LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — Disrespect is the game all teams play when they’re not playing on the field or in the gym.

Somebody somewhere said something D-I-S-R-E-S-P-E-C-T-F-U-L about player, a team, a coach, a fan base, a facility, a tradition, a parking lot, a locker room, a hotel assignment, a pregame meal, a social media post, a picture, a game time, a facial expression or 811 other things I need to overlook to get to the point.

After defeating Miami, 3-2, on Sunday to earn a spot in the 2025 College World Series, Louisville players and coach Dan McDonnell admitted the Cards’ dugout was filled with sunflower seeds, energy drinks and a fountain of disrespect.

You didn’t have to read between the lines to understand McDonnell’s team was fueled by last season’s NCAA Tournament snub, by recruits who de-committed, by fans and media who wondered if McDonnell lost his mojo after missing back-to-back NCAA Tournaments, by the absence of several facility enhancements and by former U of L players who fled through the transfer portal (even though most of those guys will NOT be going to Omaha).

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That’s a lot of D-I-S-R-E-S-P-E-C-T.

McDonnell is as genuine, passionate and driven as any coach on the Belknap campus. What he has achieved at Louisville since 2007 is a resume the College Baseball Hall of Fame will embrace.

Before McDonnell arrived, U of L baseball was mostly a friends and family sport. Now, it’s usually a happening, top-level baseball that has resulted in six College World Series visits. McDonnell created interest, success and expectations.

I’m certain the feelings of disrespect are considerable and real.

I’m also certain McDonnell and his players could benefit from more D-I-S-R-E-S-P-E-C-T as they prepare to exceed expectations in Omaha, Nebraska, by winning the Cards’ first CWS title.

I’m here to help.

I’ll start.

Nobody in the national media will pick Louisville to outplay the other seven College World Series teams and win the title at TD Ameritrade Stadium.

The favorites will likely be Arkansas and Louisiana State, the only surviving Southeastern Conference teams from the 13-team SEC group that began tournament play two weeks ago.

Wait. What do I mean “likely?” The favorites will be Arkansas and LSU because ESPN makes the CWS an SEC Love Fest.

They’ve got the strongest pitching. They earned higher seeds. They’ve proven their championship pedigree long, long ago.

OK, but the Razorbacks and Tigers are also in the opposite bracket, the side that won’t begin play until Saturday, along with UCLA (another former champion as well as the program that produced Jackie Robinson and Gerrit Cole) and either Duke or Murray State.

No worries. The Cardinals will not be respected on their side of the bracket. They will not be the favorites in their four-team double elimination pod that will open the tournament Friday night.

No, the favorite might be Oregon State, Louisville’s Friday opponent.

The Beavers earned the No. 8 overall tournament seed, hosting a regional as well as a Super Regional. The Beavers are ranked No. 5 in the latest college baseball Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) after defeating ACC power Florida State. Playing as an independent this season after the dissolution of the Pac-12 Conference, the Beavers were forced to build a bizarre schedule against teams from the Big Ten, ACC, SEC, Big 12 and other leagues.

Oregon State has three national titles — and this will be the Beavers’ eighth CWS appearance since 2005.

I’ve been to Corvallis, Oregon. It’s not Miami, Baton Rouge, Austin or Tempe. Former coach Pat Casey and his successor, Mitch Canham, have done remarkable work winning three national championships on a campus where in March the average high is 56, the average low is 37 and they can count on 5 inches of rain.

Travis Bazzana, the first pick in the MLB Draft last season, played at Oregon State. Adley Rutschman, Baltimore’s all-star catcher, was the first pick in 2019. Stephan Kwan, the Guardians’ all-star outfielder, played at Oregon State.

Oregon State shortstop Avia Arquette is projected to be the No. 3 pick in the 2025 MLB Draft next month. He will be the best position player in Omaha.

The Beavers will carry more respect into Omaha than Louisville.

So will the bottom of the Cards’ bracket. Arizona and East Carolina have achieved something Louisville has not achieved — win a national title.

The Wildcats have won four, including 2012 when Arizona beat Louisville 16-4 and 16-3 at the Tucson Regional. Coastal Carolina is 1-for-1 in the College World Series, rolling over Florida, Texas Tech, TCU and Arizona during its 2016 CWS trip.

Here are the RPI numbers for the seven teams that are confirmed for Omaha as well as Duke and Murray State (who play today to decide the eighth participant):

Arkansas: No. 1Coastal Carolina: No. 3Oregon State: No. 5UCLA: No. 9LSU: No. 11Arizona: No. 19Louisville: No. 29Duke: No. 30Murray State: No. 58

The D-I-S-R-E-S-P-E-C-T is there, just the way McDonnell’s team likes it.

Louisville Baseball Coverage:

Coffee with Crawford | Louisville baseball’s great weekend on the field — and in the stands

Next stop: Omaha. Next test: Oregon State. Louisville draws a College World Series powerhouse

CRAWFORD | The streak that refocused Dan McDonnell — and led Louisville back to Omaha

BOZICH | Louisville bound for College World Series after beating Miami, 3-2

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