Last year Jacksonville State’s Clay Whittemore emerged as one of the premier hitters in college baseball, earning All Ping! and Louisville Slugger/TPX All-American status as well was being named the Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year after leading the OVC in hits (93), RBI (69), multiple-hit games (31), multiple-RBI games (20) and doubles (20). Whittemore flirted with the .400 mark the entire season, finishing at an OVC second best .391 and his 69 RBI tied for 19th in the nation.

Originally a Georgia Bulldog, things never quite meshed in Athens prompting a move to JSU where he settled in nicely earning Second-Team All-OVC honors after finishing second on the Gamecocks with a .319 average and 40 RBI.

A senior this season, Whittemore’s stock is expected to continue to rise and he has been named to the pre-season 2008 Brooks Wallace Player of the Year Award Watch List, one of only three OVC players named to the list.

Whittemore and the Gamecocks will be looking to build upon their last season's successes in which the team finshed second in OVC during both the regular season and the conference tournament, ending the year at 33-27 (18-9). Before they hit field however, Whittemore sat down to answer some questions from Ping!.

PING!: You had a tough freshman season at Georgia, hitting .186 in 22 games as a Bulldog. What do you attribute your first year struggles to?

Whittemore: I think you can attribute that to a couple of different things but I think the thing that hurt me the most was not being in there on a regular basis. Going a week to 10 days between AB's can really keep you out of a groove, so it was a tough situation.

PING!: Why did you decide to transfer to Jacksonville State?

Whittemore: Transferring to another in-conference school would have kept me from playing right away, which is something I definetly wanted to do. Being in-state was another big issue for me. I knew a few of the players at Jacksonville State and after meeting with the coaching staff I knew it would provide the best situation for me.

PING!: Your teammate Bert Smith also had a great 2007 collegiate season batting .359 and going 31-34 in stolen bases. He followed it up with an outstanding effort over the summer, playing along side you once again for the Bethesda Big Train (team leading .301 average, 20-20 in stolen bases). How much has his success helped you in compiling your stout offensive numbers?

Whittemore: I really wished guys like Bert got more credit for setting the table like he does. I'll bet if you took a good look at some of my numbers, you'd find that he was in on at least half of them. It seems like every time I came to the plate Bert was already in scoring position, so he makes my job really easy.

PING!: With another successful season, your name will likely be called in next June's Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft. Are there any parts of your game you're working on developing to increase your chances of being selected?

Whittemore: Arm strength is an area that I've given extra attention this fall. I've also done some extra work from a speed and agility standpoint as well.

PING!: Last year JSU suffered a tough defeat, losing a lead in Starkville against eventual CWS participant Mississippi State, hung with the Texas A&M Aggies in College Station, losing a game due to unearned runs and also lost a game by a single run against Troy who received an at large invite to the NCAA postseason. How difficult is it coming so close to earning a win over a big name program, but falling just short?

Whittemore: Losing close games is tough, but coming so close to beating some of these great teams and coming up short is especially tough. To beat those type teams, you really have to play 9 innings of your best baseball, and I think that's why we schedule these games. Some of the goals we've set for our program include success in the NCAA post-season, and that's why we schedule games with programs like Mississippi State and Texas A&M. Even though we lost those games, I think we are more prepared to play in that post-season atmosphere.

PING!: Speaking of name programs, the Gamecocks will lock up with your former school Georgia for a game in March. Considering your history in Athens, are you looking especially forward to the game?

Whittemore: Definetly, I like playing bigger schools from conferences like the SEC,
and the fact that I used to play for Georgia makes it really exciting. I guess I kind of know how professional players feel when they move to another team and play against old teammates.