College Baseball Rankings: D1Baseball shakes up Top 25 after SEC opening weekend with new No. 1

SEC play is officially underway, and most conferences across the country have begun league play across college baseball. This week was full of upsets, ranked series and rubber games, leading to significant changes in D1Baseball’s top 25 rankings, including a new No. 1.

Entering Sunday, three ranked teams were done with their weekend and nine teams had already clinched their weekend series. But ten top 25 teams were 1-1 and facing a rubber game, while two had already started 0-2 and lost their series.

This was the heaviest weekend yet in terms of top 25 matchups, as four SEC series headlined the weekend slate. No. 2 Tennessee hosted No. 7 Florida, No. 13 Ole Miss hosted No. 3 Arkansas, No. 25 Auburn hosted No. 16 Auburn, and No. 19 Texas A&M hosted No. 17 Alabama.

After those series, there is a ton of movement in D1Baseball’s top 25 rankings behind six ranked teams losing their series. Notably, preseason No. 1 Texas A&M, who entered the week at No. 19, is no longer ranked. Here’s how the official rankings look on Monday.

1. Tennessee

Previous Ranking: No. 2 (+1)
Weekly Record: 4-0
Overall Record: 20-0 (3-0 in SEC)

No team in college baseball remained unbeaten longer than Tennessee this season. The Vols started their week with a 4-2 win against West Georgia on Tuesday, and then played exceptionally well against No. 7 Florida over the weekend. Tennessee won 5-3 on Friday and 10-0 on Saturday to secure a series win, and 7-4 on Sunday to finish the sweep. They now officially overtake LSU for the No. 1 spot in D1Baseball’s rankings.

2. LSU

Previous Ranking: No. 1 (-1)
Weekly Record: 4-0
Overall Record: 20-1 (3-0 in SEC)

After an 18-4 win over Xavier on Tuesday, LSU turned its attention towards SEC play. It started over the weekend with a three-game series against Missouri, and LSU wasted no time in clinching the series behind a 12-5 win on Friday and a 7-6 win on Saturday. On Sunday, LSU finished off the sweep with a 10-5 win. Still, despite a SEC sweep, LSU drops a spot in D1Baseball’s top 25 to make room for the scary-looking Vols.

3. Arkansas

Previous Ranking: No. 3
Weekly Record: 3-1
Overall Record: 18-2 (2-1 in SEC)

After defeating Central Arkansas to begin the week, Arkansas geared up for a massive weekend series at No. 13 Ole Miss to open SEC play. The Razorbacks struggled on Friday in a 10-6 loss, but evened the series with a 12-3 win on Saturday. The series came down to Sunday’s rubber game, where Arkansas won a back-and-forth contest 12-9 after a late comeback.

4. Georgia

Previous Ranking: No. 4
Weekly Record: 3-1
Overall Record: 21-2 (2-1 in SEC)

After an 8-6 midweek win against ETSU on Tuesday, Georgia opened its SEC slate with a home series against Kentucky. The Bulldogs won 12-6 on Friday to open the weekend, but then lost 10-7 on Saturday to set up a rubber game on Sunday with the series on the line. There, Georgia won a slugfest 17-10, winning the series.

5. Florida State

Previous Ranking: No. 5
Weekly Record: 3-1
Overall Record: 18-1 (3-0 in ACC)

Florida State battled No. 7 Florida on Tuesday in a great midweek matchup, but the Gators prevailed with a 7-2 victory to hand the Seminoles their first loss of the season. FSU bounced back over the weekend in their first ACC series, though, sweeping Boston College. They won 8-2 on Friday, 14-0 in the first game of Saturday’s doubleheader, and 6-2 in the finale, remaining ranked very highly in the D1Baseball top 25 rankings.

6. Oregon State

Previous Ranking: No. 8 (+2)
Weekly Record: 5-0
Overall Record: 15-3

After picking up two midweek wins over Washington State to open the week, Oregon State hosted Grand Canyon and Santa Clara over the weekend. The Beavers beat Grand Canyon 6-4 on Friday and Santa Clara 8-0 on Saturday, securing a winning weekend. Hosting Grand Canyon again on Sunday, Oregon State won 3-1 to end a perfect weekend.

7. Clemson

Previous Ranking: No. 10 (+3)
Weekly Record: 4-1
Overall Record: 19-2 (2-1 in ACC)

Red-hot to start the year, Clemson kept winning this week starting with a pair of midweek victories against Liberty. They then hosted Notre Dame for an ACC series over the weekend, winning 2-1 on Friday and 11-7 on Saturday to clinch the series. On Sunday, it was Notre Dame that won the finale, handing Clemson a 7-3 defeat. Even with Sunday’s loss, Clemson jumps three spots in D1Baseball’s new top 25.

8. Texas

Previous Ranking: No. 11 (+3)
Weekly Record: 4-0
Overall Record: 17-1 (3-0 in SEC)

After a dominant start to the season and a strong showing in its first SEC series, Texas has moved into the top ten in D1Baseball’s latest rankings. The Longhorns, after winning a midweek game against UT-Arlington on Tuesday, battled on the road against Mississippi State this weekend. Texas won 8-7 on Friday before a Sunday doubleheader, where the Longhorns won 5-3 in the first game and 4-1 in the second to finish the sweep.

9. Oregon

Previous Ranking: No. 9
Weekly Record: 3-2
Overall Record: 17-4 (5-1 in Big Ten)

Oregon has continued to rise in the D1Baseball top 25 throughout the season, and they remain in the top ten this week. The Ducks split a pair of midweek games with Grand Canyon to kick things off, and then hosted Minnesota in a Big Ten series over the weekend. Oregon won 5-2 on Friday and 4-2 on Saturday to clinch the series, but couldn’t sweep with a 9-1 loss on Sunday.

10. Oklahoma

Previous Ranking: No. 12 (+2)
Weekly Record: 3-1
Overall Record: 17-2 (2-1 in SEC)

Oklahoma’s impressive start to the season continued this week, starting with a 9-5 win over Louisiana Tech on Wednesday and an 8-5 win in its first ever SEC conference game on Friday. The Sooners fell 11-5 on Saturday to even the series, setting up a pivotal rubber game on Sunday. There, Oklahoma won 6-5 in extra innings, clinching the series.

D1Baseball Top 25 Rankings: 11-25

11. Wake Forest (+3)
12. Alabama (+5)
13. Florida (-6)
14. Stanford (+4)
15. Dallas Baptist (+5)
16. Louisville (NR)
17. North Carolina (-11)
18. Ole Miss (-5)
19. Southern Miss (+3)
20. Auburn (+5)
21. UC Santa Barbara (-6)
22. Vanderbilt (-6)
23. Virginia
24. Coastal Carolina
25. Troy (-4)

Texas A&M (previously No. 19) is the lone team to drop out of D1Baseball’s updated top 25 rankings. They are replaced by Louisville, who jump in at No. 16.