Southeast baseball just days away from opening game

Considering the chill in the air over the weekend, it might be a bit early for area sports enthusiasts to start thinking about baseball.

But don't wait too long.

Whether fans are ready or not, Southeast Missouri State's 2006 baseball team is just about set to take the field.

The Redhawks play their first game Wednesday at Arkansas State.

A three-game series at McNeese State will follow over the weekend, then Southeast kicks off its home schedule Feb. 25 with a doubleheader against Jackson State.

This figures to be an interesting year for the Redhawks, who are coming off a rare losing season under successful coach Mark Hogan.

Southeast's 24-32 record in 2005 was its first losing mark since 1997, and only its third in 11 years under Hogan.

The Redhawks still were a respectable 15-11 in the Ohio Valley Conference, but they could not overcome their struggles against a brutal nonconference schedule that featured a slew of road games.

This year's nonleague slate has been lightened considerably, as Hogan tired of constantly having to face top teams away from home, with those squads never coming to Cape Girardeau.

The result is a 56-game schedule that is extremely fan-friendly, with 32 contests at Capaha Field, including five of the nine three-game series against conference squads.

Make no mistake about it, the schedule is still plenty attractive. Among the nonconference highlights are three games against 10th-ranked Missouri -- one at Capaha Field -- as well as a three-game home series with Missouri State and the usual home-and-home with Southern Illinois.

I wrote that the season figures to be interesting, mainly because the Redhawks lost their four leading hitters from last year and will have plenty of unproven players around the field, although they return plenty of experienced pitchers at the top of the rotation.

To sum up, it's time to start thinking baseball.

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With Southeast women's basketball coach B.J. Smith in the last year of his contract, it hasn't taken a proverbial rocket scientist to deduce that the reason he has not yet been extended has nothing to do with his on-the-court results, which have been mighty impressive since he took over the program four seasons ago.

Although Southeast athletic director Don Kaverman told me for a recent article that, in most sports, the university generally waits until after the season to extend coaching contracts, sources told me Southeast wanted to resolve some off-the-court issues with Smith before -- or if -- he is retained.

Well, those issues became somewhat public on Friday when the university announced that is has requested the OVC to investigate potential NCAA violations within the Redhawks' program, although what exactly those violations might be are not known.

It will be interesting to see what comes of the investigation and how it affects Smith's future in Cape Girardeau.

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With the Southeast men's basketball team continuing its late-season slide -- the Redhawks have lost 10 straight games and have been officially eliminated from making the OVC tournament -- speculation surrounding coach Gary Garner's status continues to intensify.

I'm sure there are numerous Southeast fans who want to see a coaching change, but my prediction is that Garner will be allowed to return and direct next year's touted group that will be led by expected impact transfers Brandon Foust and Mike Rembert.

I wouldn't bet the house on Garner being the Redhawks' coach next season, but that's my guess.

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While Southeast baseball opens Wednesday, the softball team is also gearing up for its season debut, set for Saturday at the Tennessee-Martin invitational.

The Redhawks' first home action will be March 11 and 12 in their Southeast Spring Classic.

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Southeast track has been the university's most successful athletic program in recent years.

Area fans will get a chance to watch the Redhawks' men and women for the only time during the indoor season when Southeast hosts a meet Friday at the Student Recreation Center.

That will be a tuneup as Southeast prepares for the meet Feb. 24 and 25 in Nashville, Tenn., where the program will look to continue its recent conference dominance.

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I knew Bell City High School junior Will Bogan was quite a college prospect and had attracted the interest of numerous Division I programs.

But I had no idea one of the nation's top teams thought enough of Bogan to already offer him a scholarship.

That was the case, however, as Bogan recently gave third-ranked Memphis a verbal commitment. The soonest he can make it official is November, when the NCAA's early signing period begins.

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Well, my Super Bowl prediction flopped as the Seahawks not only lost 21-10 to the Steelers, they also failed to cover the four-point spread.

Hopefully none of my loyal readers was brain-cramped enough to drop a bundle on what I had to offer. I feel safe in saying they probably didn't.

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I don't know about you, but I can't really get too fired up about the Winter Olympics, probably because most of the sports involved are things I've never even tried.

Marty Mishow is a sports writer for the Southeast Missourian.