By R.L. Bynum
OMAHA, Neb. — For most North Carolina players at the College World Series, it’s a rare chance to focus totally on baseball and not worry about classes.
One of the exceptions is senior biology major Carter French, affectionately known as Dr. French.
The right fielder went from going 2-for-3 with a run and a walk in Sunday’s 5–2 College World Series victory over No. 9 West Virginia to working on his final report for an organic chemistry lab as he finishes his undergraduate degree before attending medical school.
Many of his teammates have used the extra time in Omaha to rest, recover and enjoy the experience. In addition to reviewing scouting reports on UNC’s potential opponent for Wednesday, French was putting the finishing touches on his assignment.
“I’ve been working on that,” French said at a media availability Tuesday morning at the Hilton Omaha, UNC’s hotel that’s located a couple of blocks away from Charles Schwab Field Omaha. “I’ve done most of it leading up to this point. I got most of it done before we got here. But, other than that, not having to go to the lectures and all that, it’s, it’s really nice.”
Other than that, French said, the break from campus obligations has been welcome. “It’s a really nice feeling to be done,” he said. “Other than that, not having to go to the lectures and all that, it’s really nice.”
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That balancing act has become part of French’s identity inside the program, and it still catches Coach Scott Forbes off guard. Forbes said French’s academic load is remarkable even by UNC standards, especially this deep into June.
“For me, this blows my mind,” Forbes said.
The Tar Heels will play at 2:07 p.m. Wednesday against West Virginia in a rematch of Sunday’s win, needing one win to clinch a spot in the CWS Finals. A loss would force a deciding game in Bracket 1 on Thursday.
French has not treated Omaha as a week to exhale. He has treated it the way he treats everything else, as something that demands discipline, routine and a steady mind.
North Carolina practiced Tuesday at Creighton, then was ready to return to what has earned the Tar Heels two wins already in Omaha.
“We’re ready to go,” French said. “We’re going to take a lot of fundamental defense, we’re going to hit, and we’re going to give it our all today to be ready for tomorrow. Then we’ll wake up tomorrow, go through the same routine that we’ve always gone through, and just be ready to play.”
Asked whether it was validating for UNC to arrive in Omaha and win its first two games, he acknowledged the accomplishment without lingering on it.
“Yeah, it’s a great feeling, but we’re not focused on what we’ve done already,” French said. “We’re just ready for the next game and our next opponent, and we’ve got to focus on what we can do best to win that game.”
That approach has shown up in the way French has handled both the plate appearances and the moments around them. The atmosphere at Charles Schwab Field Omaha has swung sharply from inning to inning, and Sunday’s win over West Virginia was another reminder of how quickly a game can tilt.
French said the answer, as always, is to stay level.
“That’s just how baseball is,” he said. “It goes up and down. The best thing we can do is stay even keel the whole game and not let ourselves get too high when we do something good and not let ourselves get too low when something bad goes wrong. If we can stick with the process and keep looking forward, we’ll be fine.”
That even-keel mindset has shaped his at-bats here, too. French said the plan does not change because of the stage or because of the quality of the arms North Carolina has seen in Omaha.
“I think just stick with the approach that the coaches give us,” he said. “I go out there and compete. That’s what I try to do every time I get to the plate. It’s just me and the pitcher, and I’m trying to win each pitch.”
The same perspective has carried into the downtime between games, an unusual part of this event for players accustomed to the tighter rhythm of a weekend series. French admitted he would rather play sooner than have two days off between games.
“I wish we could play [Tuesday], because I think we’re all ready to play,” he said. “But playing [Wednesday] is no big deal either. We’re just going to be ready to go.”
He said the wait has not felt burdensome because the Tar Heels have enough structure and enough cohesion to keep the days moving.
“It is a little weird, but thankfully the days here go pretty quickly,” French said. “There’s a lot to do, and we’re a tight team, so we find a lot to do together.
French said one of the biggest lessons from Omaha so far has been how important it is to let the environment rise and fall without letting it pull you down.
“I think we’ve just learned to stay resilient and know that anything can happen in a game,” said French, whose attempted sacrifice bunt on Sunday was unsuccessful even though he’s the team’s best bunter. “Whatever happens, just move on from it. If it’s bad, and if it’s good, use that as momentum. But the biggest thing is just to stay even keeled, because the crowd, the reactions go up and down, and you don’t want to get caught too much up in that.”
