North Carolina: Infielders Jake Schaffner & Cooper Nicholson’s Return to the Midwest
Despite being an elite East Coast school, Carolina’s order boasts not one but two Midwestern players, Jake Schaffner and Cooper Nicholson, who are back where it all began.
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OMAHA, NE– The North Carolina Tar Heels are playing for their first National Championship in 19 years, and while much of their roster is homegrown, their lineup features six first-year transfers.
Despite being an elite East Coast school, Carolina’s order boasts not one but two Midwestern players, Jake Schaffner and Cooper Nicholson.
The American Midwest is known for many things. Quintessentially American things. Things like fried cheese curds, freshly butchered beef, and cheesy corn. The people of that region are known for their hospitality, their work ethic, and their hardiness.
Throughout this season, those traits have been highlighted on the left side of North Carolina’s infield, where Schaffner and Nicholson ply their trade at shortstop and third base, respectively.
Schaffner hails from Janesville, Wisconsin, and spent the first two years of his college career at North Dakota State. Nicholson is Iowa-born and bred, coming from West Des Moines and Iowa Central Community College.
Despite growing up in cold-weather states, each loved baseball. Schaffner also made a name for himself on the ice, becoming a smooth skater and scorer in hockey.
Omaha, Nebraska, is America’s perfect midway point between coasts. While Chicago is perhaps the heart of the Midwest, there’s an argument to be made that Omaha is the region’s soul.
Both Schaffner and Nicholson were able to visit the pinnacle of College Baseball long before they made this journey with North Carolina.
“I was fortunate enough to come here as a little kid in 2019,” Schaffner said of the College World Series. “So just being able to be here now, with this team, with a great group of guys like this, it’s been unbelievable so far.”
“When I first stepped out on the dugout,” Nicholson explained, “it was just awesome to look around and think that I was just in those stands watching these college players play baseball on this field just a couple years ago, and now I’m actually living the dream playing here.”
While Nicholson visited the College World Series a few times growing up, Schaffner only visited the one time in 2019. But he’s more than familiar with Omaha itself, as he played hockey and baseball in facilities owned by the University of Omaha.
At their first practice in Nebraska, North Carolina practiced at Omaha’s baseball field. Discussing his connections with head coach Scott Forbes, Schaffner pointed to the nearby hockey rink and informed the skipper that he’d scored two goals there in high school.
Just last season, Schaffner played on this same practice field as he and his former team, the North Dakota State Bison, captured the Summit League Tournament title and clinched a Regional berth.
North Dakota State is 400 miles from Charles Schwab Field as the crow flies. Schaffner spent two years in Fargo as the shortstop, hitting .353 with 25 extra-base hits and 34 stolen bases in 103 games. He was an integral part of their 2025 Regional squad, which lost in the Fayetteville Regional.
When Shaffner entered the transfer portal, Arkansas and several other SEC teams were among those interested in his services. Despite still playing in a Super Regional, UNC reached out and scheduled Schaffner to come to Chapel Hill.
North Carolina then suffered a heartbreaking loss to Arizona to end their season one game short of the College World Series. They were scheduled to host the Wisconsin native for a visit the following day.
“It was a great visit from start to finish,” Schaffner said. “They could have definitely been upset, and it could have made the visit not the best. But I couldn’t even tell. If I didn’t watch baseball, I would have had no idea that they would have lost in the Super Regional the day before.”
Forbes expressed to his staff and players how important it was to flip the switch, at least for recruiting purposes. He knew letting that heartbreak linger and fester would make the visit uncomfortable. And they really wanted Schaffner.
There’s a standard at UNC, and identifying the right type of person is just as important as identifying the right type of player. Both sides were blown away by the visit, and the rest is history.
“It was incredible, they made me feel so warm and welcome,” said Schaffner. “And they obviously did a great job of it because I’m here right now. It was a great time.”
“I’m glad we flipped [the switch] good enough to get that kid,” Forbes added. “Because he’s a heck of a player.”
For Nicholson, his recruitment flew under the radar, as he was first emailed by the coaching staff about his potential interest in going east to play for the Tar Heels. As discussions ramped up, it became clear to the rising junior that Carolina was where we wanted to be.
“It’s the culture, the coaches, everything there,” Nicholson explained. “They’re realistic, and the coaches are honest with you. They’re just so personable. I love the culture there. It’s just a great university. I wouldn’t want to play for a different one.”
