University of North Carolina Athletics
Catching Up With Carolina's Baseball Players
March 28, 2003 | Baseball
March 28, 2003
By Meg Schiffman
UNC Athletic Communications
What's so great about being a Carolina baseball player?
"I'd have to say that if you're a good looking kid like Whitley Benson," said Jeremy Cleveland, a junior utility player for the Tar Heels, "the best part about being a UNC baseball player is, well, you get all the girls."
enson, blushing as Cleveland revealed his teammate's skills with the ladies, has a few other reasons he cherishes the time he spends on the field. A junior from Plymouth N.C., Benson pitches for Carolina and last year saw significant playing time, finishing second on the team in appearances (29) and saves (three).
"My freshman year, being able to walk out on the field was a big honor - and it still is today," Benson said. "Now it's an everyday thing. It becomes a part of your life. I feel so grateful that I can come out here with a great group of guys and play some good competition. I wish everyone could experience it."
For many players, it's the tough schedule the Tar Heels face each year that makes playing the game an enjoyable challenge. "It's such an honor to be on this team and be a part of such prestige," Cleveland said. "Carolina athletics is known everywhere in the world. Someone is always pimping a hat on T.V. from Carolina.
"Knowing that I can look back in 20 years and say, hey, I played baseball at UNC, is a great feeling," he continued. "Especially the talent we play against in the ACC. It's awesome to step out on that baseball field and try to give 100 percent everyday."
This year's Tar Heels were given their first opportunity to show the talent they've been primping throughout their rigorous fall and preseason practices at their season opener on Feb. 20. The game was delayed for three days due to inclement weather, but the Tar Heels defeated Delaware State 19-8 and exploded for 24 hits, including a career-high five by Jeremy Cleveland, en route to their sixth consecutive opening-day win.
"We've been practicing forever," Head Coach Mike Fox said post-game. "We had to harness them during the delays because they're so anxious to get out there and play."
Fox, currently in his fifth year as head coach at Carolina, looks to build on last year's record-setting season, the highest ACC finish in more than a decade.
In their first few regular season games, the Tar Heels have quickly brandished the impending fear that came from the loss of three of last year's extremely strong hitters, All-Americas Russ Adams, Adam Greenberg and Chris Maples. The trio combined to hit .351 with 47 home runs, 191 RBIs and 96 stolen bases last year.
One player quickly stepped up to the offensive challenge, and continues to prove his strength despite missing five games due to injury. Starting second baseman and leadoff hitter Greg Mangum has hit consistently in every game since his return to the field, hitting his first career home run against Ball State on March 11.
"[Greenberg's] are some big shoes to fill," he said. "He's a different style leadoff hitter [he had17 homeruns last year]. I'm not trying to do that, although if it happens, that's great. I'm more of a slap hitter to left field - and I'm going try to steal some bags. I'm going to do whatever I can to get on base and let the people behind me drive me in."
Coach Fox acknowledges the difference in offense, but is confident his players will be competitive in manufacturing runs.
"It's a new year," Fox said. "We're not focusing on the guys from last year. I've heard our hitters talking - they read, they know who we lost. They're going to take it as a personal challenge.
The Real Deal
"This can be a very selfish, individual game," Fox said. "Here, it's an individual game with team results - that's what I always say about baseball."
Like the majority of Carolina's varsity sports programs, Carolina baseball is designed such that very little time is spent outside of practice or in the classroom. The outcome is an extremely close-knit team. So close, in fact, it's rare to see a player without one of his teammates within arms reach - or one without bleached blonde hair, a ritual the team performs preseason as an act of unity.
"In college, baseball is a year-round thing," Benson said. "It's very tough to find something else to do. We're basically like a little fraternity. We're out here four or five hours a day, and we get too tired to do anything else."
"We all hang out with one another," Mangum added. "It doesn't matter how good you are - if you don't have that team unity it can break you up, and you can't go as far. That's going to be a very positive thing for us - it will help us win those close games.
Although "getting all the girls" is certainly a plus, the players value the time they spend together and the experiences gained as a result.
"It's special," Mangum said of his experience as a ball player at Carolina. "I was walking with a teammate the other day and sometimes you take for granted that you wear this jersey, that you play in a facility like this, on a campus like this...and we just looked up at the scoreboard and the stadium and said, 'man, this is special.' This is the stuff you can't take for granted."
Meg is a recent graduate of the School of Journalism at Carolina. Click here to view her recent TarHeelBlue.com stories.
