time around, led by Eduardo Gonzalez, who had a great summer in the Northwoods League, making the All Star team, which should lead to a great senior year. There will also be three other four-year guys leading the way in Antolin Morales, Brandon Hollins and OF Jann Butler (.286, 17SBs). Steve Easter and Troy Williams are both seniors as weekend starters coming back and will be joined by staff relief ace Harrison Gary (1-3, 5.71, 3svs) and Ryan Fuentes (3-0, 6.18, 1sv). The Braves stole a SWAC-best 133 bases last season and will have Hollins (the SWAC leader) and Butler back to lead the pressure cooker again this year.

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The Bad News:

Well, if you’re nitpicking, the Braves still ended the 2011 season with a losing record. Yes, that officially makes me Mr. Wet Towel here. The Braves will lose their top hitter in Kilby Perdomo (who was .346) and also the best pitcher in Cole Vicars (who had an ERA of 4.57). The team needs to hit better than .274, which was just the 7th best in the SWAC and on the opposite end, the pitching was just 6.22 as a team, but they Braves only struck out 265 batters on the season (2nd lowest in the SWAC), so even though the staff returns a lot they’ll need to establish more of a presence on the hill. And its still a little surprising to see ASU have one of the worst defenses in the conference, fielding at a .947 pace. It’s like the entire team needs to ramp things up to prove it still deserves to win a SWAC title.

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Schedule Note:

Lots of BCS heavy-hitters.

This team will play an insane schedule outside of the SWAC this season. Just insane. Here’s a list of who the Braves will take on in 2012: LSU, Auburn, Louisiana, Oral Roberts, SLU, Georgia, Wichita State, Mississippi State, Tulane, Southern Miss, Tulane and Oklahoma State. And yes, they are all on the road (try to act surprised). So it will be tough to surpass the 27-win total from 2011.

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- JACKSON STATE (27-26, 14-10)

2011 ISR: 272

Starters Returning: 8

Weekend Starters: 2

Mid-Week Starters: 0

Key Relievers (20+inns.): 2

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All Conference Candidates:

OF Kendall Logan (.365-12-44, 19SBs)

UTL Desmond Russell (.310-5-49, 10SBs/4-6, 4.52, 5CGs, 3svs)

3B Frank Solis (.302)

OF Charles Epperson (.299-4-39, 14SBs)

RHP Quintavious Drains (7-3, 4.24, 3CGs, 95Ks)

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The Good News:

There is certainly a lot to be hopeful for in the capital city this season as the Tigers have most of their important pieces back for 2012, including five starters who hit better than .289+, four-fifths of the infield that helped post the second-best defense in the SWAC (at .962) and two pillars on the mound in Quantavious Drains (who has gone 20-7 with 11 complete games the last two seasons) and Desmond Russell (arguably the best two-way player in the conference). And talk about clutch, the Tigers were able to turn 46 double-plays compared to just 21 by their opponents. That’s pretty awesome. The pitch staff also returns LHP Chris Wingard (1-2, 3.28) and RHP Jose Garcia (0-3, 4.18), who combined for 33 appearances and will be the building blocks for a bullpen that hopes to keep JSU at the top of the SWAC in pitching once again (a conference-best 4.46 team ERA last year).

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The Bad News:

Though 27 wins isn’t bad, the 2011 season was the first time in five seasons that the Tigers weren’t able to pull a 30-win season. The J-men will also lose their top two pitchers (ERA-wise) in Cortney Nelson and Terrance Washington, who combined for 20 starts in their 30 appearances last season. Also, getting Quantavious Drains back to his dominant ways of 2010 – where he won 13 games and had eight complete games – would be a boost. Some young guns are going to have to come in a contribute right away as a new weekend starter and a dominant closer will need to be found. The Tigers also have to get over the Southern Hex as they came up 0-4 in matchups with the Jaguars, including their two losses that eliminated them in the SWAC tournament.

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Schedule Note:

Look for another good start.

