UT knows it won’t be welcomed to East Carolina’s rowdy ‘Jungle’
The Jungle lies just beyond Clark-leclair Stadium's left field wall, though it often feels like there's no barrier there at all.
The grassy berm is habitat to East Carolina's rowdiest, the diehards who tote megaphones for taunting purposes, turn tailgating into a daylong event and spend Pirates games draped over the walls, chatting it up with opposing left fielders.
This isn't just a mindless, boozy swarm of beasts. Fans study opposing player bios. They devise crafty taunts. Sometimes, if the vibes are right, they'll offer up a hot dog or some other treat to the visitors. Though, given this weekend's stakes, the Longhorns shouldn't expect any midgame catering.
No. 9 national seed Texas has played in some hostile environments over the years, but it's yet to experience ECU'S unique setup. That'll change at noon Friday, when the Longhorns (45-19) and eighth-seeded ECU (45-19) begin play in the best-of-three Greenville Super Regional on the Pirates' campus in North Carolina.
Texas isn't going in completely blind, though. Coach David Pierce is familiar with The Jungle after visiting numerous times throughout his previous stops at Rice (2003-11) and Tulane (201516).
“This place is gonna be very similar to TCU as far as how the stadium sits,”
Pierce said Wednesday, per KVUE. “It's gonna sit on top of you. The dugouts are really close to the field. It's a quick infield. You have an outfield fence that's 5 feet, maybe 6 feet tall, that people are hanging over it. The bullpens are open, people are hangin' over 'em. So the environment's gonna be different than anything we've been in.”
He added: “I've been there many a time, had players have beer thrown on 'em, had security issues in the bullpen. They really don't care. They call themselves The Jungle, and they act like it.”
Texas isn't playing against the fans, of course. It'll have to tune out the exterior chaos to focus on an ECU program that's both dangerous and desperate to reach its first College World Series after advancing to the super regionals in three consecutive NCAA tournaments and four of the past five.
The Pirates started the year 14-13. They've won 31 of 37 games since, a stretch that included an American Athletic Conference record 20game win streak.
They avenged their lone postseason loss, a 9-1 defeat to Coastal Carolina in the Greenville Regional final, with a 13-4 win to advance and host the program's first super regional.
“They've been playing playoff baseball since our 28th game, and that's been neat,” ECU coach Cliff Godwin said Wednesday during a postpractice Zoom conference. “It has, for the first time in my coaching career, been a player-led team. I do still feel like we're playing with house money, because nobody thought we were gonna be any good this year.”
The Pirates have a frontline Game 1 starter in lefty C.J. Mayhue (5-1, 2.82 ERA) who has struck out 66 in 67 innings and limited opponents to a .196 batting average. And AAC pitcher of the year Carter Spivey (8-0, five saves, 2.43 ERA) is a lockdown arm out of the bullpen.
Senior outfielder Bryaon Worrell (18 home runs, 57 RBIS) provides ECU'S power and is one of four position players batting above .320, a quartet led by ALL-AAC outfielder Lane Hoover (.343).
Texas will have its own ace on the mound in lefty Pete Hansen (11-1, 3.08). And Big 12 player of the year Ivan Melendez will lead the Longhorns' offensive charge after blasting his 30th home run in a 10-1 win over Air Force in the Austin Regional final.
“We're gonna do everything in our power not to let him beat us,” Godwin said of Melendez, a finalist for every notable national player of the year award. “But they've got some really good players around him, so you can't take those guys lightly by any means.”
Texas can't afford to lose its focus against one of the nation's hottest teams. But Pierce couldn't avoid some interrogation from local media after Thursday's practice regarding his comments about East Carolina's fans.
“It was a compliment … they love baseball, they get excited,” Pierce said, per Pirate Radio 92.7 FM.
That they do. And Texas soon will get the full Jungle experience, for better or worse.