USA Today Coaches Poll – Page 3

Texas A&M baseball continues to rise in newest USA TODAY Sports Coaches poll

Texas A&M has once again risen in the rankings after sweeping the Auburn Tigers

Texas A&M baseball (25-3, 6-3 SEC) continues to live up to its elite preseason billing. It has won five straight games after sweeping the visiting Auburn Tigers last weekend behind the powerful bat of superstar outfielder Braden Montgomery. Freshman Gavin Grahovic also continued his impressive hitting streak.

The Aggies earned the sweep in exciting fashion: Pitching apparently took the night off. The Tigers tied the game in the ninth, sending the game into extra innings. The Aggies won on Ted Burton’s game-winning hit up the middle in the 12th.

Montgomery logged his 16th home run, recorded his 15th multi-RBI game and doubled in the 12th.

The Aggies have the best record in the country, tied with Arkansas and Clemson with just three losses. Their impressive 6-3 SEC record has propelled the program into the No. 3 spot in USA TODAY Sports’ newest Coaches poll.

Texas A&M hits the road to face Texas State for a midweek matchup on Tuesday. The game is available on ESPN+.

Arkansas remains the top-ranked school in the SEC. Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Florida, Alabama, Kentucky, LSU, South Carolina and Georgia are also ranked.

Here is the top 25:

Rank	Team	Overall	Points (1st)	Previous Rank	Change
1	Arkansas	23-3	775 (31)	1	—
2	Clemson	24-3	726	3	+1
3	Texas A&M	25-3	711	4	+1
4	Tennessee	24-5	659	5	+1
5	Oregon State	21-4	619	2	-3
6	Vanderbilt	23-6	588	9	+3
7	North Carolina	25-4	540	11	+4
8	Dallas Baptist	23-4	533	10	+2
9	Florida	16-11	515	6	-3
10	Duke	20-8	488	13	+3
11	Virginia	22-6	417	8	-3
12	Florida State	12-4	392	17	+5
13	East Carolina	20-6	373	16	+3
14	Alabama	21-7	359	18	+4
15	Virginia Tech	21-5	355	15	–
16	Kentucky	24-4	319	21	+5
17	UC Irvine	22-3	307	19	+2
18	LSU	20-9	229	7	-11
19	South Carolina	21-7	218	14	-5
20	NC State	18-7	167	22	+2
21	Coastal Carolina	20-7	152	20	-1
22	Wake Forest	17-10	151	12	-10
23	Nebraska	20-5	88	NR	+7
24	Georgia	22-6	82	24	–
25	TCU	20-7	61	25	–

Schools Dropped Out

No. 23 Mississippi State;

Others Receiving Votes

Mississippi State 52; UCF 45; Indiana State 36; Oregon 22; Texas17; Texas Tech 11; Oklahoma State 10; Kansas State 10; Campbell 9; Lamar 8; UC Santa Barbara 6; Louisiana 6; Northeastern 5; Creighton 5; Miami (Florida) 4; St. John’s 3; Louisiana

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Auburn remains unranked in week 7 USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll

After falling out of the top 25 in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll a few weeks ago, the Tigers continued to plummet in the rankings this week.

After falling out of the top 25 in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll a few weeks ago, the Auburn Tigers continued to plummet in the rankings this week. Even though [autotag]Butch Thompson[/autotag]’s squad failed to receive a ranking in the poll the last few weeks, they did receive some votes to be included.

That was not the case in the newest addition to the poll, as the Tigers fell completely out of consideration for the first time this season. The result is not surprising considering Auburn was swept by No. 3 Texas A&M in College Station over the weekend.

The series loss was the Tigers fourth straight to open the SEC season. The streak has a solid chance of extending to 5-straight series losses when the No. 4 ranked Tennessee Volunteers head to the Plains on Friday for a three-game set.

Auburn is now 16-11 on the season but just 1-8 in SEC play. The Tigers are also winless on the road, where they have dropped all six of their contests.

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Auburn falls out of USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll top 25

The Auburn Tigers have fallen out of this week’s USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll rankings following a 2-2 week against South Alabama and top-ranked Arkansas.

