The Scouting Report: Jay Johnson's Thoughts on the West Virginia Mountaineers

LSU head coach Jay Johnsonn and his LSU Tigers are gearing up for a best-of-three Baton Rouge Super Regional against the West Virginia Mountaineers at Alex Box Stadium this weekend.

Game 1 of the series will begin on Saturday at 1 p.m. CT with the LSU Tigers just two wins away from a College World Series berth.

"So we don't have to do that. What we do, though, is we outline the path. And then we have to dominate the path as it comes."

What are Johnson's thoughts on the Baton Rouge Super Regional with the Mountaineers heading to the Bayou State?

Jay Johnson's Take: Super Regional Edition

The Challenge West Virginia Presents:

"Great team. Championship team. They have an identity in how they play. Good starters. A couple really good bullpen pieces. An aggressive base running team on offense. Do a good job hitting with runners on base, and runners in scoring position.

"Playing with a lot of confidence right now. They do have some good hitters that have been in this spot before and they were in a super regional last year, used their experience well. They have a few pieces that have been playing really well lately. They have a good identity in how they go about their style."

The Mountaineers' Offense:

"They're very left-right. I don't know that they're necessarily a switch. I think you have to throw all of your pitches for strikes. You have to man the ball to all quadrants up-down, both sides of the plate. I just think they, West Virginia, do a really good job of knowing what type of hitter they are.

"They're very committed to what they're doing. They're well-coached. You've got 800 college at-bats under your belt with several of them. It builds confidence and experience. We'll have to make pitches to keep them off base and slow down."

The One-Two Punch of Kade Anderson and Anthony Eyanson:

"The tangible thing to win in the postseason is pitching. And we certainly have that with those two and the rest of the staff. I have great confidence in the staff. Those guys are winners. It's just as much the type of competitor and person they are and they just pair that with the lead pitching skill.

"It gives you a chance to win when they're on the mound and you have to win this type of time of year to keep your season going. It impacted a lot. I love those guys. I'm very thankful for them."

Staying Disciplined: Two Wins From Omaha

"I think when we align our goals as a team and a program, you go in that room that was built before I was here. It goes without saying. You don't have to say, 'Hey, do we want to win the championship or not?' That's lame at this place. So we don't have to do that. What we do, though, is we outline the path. And then we have to dominate the path as it comes.

"You can't go to the plate thinking, 'If I can get this hit, we're going to Omaha.' Or if I make this pitch we go to Omaha, you need to focus on execution. That's why foundationally, from day one in June of 2021 when I showed up here, that's what I talked about is being prepared for these moments by having the mental discipline to focus on the right thing.

"If you do that over a long period of time, both in recruiting, developing, executing on the field, then you create these good opportunities. And then you create the ability to execute in those opportunities. It's super boring, but that's exactly what I'm trying to do is get them to stay focused on how we do it instead of actually doing it."

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