Winners and losers: Georgia Tech responds

Follow Kendall Rogers on Twitter at @ysportsncaabb.

There is no team happier about the way the season has transpired than Georgia Tech.

The Yellow Jackets just hope to keep things rolling.

Last season, the Yellow Jackets put together a solid campaign and hosted the Atlanta Regional. But instead of waltzing into the Gainesville, Fla., Super Regional to play Florida as expected, the Jackets had their season ended by Cinderella story Southern Mississippi.

Almost a year later, the Jackets are sitting at 31-5. Southern Miss, meanwhile, is last in Conference USA with a 2-7 mark.

To say the Jackets are motivated this season is an understatement.

They started the season on a torrid pace and didn’t lose their first game until the eighth game of the season. Even then, the Jackets responded from that loss to Xavier by winning seven straight contests.

If there’s one thing the Yellow Jackets have showed this season, it’s their ability to take any loss and put it behind them.

Look at the series against Clemson this past weekend as an example.

The Jackets went on the road two weekends ago and dropped two of three games to a fabulous Virginia team. In addition to the series loss, the Jackets were disappointed with the fact ace pitcher Deck McGuire had a poor start to begin the three-game set.

McGuire’s poor start certainly contributed to the series loss to the Cavaliers.

McGuire had his second straight poor start against Clemson over the weekend. But unlike the Virginia series, the Jackets used a Chase Burnette walk-off homer to prevail on Friday and proceeded to win the final two games of the series to earn the sweep.

The Jackets seem to play better after they face adversity.

They hope that trend continues all the way to Omaha.

Georgia Tech is one of several teams declared a winner for its performances in the last week. Plenty of other teams were on the losing side of the ledger, though.

East Carolina (24-12) – Maybe just maybe the Pirates are ready to get on a roll after having a perfect week that included a series sweep over UAB.

Oregon (23-12) – Horton’s Ducks continued their magical campaign with their biggest statement of the season, a road series win over top-ranked UCLA.

Texas (30-7) – Nothing says domination like outscoring your most heated rival 26-3 in a three-game series. That is what UT did against Texas A&M.

Louisville (29-6) – Just a week after being pushed to the limit, the Cardinals struck back in strong fashion with a perfect 4-0 week.

Ohio State (21-10) – The Buckeyes proved they’re still the team to beat in the Big Ten after a road series win over Michigan State.

Georgia Tech (31-5) – The Yellow Jackets did all the talking for once in a home series sweep over struggling Clemson.

Arizona (26-9) – Coach Andy Lopez continues to do a fabulous job with his team. The Wildcats had a perfect week that included a series sweep over Washington State.

South Carolina (28-8) – It’s safe to say the Gamecocks’ pitching staff has met expectations and much more so far this season.

LSU (30-6) – Nothing says you’re back on track quite like taking care of in-state rival Tulane and conference rival Alabama in the same week.

Texas Tech (20-19) – Coach Dan Spencer is doing a great job and has the Red Raiders back in regional contention after a series win over Oklahoma.

Vanderbilt (29-9) – The Commodores finally put together a complete weekend with a series win over previously red-hot Auburn.

Southeastern Louisiana (29-9) – The Lions might just be ready to take control of the Southland Conference after a home series win over Texas State.

Virginia (29-9) – Life is back to normal for the Cavaliers after back-to-back series wins over Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech.

Portland (23-9) – With an 8-1 record in the WCC after the LMU series, perhaps it’s time we start taking the Pilots seriously.

Arkansas (31-6) – Make that two straight SEC series sweeps for the red-hot Razorbacks. Can anyone slow them down?

Texas A&M (20-14) – The Aggies scored no runs in two games at home against Texas this weekend. That simply won’t cut it against anyone.

Baylor (21-14) – Just when we thought the Bears were ready to get on a roll, they hit the road and drop all three games to Kansas State.

Wichita State (22-13) – Disaster is an easy word to describe the Shockers’ week with a loss to Nebraska and weekend series loss to Indiana State.

Virginia Military (29-8) – After recording a huge win over Virginia early in the week, the Keydets took the luster off by getting swept at Liberty.

UC Irvine (20-13) – The Anteaters are in a funk with two straight home series losses to Cal State Fullerton and Pacific.

Oregon State (20-11) – The Beavers are in huge trouble after dropping three of their last four weekend series. This time it was against Stanford.

North Carolina (22-16) – The Tar Heels may not make an NCAA regional at this pace. They are 6-12 in conference after the Miami series.

USC (15-20) – The Trojans are beyond deep trouble after losing three more games over the weekend, this time to Arizona State.

Alabama (22-15) – The Crimson Tide has a solid RPI, but there is no way they would make an NCAA regional with a 5-10 record in the SEC.

Clemson (23-14) – The Tigers are in trouble after losing five of their last six conference games. Georgia Tech swept them over the weekend.

Nebraska (18-18) – The Big Red is cemented at the bottom of the Big 12 after failing to win a home series against Kansas.

Long Beach State (15-17) – This program is ready for another campaign without an NCAA regional appearance after losing two of three at UC Riverside.

Southern Mississippi (18-16) – The Golden Eagles have gone from College World Series appearance last season to dead last in C-USA with a 2-7 record.

Arkansas State (22-14) – There’s no better way to ruin your fantastic postseason situation than to hit the road and get swept by Evansville.