Applebee’s becomes a rally flag as Southern Miss battles an SEC giant for trip to Omaha
It may be tough to fit a full-sized Applebee’s up in the pines of the Right Field Roost.
Small pieces of affectionate history are strung up already, such as a child’s bike and a yellow paddle watched over by an array of fatheads, but if all goes the way of the Black and Gold Monday there may be another addition to the quirky outdoor museum of USM baseball lore.
Southern Miss and Tennessee will take the diamond with a spot in the College World Series in Omaha on the line. The Golden Eagles haven’t been this close to the Mecca of College Baseball since the late Corky Palmer led USM to the Promised Land in 2009.
From captains to first-year arrivals, the Hattiesburg boys already have the added motivation of playing for their retiring skipper. Scott Berry, the winningest baseball coach in school history, is making this postseason his final ride.
But fans love a good rally flag. When a Tennessee beat writer made a tongue-in-cheek reference to Hattiesburg not having an Applebee’s on Twitter, Volunteer fans latched onto the fact as their measuring stick for the surely woeful economy plaguing the Southern Mississippi town as they wallowed in their disdain for the NCAA’s decision to award a Super Regional host bid to USM and not UT.
The collective response from social media’s Eagle Army was swift. Even the City of Hattiesburg got a swing in on one poor Vol poster who just couldn’t wrap his mind around any neighborhood lacking the simple joys of a bourbon street steak or an oreo shake.
The back-and-forth between USM fans and the mighty SEC’s Volunteer fan base served to underscore a reality many have had the misfortune of discovering.
These fans are bound with those they support on the field without fear. Undaunted and unflinching, fighting with their backs in the corner is their comfort zone. It’s what they prefer.
It’s what makes them dangerous. It’s what makes Berry’s Eagles dangerous.
His team is riding a six-game win streak when facing elimination this postseason. Why not a seventh? In the words of the immortal Palmer, “Why not Southern Miss?”
This story was originally published June 12, 2023 at 7:00 AM.
