After dropping two of three over the weekend at Kentucky, the Arkansas Razorbacks fell from the No. 2 spot in the rankings of every major college baseball poll this week.
That includes the new USA TODAY Sports baseball coaches poll, released Monday, May 6. The Razorbacks (40-9 overall) fell to No. 3 in the coaches poll, while Texas A&M (40-8) fell one spot to No. 2. The Aggies had been ranked No. 1 for three consecutive weeks before losing two of three at LSU over the weekend.
That means there’s a new unanimous No. 1 at the top of every major poll this week. Tennessee (39-9), which won two of three games against the Florida Gators in Gainesville on Saturday, moved into the top spot in the coaches poll after spending the previous three weeks at No. 3.
It’s the first time this season that the Volunteers have been No. 1. Tennessee is the third SEC team to top the rankings this season; Arkansas spent five weeks atop the coaches poll before Texas A&M’s three-week stay in the top spot.
Tennessee is tied with Arkansas at 17-7 in SEC play. Kentucky is atop the league standings at 18-6 after its series win over Arkansas, which also fell to No. 3 in Baseball America’s weekly Top 25 rankings and to No. 5 in D1Baseball’s new poll. The Wildcats (35-10 overall) moved up three spots to No. 5 in the coaches poll.
Clemson (36-10) stayed at No. 4.
Georgia (35-12) and Mississippi State (32-16) were the biggest movers among SEC teams in this week’s coaches poll. Georgia climbed six spots to No. 12 after sweeping Vanderbilt over the weekend. Mississippi State also rose six spots to No. 15 after a 3-1 week that saw them defeat Ole Miss in midweek play before winning two of three against Alabama.
The SEC had the most teams ranked in the coaches poll with eight, followed by the ACC with seven.
Arkansas returns to the diamond Friday when the Razorbacks welcome Mississippi State to Baum-Walker Stadium. First pitch Friday is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. CDT. The game can be seen on SEC Network+.