Michigan baseball has a 'savior.' It's country superstar Kenny Chesney

OMAHA, Neb. — There is someone else to thank for Michigan baseball’s College World Series run.

“Kenny’s our savior on this team,” outfielder Jordan Brewer said. “That’s what we say."

Kenny does not play on the team. He does not coach. He probably has no idea that U-M is 2-0 in the College World Series, one win away from the finals. He is Kenny Chesney, a country music superstar, and he apparently has fans in the Wolverines.

After they finished the regular season against Nebraska, the team attended Chesney’s concert in Omaha a few days before the Big Ten tournament started at TD Ameritrade Field.

Brewer, a junior, is perhaps the biggest Chesney fan: He wasn’t a country music fan until he attended Lincoln Trail Community College in Illinois, where, “It was all country.”

Some of the U-M players in attendance, including right-hander Karl Kauffmann, outfielder Jesse Franklin, lefty Angelo Smith and outfielder Christian Dawkins, got into the Chesney concert spirit by wearing cowboy hats.

“It was just cool to see everybody out there having fun,” Brewer said.

Now, the team includes country songs in their practice playlist.

“It’s just Kenny, though,” he said.

Michigan is in prime position to advance out of its bracket in Omaha. The Wolverines need one win to advance to the championship series. They will play either Florida State or Louisville on Friday, and must be beaten twice to be eliminated. 

More Michigan baseball:

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Contact Anthony Fenech at afenech@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @anthonyfenech. Read more on the Detroit Tigers and sign up for our Tigers newsletter.