College Softball Rankings: ESPN, USA Softball shake up top 25 after Week 6

Another exciting weekend of college softball is in the books. ESPN and USA Softball have now released their latest top 25 rankings after Week 6.

While not everyone began their conference schedules last weekend, just about everyone else did this past week. Every team ranked in last week’s top 25 is into their league play now, and that’ll cause some movement in the rankings.

As a whole, eight teams from last week’s rankings lost their series this past weekend. Because of that, there’s significant movement in today’s college softball rankings.

1. Tennessee

Previous Ranking: No. 1
Weekly Record: 4-1 (2-1 in SEC)
Overall Record: 27-1 (5-1 in SEC)

Tennessee started the week with a pair of midweek wins, 9-1 over Austin Peay on Tuesday and 12-0 at Lipscomb on Wednesday. Over the weekend, the top-ranked Vols were at No. 14 Mississippi State. After taking the opener 3-1, Tennessee fell 1-0 on Saturday. In Sunday’s finale, they won 4-1 to clinch the series.

2. Texas

Previous Ranking: No. 3 (+1)
Weekly Record: 4-0 (3-0 in SEC)
Overall Record: 26-1 (6-0 in SEC)

After a 10-1 win against East Texas A&M on Wednesday, Texas hosted SEC foe Ole Miss over the weekend. The Longhorns won a tight game on Friday, 3-1 in the opener. The rest of the weekend was all Texas. With 11-2 and 15-3 wins on Saturday and Sunday, the Longhorns clinched a dominant series win to stay perfect in SEC play.

3. Texas Tech

Previous Ranking: No. 2 (-1)
Weekly Record: 2-1 (2-1 in Big 12)
Overall Record: 27-2 (5-1 in Big 12)

There was no midweek action for Texas Tech in Week 6, only hosting No. 12 Arizona over the weekend. The Red Raiders dropped Friday’s series opener 9-0, but responded the rest of the weekend. Behind a 14-6 win on Saturday and an 8-0 win on Sunday, Texas Tech came back to take the series and maintain their spot in the ESPN/USA Softball top 25 rankings.

4. Oklahoma

Previous Ranking: No. 4
Weekly Record: 4-0 (3-0 in SEC)
Overall Record: 28-2 (3-0 in SEC)

Oklahoma picked up a 12-1 win against Tulsa on Wednesday, and then began its SEC schedule over the weekend at home against Auburn. The Sooners won 13-5 on Friday, 8-5 on Saturday and 14-2 on Sunday to clinch the series victory, staying undefeated through a weekend of league play.

5. Nebraska

Previous Ranking: No. 5
Weekly Record: 3-0 (3-0 in Big Ten)
Overall Record: 21-5 (3-0 in Big Ten)

Nebraska’s only action of the week came over the weekend, its first series of Big Ten play. Hosting Michigan, the Cornhuskers won 5-2 on Friday, 8-4 on Saturday and then 5-2 again on Sunday to secure the series sweep to begin conference play. Nebraska is 21-5 on the season, but on a serious roll to maintain its spot in the top five in this week’s ESPN/USA Softball top 25 rankings.

6. Alabama

Previous Ranking: No. 6
Weekly Record: 3-1 (2-1 in SEC)
Overall Record: 26-1 (5-1 in SEC)

Alabama beat Samford 8-1 on Tuesday to start the week, and then hosted No. 9 Arkansas in an intriguing top 10 matchup over the weekend. The two teams split the first two games of the series, with Alabama winning 4-1 on Friday and Arkansas winning 14-9 on Saturday. With the series on the line on Sunday, the Crimson Tide won 4-1 to take the weekend.

7. UCLA

Previous Ranking: No. 7
Weekly Record: 4-0 (3-0 in Big Ten)
Overall Record: 25-3 (6-0 in Big Ten)

UCLA started the week with a 9-1 win against LMU on Wednesday, and then hosted Michigan State to continue its Big Ten slate. The Bruins dominated throughout, picking up 10-0, 18-10 and 10-2 victories to complete the sweep, their second in as many weekends within Big Ten play.

8. Florida

Previous Ranking: No. 8
Weekly Record: 4-0 (3-0 in SEC)
Overall Record: 29-1 (6-0 in SEC)

After a 5-2 win against Missouri on Monday to complete last weekend’s series, Florida hit the road for a trip to Kentucky this weekend. The Gators cruised through the series, winning 10-2 on Friday before earning 9-0 victories on both Saturday and Sunday to complete the sweep. Florida is unbeaten through two SEC weekends, earning their spot in the top ten of ESPN/USA Softball’s top 25 rankings.

9. Arkansas

Previous Ranking: No. 9
Weekly Record: 2-2 (1-2 in SEC)
Overall Record: 23-4 (3-3 in SEC)

Arkansas won 12-0 at Missouri State on Monday, and then hit the road again for a trip to No. 6 Alabama over the weekend. The Razorbacks fell 4-1 on Friday before evening the series with a 14-9 win on Saturday. On Sunday, Arkansas fell 4-1 again to drop the series. Still, they remain in the top 10 this week.

10. Florida State

Previous Ranking: No. 10
Weekly Record: 4-0 (3-0 in ACC)
Overall Record: 25-4 (3-0 in ACC)

After an 8-4 win against South Alabama on Wednesday, Florida State began its ACC season with a home series against Syracuse. The Seminoles never really had to sweat, winning 12-1 on Friday, 13-1 on Saturday and 11-6 on Sunday to complete the sweep through their first ACC series of 2026.

ESPN, USA Softball Top 25 Rankings: 11-25

11. Arizona (+1)
12. Mississippi State (+2)
13. Georgia
14. Virginia Tech (-3)
15. Texas A&M (+1)
16. Oregon (+3)
17. Washington (+4)
18. Virginia
19. LSU (-2)
20. Duke (+5)
21. Oklahoma State (-6)
22. Grand Canyon (+1)
23. Stanford (-3)
24. South Carolina
25. UCF (-3)

Others receiving votes in ESPN/USA Softball Top 25 Rankings: Arizona State (45), Clemson (45), Baylor (37), Belmont (7), Boston U (6), Louisville (2), Auburn (1), Indiana (1), Penn State (1)