Just as they did last season, the Tigers should be able to pile up some early wins as they’ll take on teams like Florida A&M, Eastern Illinois, Morehead State and Tougaloo, along with SWAC foes MVSU, Alabama State and Alabama A&M in the first month of the season. There will be a few tests though as South Alabama, SLU, Ole Miss and a matchup with SWAC champion Alcorn will also be in that first month.

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- MISSISSIPPI VALLEY STATE (18-36, 14-9)

2011 ISR: 268

Starters Returning: 5

Weekend Starters: 0

Mid-Week Starters: 0

Key Relievers (20+inns.): 4

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All Conference Candidates:

3B Scott Hornstra (.348-7-52, 11SBs)

OF Michael Lowe (.301, 23SBs)

1B Derek Wallace (.281-2-21)

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The Good News:

Devils get their due. MVSU was able to pull out a second place finish in the Eastern Division and earned 14 SWAC wins, marking the 10th straight season of having winning marks in conference play. Considering the facilities I saw in Itta Bena when I was there in May of last year, that’s EXTREMELY impressive to put that kind of quality on the field year-in, year-out. Let’s see if the Green and Red boys can get a little bit more in 2012. Returning their top three hitters will certainly help with Scott Hornstra (who also was 1-1, 6.59 on the mound in 11apps last year), Michael Lowe (team-high 33BBs and 11HBPs) and Derek Wallace (just 3Es on defense). Also, all five of the returnees are seniors, including Matt Burton (.248, 10SBs) in the outfield and Nick Fangonlio (.248) at catcher. MVSU led the SWAC in defense at .967 last season and returns most of their infield.

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The Bad News:

It all starts on the mound… or should I say the “lack of starts” on the mound. The Valley lost Steven Barnes, Ricky Heffinger, David Brauhn and Eric Dowell, who comprised 47 of last seasons 54 starting assignments on the hill. Aye caramba! They also combined for 16 of the teams 18 wins. That’s losing a hell of a lot of the identity of your team, much less the most effective arms in the pitching brigade. Also, there will still be a good amount of speed on the basepaths, but in losing Luke Walker, Jerry Hildreth and Kyle Ming, the Devils say goodbye to a combined 55 stolen bases and a lot of energy in the field. The bottom of the batting order needs to improve after dragging the team average down to just .263 last season.

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Schedule Note:

Keeping it in the Magnolia State.

The Devils domain will be close to home most of the season, but especially in the first month as they won’t cross the state line until a weekend to play at Alabama A&M on March 17-18. They’ll open the season at the Jackson State Tournament vs. Florida A&M and Eastern Illinois. The second weekend will be a real mountain to climb, going to Starkville to play Mississippi State and Kansas in the MSU Tournament. In late-March they’ll finally venture far and wide, going to Tennessee and to Illinois in the same week. They’ll close the season with three games at Oral Roberts.

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Western Division:

- ARKANSAS-PINE BLUFF (11-34, 7-17)

2011 ISR: 289

Starters Returning: 2

Weekend Starters: 2

Mid-Week Starters: 0

Key Relievers (20+inns.): 1

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All Conference Candidates:

RHP Michael Newby (4-4, 5.29)

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The Good News:

Year two under Carlos James should be an improvement as he begins to add his Midas touch to the PB program. He’ll have the top two arms returning to the fore as Michael Newby and Vincent Newton (1-8, 8.44) are back to man the front end of the weekend rotation. Redmond Floyd (2-3, 14.90) is the remaining arm to rebuild the bullpen around. A pair of swift fielders return to the meadow in Chazz Montgomery (.221) and Cornelius Williams (.227), who were only thrown out once all year in theft attempts.

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The Bad News:

Oh boy. Well there’s a lot of bad news. From what I could gather, the cupboard is nearly bare beyond the names you’ve read above. A whole new team will need to be found beyond the starting pitchers who return. And the numbers the pitchers posted weren’t all that good anyway, especially in allowing their opponents to hit .341 off of them. So yes, major major rebuilding project here for coach James and his staff.

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Schedule Note:

Play for UAPB, see the world.

… or at least see some of the better venues in college baseball. The Golden Lions are going to play at Alabama, at Oklahoma, at Oklahoma State, at Oregon State and at Oregon this season. That’s quite a road slate. Best of all, they’ll start the season with an opportunity to beat their big brothers with a four-game set at Arkansas-Little Rock.

