The Tigers entered the 2023 season as the unanimous preseason No. 1 squad in the nation, and they’ve more than looked the part so far.
LSU has suffered just one slipup against Iowa but sits at 15-1 on the season and has won its last 10 games. Pitcher [autotag]Paul Skenes[/autotag] has been arguably the nation’s best to start the season, while [autotag]Dylan Crews[/autotag] has played like the No. 1 prospect in the 2023 MLB draft.
It’s no surprise that the Tigers remain on top in On3’s final SEC power rankings before the beginning of conference play next weekend. Here’s what On3’s Jonathan Wagner said about coach Jay Johnson’s team.
Weekly record: 5-0
Overall record: 15-1
Previous ranking: No. 1 (–)
LSU had a bit of an odd schedule this week, finishing its extended weekend series on Monday with an 11-0 win against Butler. The Tigers continued rolling through the week, too. On Wednesday, LSU cruised to a 9-2 victory over Lamar. Over the weekend, LSU hosted Samford and all three games of the series ended via the run rule. The Tigers won 11-1 on Friday, 12-0 on Saturday and 13-1 on Sunday to complete the sweep.
A midweek battle against New Orleans awaits LSU on Tuesday before hitting the road for a three-game weekend series at No. 15 Texas A&M to begin conference play.
The Tigers shouldn’t have much of a problem against the Privateers on Tuesday night, but the series on the road against the Aggies will be a major test. It will be LSU’s first ranked opponent and just its second true road game.
The first was a 3-0 win against Texas two weeks ago.
LSU has the makings of a team that can make a deep run in the postseason, and we’ll see how this team responds to an uptick in competition soon.
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