He has also had time to enjoy parts of the trip unrelated to batting practice, scouting reports or organic chemistry. The team’s visit to Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium became one of his favorite off-field moments.
“Going to the zoo was fun, even though I lost my sunglasses,” French said. “They fell off that sky ride [and fell] into a pond. But other than that, the zoo was fun. It was cool to see all the animals, be there with the other teams, and meet some other guys. It was a pretty cool experience.”
Still, even with those moments, French has resisted the temptation to think too much about what comes after this week, whether that means the end of the season or the longer path toward medicine. Asked whether the finality of it had hit him, he pushed the thought away.
“That thought’s not in my mind at all,” he said. “I’m just trying to go one day at a time and enjoy it as much as I can, soak it in, because looking too far forward, I don’t want to miss this moment.”
That, perhaps, is what makes French such a fitting symbol for this North Carolina team. He is carrying an organic chemistry lab through the College World Series, yet he is still grounded exactly where Forbes wants his club to be, in the work, in the routine and in the next pitch.
For now, Dr. French is still doing both. By the time the Tar Heels take the field Wednesday, he will have turned in his lab report and be ready for bigger games in Omaha this week.
College World Series
At Charles Schwab Field Omaha in Omaha, Neb.
Sunday, June 21, game on ABC, all other games on ESPN
Bracket 1
No. 5-seed and No. 4-ranked North Carolina (51–12–1), No. 16-seed and No. 9-ranked West Virginia (47–15), Troy (39–32; eliminated) and No. 23-ranked Ole Miss (41–23; eliminated)
Bracket 2
No. 3-seed and No. 3-ranked Georgia (52–13), No. 6-seed and No. 6-ranked Texas (46–14), Oklahoma (40–22) and No. 7-seed and No. 16-ranked Alabama (42–21; eliminated)
Pool play
All listed times are ET
Last Friday’s results
West Virginia 7, Troy 5
North Carolina 6, Ole Miss 2
Last Saturday’s results
Oklahoma 9, Alabama 0
Georgia 7, Texas 1
Sunday’s results
Troy 12, Ole Miss 8; Ole Miss eliminated
North Carolina 5, West Virginia 2
Monday’s results
Texas 14, Alabama 2; Alabama eliminated
Oklahoma 4, Georgia 3
Tuesday’s games
West Virginia 12, Troy 0; Troy eliminated
Texas vs. Georgia, elimination game, 7:07 p.m.
Wednesday’s games
North Carolina (junior left-hander Folger Boaz; 3–3, 7.03 ERA) vs. West Virginia, 2:07 p.m.
Oklahoma vs. Texas-Georgia winner, 7:07 p.m.
Thursday’s games
North Carolina vs. West Virginia if WVU wins Wednesday, 2:07 or 7:07
Deciding Bracket 2 game if Oklahoma loses on Wednesday, 2:07 or 7:07
CWS Finals
(Best-of-3 series)
Game 1: Saturday, 8:07 p.m.
Game 2: Sunday, 1:37 p.m.
Game 3: Monday (if needed), 8:07 p.m.
Times in brackets are Central Time, with games starting 7 minutes after the listed times.