In two seasons at Iowa Central, which is roughly 125 miles from Omaha, Nicholson slashed .343/.460/.717 while slugging 41 long balls and driving in 132 runs. He played on the middle infield, but the UNC coaching staff saw the possibility of a strong transition to third base.
While the Iowan’s JUCO numbers were impressive, the jump from that level to the ACC is a massive one. It took him a while to get going as a Tar Heel, as he hit just .197 with five doubles and four home runs over his first 25 games as a D-I ballplayer.
Everything began to change when North Carolina went to South Bend to face a then-ranked Notre Dame team that had just completed a sweep of Clemson. Nicholson went off, going 5-for-10 with two doubles, two home runs, and five runs batted in.
The Heels swept Notre Dame, and Nicholson continued to surge at the plate. He’s hitting .291 since the start of that series in March and has nine doubles and 12 home runs. As Carolina enters the National Championship series, the junior slugger leads the team with 16 long balls.
“I think it was just getting adjusted to the pitching environment,” Nicholson said of his slow start. “It’s a lot faster game than JUCO, I would say.”
Schaffner had no problem adjusting to his new home in the ACC, notching hits as the leadoff man in 11 of his first 12 games. Not only have his former North Dakota State numbers translated to the higher level, but he’s also exceeded them.
Schaffner earned First Team All-ACC honors by hitting .352 with 19 doubles, seven triples, and six home runs. His performance in Omaha on defense has shown why he was so highly coveted last summer in the transfer portal, as he’s dazzled at shortstop.
Now, after seven months away from home, the prodigal sons have returned to the Midwest, with dreams of a National Championship dogpile dancing in their heads. The duo is close on and off the field, as they share a side of the infield and are roommates.
“[Jake’s] been there ever since I stepped on campus,” Nicholson said. “He’s there, we’ve talked, and we have a really good connection, being from the Midwest. It’s super cool to get some Midwest boys down in North Carolina coming back to play here in the College World Series.”
Friends and family have flocked to town to watch the pair, with upwards of 100 people combined between the two players. They’ve been able to spend off days with their families, and play on the sport’s biggest stage with their loudest supporters in attendance.
Every year, teams get to experience the joys of the Omaha zoo and mingle with other teams on Thursday night before games get underway. While teammate Carter French lost his sunglasses during the visit, both Schaffner and Nicholson enjoyed seeing the animals and meeting players from other teams.
Between games, Schaffner was able to visit ballpark village with his mother, ride the ferris wheel, and test his arm strength at a spot for fans at the stadium.
“It’s cool to just be two hours away from home,” Nicholson said. “I’m just super excited to be in the Midwest.”
It’s always great coming back to the Midwest,” said Schaffner, “and getting to see weather that’s similar to Wisconsin and North Dakota. But the best part is that most of my family’s here.”
“Being able to spend that time with them, and having them at my games, it’s been truly a blessing. I’m so thankful that they’re here right now.”
Schaffner and Nicholson are used to the wild weather patterns of the region, growing up and playing baseball in a traditionally colder climate. Their grit and comfort in cold weather certainly gave them an advantage in January workouts and February games.
Coach Forbes laughed when he mentioned that both players spent the whole winter never wearing sleeves. It didn’t matter the temperature, they wore shorts with a hoodie t-shirt like former Minnesota Tar Heel Michael Busch.
While each player is just 2-for-10 in Omaha, Nicholson has reached base six times in 13 plate appearances and driven in three runs while Schaffner has reached in five of 13 appearances. Schaffner made more of an impact defensively, making every play– no matter the difficulty.
As the shortstop took practice swings just before first pitch in their CWS opener against Ole Miss, he took a moment to take in the atmosphere and the experience.
“It was crazy just seeing all those fans,” Schaffner said. “I kind of got away from it for a little bit, but had to lock back in for that first pitch. It was an incredible feeling seeing all those fans and all that Carolina blue in the stands.”
It’s a credit to the North Carolina coaching staff that they were able to identify these two gems that played well outside the Tar Heels’ normal recruiting area. Both players fit into the team seamlessly and have done a great job upholding the Carolina standard.
They’ve carried that standard with them in their return home and now they are just two wins away from winning the program’s first National Championship.
“It’s so rewarding, in my opinion,” said Forbes. “It’s very rewarding to see them and their families enjoying it so much. Because there’s more to just winning, there are other things involved here.”
North Carolina and Oklahoma will face off in game one of the National Championship series in Omaha on Saturday.
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