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- GRAMBLING STATE (23-26, 14-10)

2011 ISR: 262

Starters Returning: 5

Weekend Starters: 2

Mid-Week Starters: 2

Key Relievers (20+inns.): 1

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All Conference Candidates:

INF Chris Wolfe (.327, 17SBs)

INF Thomas Brown (.292)

RHP Richard Bautista (5-2, 4.39)

RHP Matt Michell (5-3, 4.93)

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The Good News:

Lets hope the Tigers can keep making some modest gains and eventually bring their confidence level up bit by bit. Head coach James Cooper is certainly a positive energy individual and a great leader for this program going forward. This time around, he’ll have the two most effective pitchers on the staff coming back in innings-eaters Richard Bautista and Matt Mitchell, who combined for seven complete games last year. Mitchell also hit .268 as a part-timer at the dish as well. Four of the top five hitters return as well, including power-source Hector Mejias (.270-5-19) and senior OF Brian Knuckles (.264), who led the team with 22 walks and 12HBPs. Keep an eye on sophomore RHP Zach Moreau (2-4, 7.75, 1sv) who has made great strides from last year.

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The Bad News:

I was impressed with what I saw of the Tigers early on at the Urban Invitational early last season, but the G-men couldn’t quite put it all together and make a big push to the post-season. Even though the offense was second in the SWAC (with a .287 average), it was the pitching staff that was the big bugaboo, finishing as the 8th-best unit in the loop at a ghastly 7.70 team ERA, including more walks issued (288) than strikeouts earned (231).

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Schedule Note:

The other 11.

Grambling is scheduled to play just 11 games against teams that aren’t HBCU’s this season. But the ones they DO play won’t be a walk in the park, including games at Rice, at LSU and at Southern Miss. They’ll also have a home date vs. Hawaii which will test their mettle.

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- PRAIRIE VIEW A&M (25-21, 13-11)

2011 ISR: 258

Starters Returning: 4

Weekend Starters: 2

Mid-Week Starters: 1

Key Relievers (20+inns.): 1

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All Conference Candidates:

OF Colby Hines (.323)

C Evan Richard (.313-2-23)

LHP Derrick Mitchell (7-3, 4.25)

RHP Daniel Castillo (3-0, 4.37, 2svs)

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The Good News:

Last pre-season, in the “bold predictions” section, my second wild prophecy claimed that “PV would go from 13 wins in 2010 to 25 in 2011.” Well give coach Waskyla Cullivan (and give me) a huge pat on the back for having that happen. That good bounce back year could translate to more confidence in 2012 as they hope to play for a SWAC title. The good part is that three of the four returning starters in the field are seniors, as are all four of the most experienced returning pitchers. The weekend rotation will be bolstered by Derrick Mitchell and RHP Michael Listi (5-4, 4.95) both coming back, along with mid-week starting LHP Cody Thompson (0-2, 9.45). So if experienced lead-by-example types are a boon, the Panthers could be in good shape this season.

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The Bad News:

PV was third in the SWAC in hitting, at .285 as a team, but will lose five of the top seven hitters in the order, and have almost zero power at the dish coming back from a team that hit a SWAC-low 12HRs last season. Only one regular infielder who helped the Panthers to a fielding percentage of .955 comes back in the form of Andre Oliver (.247), so rebuilding the dirtbaggers will be of an utmost importance.

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Schedule Note:

A little bit of easy, a little bit of tough.

The Panthers will play 10 games against Division II teams this season, assuring themselves of a handful of easy wins for sure. But the problem is that they’ll also take on heavy hitters like Sam Houston State, Texas A&M, Dallas Baptist and Texas this season too. So get the ins where you can guys.

