The Beavers' junior shortstop doesn't wear the ring too often because he tends to misplace jewelry. But it is symbolic of one of the most unforgettable rides in CWS history. Oregon State was routed in its opening game by Miami (Fla.), but came back to win six elimination games and defeat North Carolina for the title.

Entering the 2007 campaign, which begins Thursday for Oregon State at the University of Hawai'i-Hilo, the Beavers face this daunting question: How can they top the magical 2006 season?

"You don't," Barney said before Monday's practice at the Truax Indoor Center. "Last year you put in a safe and you lock it away. It's everyone's personal dream come true. That was last year. This is a different club."

Much will be different this year. Oregon State will be wearing new uniforms, Goss Stadium at Coleman Field has a new scoreboard, and the infield grass is in the process of being replaced by FieldTurf.

There will be many unfamiliar faces as well. Only four players — Barney, junior catcher Mitch Canham, senior outfielder Mike Lissman, and sophomore outfielder John Wallace — return from the lineup that started in the national championship game against North Carolina on June 26.

Nine players were selected in the 2006 draft, including all-American pitchers Jonah Nickerson, the most outstanding player in the 2006 CWS, Dallas Buck and Kevin Gunderson, and outfielder Cole Gillespie, last year's Pacific-10 Conference player of the year.

"I think harder than winning a national championship is to do it two years in a row," Canham said. "Especially when people doubt us, and we do have a young group. If we win it again this year, that will be even bigger."

Oregon State was the only team from the 2005 CWS to make it back. Making it to Omaha, Neb., three years in a row would be an off-the-charts accomplishment.

But it's a challenge that excites the players and coach Pat Casey, who begins his 13th season in Corvallis.

Casey considered leaving Oregon State for Notre Dame in July but turned down a more lucrative contract to stay. He was rewarded with a 10-year contract that could be worth about $290,000 annually (base salary is $230,000) if incentives are met.

"Notre Dame financially was going to be astronomical. The money was never an issue," said Casey, the 2006 national coach of the year. "The issue was where I wanted to coach and what was best for my family. That was here. The players are obviously a big part of it, too."

Sixteen of the 25 players on the Beavers' CWS roster were from the state of Oregon. Casey has developed one of the premier college baseball programs in the nation with homegrown talent.

"That's what it's all about. That's why I came to Oregon State," said Barney, a graduate of Southridge High School in Beaverton.

The defending two-time Pac-10 champions are ranked No. 16 in Baseball America's preseason poll but are outside the top 40 in the collegiate baseball poll.

"A colleague told me the easier thing to do is just take the job at Notre Dame because you're never going to top what you did at Oregon State," Casey said. "That's probably true only from the standpoint that nobody expects us to do it and those kind of things.

"But our challenge every year is the same. And that's to try and be the best club we can be with the talent we have."

It is the 100th anniversary of varsity baseball at Oregon State, and this is the earliest start of a season in school history.

Last season, the Beavers were a known quantity and had the ingredients to make a run at the national championship. The CWS will be June 15-25, and returning players don't need a map to navigate around Omaha.