When LSU baseball coach Paul Mainieri and his team take the field Saturday night to open an NCAA Super Regional against long-time SEC rival Mississippi State, Alex Box Stadium will be packed and rocking.
Mainieri knows why such an atmosphere is something he experiences at least once every SEC regular season weekend.
"Ron Polk and Skip Bertman were directly responsible for the growth of college baseball to what we enjoy today," Mainieri said. "Polk started it at Mississippi State before Skip came here to LSU. Through pure will and maybe force, Ron Polk made them take baseball serious at Mississippi State.