| Date(s) | Day/ month | Times/ scores | Opponent (current rank) | Record/ TV * |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| February | ||||
| 13–14 | Fri., Sat. | W, 9–4; W, 12–2 (7); W, 4–3 (11) | vs. Indiana | 3–0 |
| 17 | Tuesday | W, 10–0 (7) | vs. Richmond | 4–0 |
| 18 | Wednesday | W, 5–3 | vs. Longwood | 5–0 |
| 20–22 | Fri.-Sun | W, 10–0 (8); L, 10–3; T, 3–3 | vs. East Carolina | 6–1–1 |
| 24 | Tuesday | W, 9–1 | vs. N.C. A&T | 7–1–1 |
| 25 | Wednesday | W, 13–3 (7) | vs. VCU | 8–1–1 |
| 27–28 | Fri., Sat. | W, 16–3 (7); W, 12–2 (7) | vs. Le Moyne | 10–1–1 |
| March | ||||
| 1 | Sunday | W, 21–1 (7) | vs. Le Moyne | 11–1–1 |
| 3 | Tuesday | W, 5–1 | vs. Elon | 12–1–1 |
| 6–7 | Fri., Sat | L, 13–3 (7); L, 9–2; W, 8–7 (12) | vs. Virginia | 13–3–1, 1–2 ACC |
| 10 | Tuesday | W, 13–3 (7) | vs. Bucknell | 14–3–1 |
| 13–15 | Fri.-Sun. | W, 8–1; W, 6–2; W, 10–2 | at California | 17–3–1, 4–2 |
| 18 | Wednesday | W, 8–2 | vs. UNCG | 18–3–1 |
| 20–22 | Fri.–Sun. | W, 11–1 (8); L, 2–0; W, 7–6 | vs. Louisville | 20–4–1, 6–3 |
| 24 | Tuesday | W, 9–1 | vs. South Carolina in Charlotte | 21–4–1 |
| 28, 29 | Sat., Sun | W, 6–5; W, 13–7; W, 15–10 | at Notre Dame | 24–4–1, 9–3 |
| 31 | Tuesday | W, 5–4 (14) | vs. Campbell | 25–4–1 |
| April | ||||
| 2–4 | Thur.-Sat. | L, 6–1; W, 5–2; W, 8–7 | vs. Boston College | 27–5–1, 11–4 |
| 7 | Tuesday | W, 8–4 | vs. Charlotte | 28–5–1 |
| 10–12 | Fri.–Sun. | L, 9–5; W, 6–4 (14); W, 12–5 | at Clemson | 30–6–1, 13–5 |
| 14 | Tuesday | W, 14–5 | vs. UNCW | 31–6–1 |
| 17–19 | Fri.-Sun. | W, 5–2; W, 14–4 (8); L, 5–2 | vs. No. 2 Georgia Tech | 33–7–1, 15–6 |
| 21 | Tuesday | W, 9–2 | vs. High Point | 34–7–1 |
| 23–25 | Thur.–Sat. | W, 3–1; L, 3–1; W, 22–5 (7) | at Duke | 36–8–1, 17–7 |
| 28 | Tuesday | L, 12–2 | vs. Coastal Carolina | 36–9–1 |
| May | ||||
| 3 | Sunday | W, 13–0 (7) (non-conference game) | vs. Duke | 37–9–1 |
| 8–10 | Fri.-Sun. | W, 4–1; W, 12–2 (8); W, 7–3 | vs. Pittsburgh | 40–9–1, 20–7 |
| 12 | Tuesday | W, 13–7 | at UNCW | 41–9–1 |
| 14–16 | Thur.-Sat. | W, 9–4; W, 17–7 (8); L, 7–2 | at N.C. State | 43–10–1, 22–8 |
| ACC tournament | Charlotte | |||
| 22 | Friday | W, 10–4 | Quarterfinal vs. Virginia Tech | 44–10–1 |
| 23 | Saturday | W, 13–5 | Semifinal vs. Pittsburgh | 45–10–1 |
| 24 | Sunday | L, 13–6 | Championship vs. No. 2 Ga. Tech | 45–11–1 |
| NCAA tournament | ||||
| Chapel Hill Regional | ||||
| 29 | Friday | W, 8–0 | VCU | 46–11–1 |
| 30–31 | Sat.–Sun. | W, 7–5, W, 9–3 | East Carolina | 48–11–1 |
| June | ||||
| Chapel Hill Super Regionals | ||||
| 5–7 | Fri.–Sun. | L, 9–5, W, 4–0, W, 4–3 | Southern Cal | 50–12–1 |
| College World Series | Omaha, Neb. | |||
| 12 | Friday | W, 6–2 | No. 18 Ole Miss | 51–12–1 |
| 14 | Sunday | W, 5–2 | No. 9 West Virginia | 52–12–1 |
| 17 | Wednesday | 2:07 p.m. | No. 9 West Virginia | ESPN |
| 18 | Thursday | 2:07 or 7:06 | No. 9 West Virginia (if UNC loses Wed.) | ESPN |
| 20–22 | Sat.-Mon | 8:07, 1:37, 8:07 (if needed) | CWS Finals (if UNC wins Wed. or Thursday) | ESPN, ABC, ESPN |
Top photo by Smith Hardy; action photo courtesy of UNC Athletics
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