But as temperatures hovered close to 100 degrees last Saturday and Sunday, crowds totaling 6,438 showed up at the USA Baseball National Training Complex to see North Carolina defeat Coastal Carolina twice in the Cary Super Regional.

A week earlier at the Raleigh regional, N.C. State's Doak Field also was overflowing with fans, and more were outside the park, trying to buy tickets.

Both sites reflected the burgeoning popularity in college baseball that concludes the 2008 season with the College World Series in Omaha, Neb., where UNC faces LSU tonight (7 p.m.). The week-and-a-half classic is expected to draw more than 300,000 fans again, plus a TV audience of several million.

The interest is a "national trend," said Dave Keilitz, executive director of the American Baseball Coaches Association.

"It has become a great game in the eyes of fans and I don't see it doing anything but getting better," Keilitz said. "We probably set attendance records again in regionals and Super Regionals."

And why are more folks singing "Take Me Out To The Ball Game?"

"We've got more good teams now, more with a chance to get to Omaha," Keilitz said. "The coaching is better than ever; the players are better than ever; facilities are outstanding, and the exposure is such a big thing."

ESPN has covered the entire College World Series for several seasons, plus the Super Regionals. Some conferences, including the ACC, also have regular-season and league tournament TV packages.

In 2000, the number of households watching the CWS totaled 674,000, according to ESPN's Mike Humes. Last year the number increased to 859,000.

And Omaha, hosting the CWS for the 59th year, is planning to build a new downtown stadium, with about 24,000 seats and 28 luxury suites, scheduled to open in 2011.

Along with TV's impact, Charlie Carr -- a former football and baseball standout at North Carolina and past chairman of the NCAA baseball committee -- said a change in the playoff system has also heightened interest.

Several years ago, the NCAA switched to 16, four-team regionals, with the winners advancing to eight Super Regionals for a best-of-three series. Those compact events made it easier to follow and added excitement.

"The Super Regional [also being televised] has been as instrumental as anything," said Carr, currently the athletic director at Midwestern State University in Wichita Falls, Texas.

In the state of North Carolina, UNC, with its two straight runner-up finishes in Omaha and three consecutive CWS appearances, has created more fan fervor and spawned the building of a new, $26 million Boshamer Stadium scheduled to open next year.

"The game has certainly taken off on our campus,'' said Larry Gallo, an associate athletics director at UNC. "Success can breed a lot of things."

But at Carolina, it hasn't been all about good pitching, good hitting and winning.

It also has been about being fan friendly. Tar Heel players are in the community, speaking to kids, going to youth games, staying accessible. In turn, many youngsters come to Carolina games with their parents, creating a family atmosphere, and for a much-more affordable price than many athletic events.

The Tar Heels also enjoy celebrity status that was once unheard of for UNC baseball players. They sign autographs after games, in restaurants, and at the malls.

"I had never seen a player go out to eat and sign an autograph and have his picture taken,'' said associate head coach Chad Holbrook. "That started the last couple of years."

Carolina head coach Mike Fox figures better baseball programs have grown in part because of a "keeping up with the Joneses" attitude. He pointed out that when traditional "big dogs" Florida State and Miami joined the ACC, the choices were: "Step up and hunt with them or stay where you are."

Carolina stepped up.

"I think that's what has happened to a lot of programs around the country,'' Fox added.

Around the state, N.C. State, East Carolina, UNC-Wilmington, Elon, and Charlotte are among perennial winners who earned 2008 Division I playoff berths.

And Mount Olive created euphoria by winning the Division II national championship.

As for the fanfare, East Carolina averaged 3,144 during regular-season, marking its third straight season with increased attendance. N.C. State's also drew bigger crowds per game for the fourth consecutive year.

But this week, the spotlight again is on North Carolina, which is poised to make another run in the College World Series, a premier event.

"There's a lot of glitz and glamour around basketball and football bowl games,'' Larry Gallo said. "But I don't know if any NCAA championship is really better [than the CWS]...I'm excited about what college baseball has become."