2012 NCAA Baseball Tournament Projections: Purdue Close To National Seed - SB Nation

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On the eve of possibly the biggest series in the program's history which dates back to 1888, the Purdue Boilermakers continue to gain the respect of national writers. The Boilermakers moved to No. 5 in this week's ESPN Power Rankings, are No. 11 in the Coaches Poll, and the recent NCAA projections have them as a lock to be a regional host. Here are some of the projections:

• Perfect Game has Purdue as No. 5 seed nationally - Purdue would host Oregon State, Kent State, and Auburn (whom Purdue has already beaten once) in this scenario. The Louisville Cardinals are listed as a No. 2 seed at Kentucky (whom they beat twice), and the Indiana St. Sycamores were left out this week.
  
• ESPN has Purdue as a Host - but not as a National Seed. Purdue would be hosting Oregon State, Indiana State, and Wright State here. Louisville is a No. 2 seed at Kentucky here.
  

If Purdue does host Oregon State they would have a blueprint for a non-traditional power that surprised many. The Beavers won the 2006 and 2007 College World Series as a surprise team both times.