College Baseball Rankings: Predicting D1Baseball Top 25 with big shakeup after Week 8

Week 8 is in the books for college baseball. We’re predicting to see quite a few changes to D1Baseball’s top 25 rankings following the action.

Most teams across the country moved the weekend up a day, playing their series from Thursday to Saturday due to Easter. That added another layer to an intriguing weekend slate, featuring No. 5 Georgia at No. 4 Mississippi State, No. 23 Boston College at No. 6 North Carolina, No. 7 Florida State at No. 10 Virginia, No. 17 Arkansas at No. 18 Auburn, No. 16 Alabama at No. 11 Oklahoma, No. 23 UCF at No. 13 West Virginia, and No. 12 USC at No. 1 UCLA.

Entering Sunday, just five ranked teams had yet to complete their weekend. Overall, ten ranked teams lost their series.

Now, we’re bound to see changes in D1Baseball’s top 25. Here’s how we expect the rankings to look on Monday morning.

1. UCLA

Previous Ranking: No. 1
Weekly Record: 4-0 (3-0 in Big Ten)
Overall Record: 29-2 (15-0 in Big Ten)

In a year where other ranked teams have been upset every week, UCLA keeps winning. The Bruins picked up a 9-1 win against UC Irvine on Tuesday to start the week before hosting No. 12 USC in a massive Big Ten series over the weekend. UCLA won 12-4 on Friday and 9-8 on Saturday to clinch the series. UCLA took the finale 10-4 to finish the sweep, winning their 23rd game in a row.

2. Texas

Previous Ranking: No. 2
Weekly Record: 3-1 (2-1 in SEC)
Overall Record: 26-5 (9-3 in SEC)

After a 10-8 win against Texas State on Tuesday, Texas traveled to South Carolina over the weekend. It was the Gamecocks that took Thursday’s opener 9-1, but the Longhorns responded. They won 5-3 on Friday and 4-1 on Saturday to clinch the series, improving to 9-3 in SEC play on the season. They’ll remain No. 2 in D1Baseball’s top 25.

3. Georgia Tech

Previous Ranking: No. 3
Weekly Record: 4-0 (3-0 in ACC)
Overall Record: 26-5 (12-3 in ACC)

Georgia Tech picked up a dominant victory on Tuesday to start the week, winning 13-3 against No. 18 Auburn. They then headed west for a series at California. It was all Yellow Jackets, winning 17-2 on Thursday, 7-2 on Friday and 9-3 on Saturday to finish a dominating series sweep and a 4-0 week.

4. Georgia

Previous Ranking: No. 5 (+1)
Weekly Record: 4-0 (3-0 in SEC)
Overall Record: 27-6 (10-2 in SEC)

Georgia made a statement this week. After a 14-9 win against Georgia State on Tuesday, the Bulldogs traveled to No. 4 Mississippi State and walked away with a series sweep. Georgia won 10-9 on Thursday, 3-1 on Friday and 8-5 in Saturday’s 10-inning finale. They’re now up into the top four in the rankings, and sit alone in first place in SEC standings.

5. North Carolina

Previous Ranking: No. 6 (+1)
Weekly Record: 3-1 (2-1 in ACC)
Overall Record: 27-5-1 (11-4 in ACC)

After a wild 5-4, 14-inning win on Tuesday against Campbell, North Carolina hosted a red-hot No. 22 Boston College team over the weekend. Despite losing the opener 6-1 on Thursday, the Tar Heels responded with 5-2 and 8-7 wins on Friday and Saturday to clinch the series. They’ll likely move up in D1Baseball’s top 25 rankings.

6. Florida State

Previous Ranking: No. 7 (+1)
Weekly Record: 3-1 (2-1 in ACC)
Overall Record: 24-7 (9-3 in ACC)

After a 7-3 Tuesday win at Stetson, Florida State hit the road for a big ACC series at No. 10 Virginia. The Seminoles fell 4-3 in Thursday’s series opener, but bounced back the rest of the weekend. They won 5-2 on Friday and 9-3 on Saturday, coming back to take the series and improve to 9-3 in ACC play.

7. Mississippi State

Previous Ranking: No. 4 (-3)
Weekly Record: 1-3 (0-3 in SEC)
Overall Record: 25-7 (7-5 in SEC)

After a 12-0 win against Grambling on Tuesday, Mississippi State hosted No. 5 Georgia for a massive SEC series over the weekend. Unfortunately for them, it was all Georgia. Mississippi State was cleanly swept, falling 10-9 on Thursday, 3-1 on Friday and 8-5 in 10 innings on Saturday. They’re bound to fall in D1Baseball’s top 25.

8. Southern Miss

Previous Ranking: No. 8
Weekly Record: 2-2 (2-1 in Sun Belt)
Overall Record: 23-9 (7-5 in Sun Belt)

This week was a bit up-and-down for Southern Miss, but they ultimately came away with a series win. Their week started with a 5-1 loss to Southeastern Louisiana on Tuesday before traveling to Old Dominion over the weekend. There, Southern Miss won 10-4 on Thursday and 8-7 on Saturday to sandwich a 10-8 loss on Friday to take the series.

9. Oregon State

Previous Ranking: No. 9
Weekly Record: 3-1
Overall Record: 24-6

Oregon State stumbled on Tuesday, losing in blowout fashion, 18-2 against Washington. The Beavers got back on track over the weekend, sweeping a road series at Lamar. They won 2-0 on Thursday, 8-0 on Friday and 10-3 on Saturday, improving to 24-6 overall on the season.

10. Alabama

Previous Ranking: No. 16 (+6)
Weekly Record: 3-1 (2-1 in SEC)
Overall Record: 25-8 (8-4 in SEC)

Alabama had a tough four-game road week, but performed exceptionally well. After a 4-3 win on Tuesday against a strong Jacksonville State team, the Crimson Tide were at No. 11 Oklahoma over the weekend. They split the first two games, with Alabama winning 10-7 on Thursday before falling 4-2 on Friday. On Saturday, they won 3-2 to take the series and move up in the rankings.

D1Baseball Top 25 Predictions: 11-25

11. Coastal Carolina (+3)
12. UCF (+11)
13. Auburn (+5)
14. Texas A&M (+6)
15. Nebraska (+4)
16. Virginia (-6)
17. West Virginia (-4)
18. USC (-6)
19. Wake Forest (NR)
20. Oklahoma (-9)
21. Oregon (-6)
22. Arizona State (+3)
23. Jacksonville State (NR)
24. Kansas (NR)
25. Florida (-4)

Predicted to drop out of D1Baseball Top 25: Arkansas (prev. No. 17), Boston College (prev. No. 22), Kentucky (prev. No. 24)