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- SOUTHERN (29-19, 16-8)

2011 ISR: 227

Starters Returning: 6

Weekend Starters: 2

Mid-Week Starters: 2

Key Relievers (20+inns.): 1

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All Conference Candidates:

OF Wilmy Marrero (.351-9-50)

OF Taylor Roy (.336)

OF Brian Rowry (.329)

SS DeMario Ellis (.318)

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The Good News:

Once again the Jags were up to their winning ways in 2011, taking the Western Division crown by a couple of games and also notching the most wins in the conference overall. Four of the top five hitters come back from a unit that led the conference with a .315 team average. The outfield of Marrero, Roy and Rowry will certainly be a strength and DeMario Ellis and Cameron McGriff (.250-2-23 in 29starts) will join catcher Clint Ourso (.265-3-32) as veterans to reload the infield. LHP Jess Holiday (6-2, 5.69) and RHP Jose De Leon (5-2, 5.75) were the two biggest winners on the staff and return after starting a combined 21 games last season. The lefty-righty mid-week/bullpen combo of Zephan Rochelle (3-1, 4.68) and Daniel Garcia (3-1, 4.79) represents the two best returning ERAs, and will team with RHP Brian Foster (3-2, 5.30) to help build depth.

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The Bad News:

SU was on an 8-3 run, including three blowout wins in the SWAC tournament, before running into Alcorn State, the second loss in as many tries vs. the Braves last season. This time around, the Jags will have to venture on without All-SWAC names like leading hitter Frazier Hall (who was .413 last season) and the top three pitchers in Cody Hall (9starts, 2svs), Kyle Wahl (5svs) and Josh Rochelle (just 9BBs in 30inns). The Blue & Gold will also lose 9-game starter Belfred Pryer on the bump as well, so some stepping up in the pitching department by all the returnees will be necessary.

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Schedule Note:

Back home at the best time.

The SWAC tournament returns to Baton Rouge once again this coming May 16-20, giving the Jags that advantage of sleeping in their own beds and not having to take any bus rides. Expect that comfort level to make a difference. In fact, from April 3rd onward, the regular season slate calls for Southern to play at Lee Hines field in 12 of the final 15 games before the tournament kicks off.

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- TEXAS SOUTHERN (25-29, 10-14)

2011 ISR: 270

Starters Returning: 6

Weekend Starters: 2

Mid-Week Starters: 0

Key Relievers (20+inns.): 2

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All Conference Candidates:

INF Cameron Logan (.348-9-29)

OF Anthony Flenoy (.322, 30SBs)

INF Ray Hernandez (.303, 15SBs)

P Abel Flores (5-2, 4.24, 2svs)

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The Good News:

The Tigers will be able to lean on a host of seniors, including the power-punch of Cameron Logan, the teams’ top returning hitter, and the speedy duo of Anthony Flenoy and Ray Hernandez, who will help keep pressure on opposing pitchers. Also joining them will be four-year guys like OF Anthony Dilligard (.285-5-30) and catcher Lacy Jackson (.272-2-20). Two of the top three pitchers (in terms of ERA) come back in the versatile duo of Abel Flores (6starts/18apps) and Adrian Losoya (2-1, 2.12), who should take on a bigger role this season. Also look for improvement from senior Kevin Schuba (1-4, 6.91) and Michael Starkey (2-4, 6.45), who both threw over 40+ innings and had five starts each last season.

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The Bad News:

The Tigers never could get into a groove last season, lacking consistency in all phases and making 2011 a real roller-coaster ride (yes, with lots of screaming and everything… sorry, dumb joke on my part). Gone from the 3rd-best pitching staff in the SWAC will be Dakota Laufenberg and Bryan Smith, a pair of aces who started 14 games combined and also were responsible for eight saves between them. The offense returns a good nucleus of bats but needs the bottom of the order to come through bigger after dragging the team average down to .275.

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Schedule Note:

The odd 18-day hiatus.

Somehow, TSU will go nearly three full weeks between SWAC opponents from April 29th, the completion of their weekend series with Grambling, all the way till possibly May 17th, the opening of the SWAC tournament, with no games vs. conference opponents. In fact, head coach Michael Robertson had to schedule games with Rice (May 2nd) and a double header with Texas (May 12th) just to get some games in and keep his charges fresh during that hiatus in play. In fact, the Tigers will only be scheduled for five home games from March 28th till the end of the season.