The Auburn Tigers have fallen out of the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll top 25 rankings following a 2-2 week against South Alabama and No. 1-ranked Arkansas.

After a close 2-1 win over the Jaguars on Tuesday, Auburn lost back-to-back one-run games against the Razorbacks at Plainsman Park. The Tigers were able to win 8-6 in the series finale, but the lost series was ultimately enough to convince the voters to drop the Tigers from the top 25.

The 1-2 weekend series result dropped [autotag]Butch Thompson[/autotag]’s team to just 1-5 in SEC play to start the season. While the road has been difficult, the results are nonetheless disappointing for an Auburn team that started the season so hot.

The SEC remains one of the toughest conferences in the nation with 11 teams making this week’s rankings. Arkansas remains the country’s best team at No. 1, with Texas A&M, Tennessee, Florida, LSU, and Vanderbilt joining the Hogs in the top 10.

Auburn will have an opportunity to claw back into the top 25 when it travels to College Station to take on No. 4 Texas A&M this weekend after a Tuesday contest against Jacksonville State at Plainsman Park.

Contact/Follow us @TheAuburnWire on X (Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Auburn news, notes, and opinion. You can also follow Brian on Twitter @TheRealBHauch

Auburn stays put in latest USA TODAY Sports/NFCA Coaches Poll

The Tigers look to gain ground in the coaches poll this weekend by hosting No. 20 Arkansas in a top-25 series at Jane B. Moore Field.

The first weekend of SEC play did not bounce the way Auburn had hoped, as they dropped two of three games to Missouri on the road.

However, the series loss did not affect Auburn’s place in the rankings. They remain the nation’s No. 25 team in this week’s USA TODAY/NFCA Top 25 Coaches Poll.

Auburn is one of 10 SEC teams residing in this week’s poll. LSU is the SEC’s leader at No. 2 after sweeping No. 23 Kentucky to open SEC play and ran its record to 22-0. Because of the sweep, the Wildcats dropped out of this week’s poll. Georgia, Tennessee, and Florida round out the SEC’s representation in the top 10. The Gators jumped three places to No. 10 after winning two games over Alabama in Tuscaloosa to open SEC play.

Missouri is outside the top 10 at No. 11 and could crack the top 10 next week with a great showing at No. 8 Tennessee this weekend. Texas A&M is next at No. 13 and is poised for a big series this weekend at No. 21 Mississippi State. No. 14 Alabama looks to shake off its series loss to Florida by making a statement at No. 5 Georgia beginning Friday.

The final notable SEC series of the weekend involves Auburn, as the No. 25 Tigers host No. 20 Arkansas for a three-game set at Jane B. Moore Field.

Complete week one rankings from USA TODAY/NCFA

Rank	Team	Record	Points	Last Week
1	Oklahoma	22-1	791	1
2	LSU	22-0	769	3
3	Texas	21-2	738	2
4	Oklahoma State	20-3	680	4
5	Georgia	20-3	646	7
6	Duke	19-1	638	6
7	Washington	18-3	617	5
8	Tennessee	18-4	586	8
9	Stanford	18-4	558	9
10	Florida	21-3	490	13
11	Missouri	20-3	466	12
12	Clemson	17-6	415	10
13	Texas A&M	23-2	392	17
14	Alabama	19-3	366	11
15	UCLA	14-6	336	16
16	Florida State	15-5	299	14
17	California	21-4	293	15
18	Virginia Tech	18-3-1	264	20
19	Baylor	14-5	255	19
20	Arkansas	20-5	209	18
21	Mississippi State	19-4	150	24
22	Arizona	19-5-1	106	21
23	South Carolina	18-5	84	22
24	Boston University	17-1	68	NR
25	Auburn	13-4-1	59	25

Others Receiving Votes

Oregon (51), Kentucky (45), Louisiana (16), Texas State (6), Grand Canyon (4), Miami (3).

Dropped Out

No. 23 Kentucky

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Auburn baseball jumps one spot in week 4 USA TODAY Sports Poll

Auburn moves up one spot in the latest USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll ahead of this weekend’s SEC opener at Vanderbilt.

The Auburn Tigers had themselves quite the interesting series last weekend, winning two of three games against A-Sun opponent Austin Peay.

After picking up a normal-enough walk-off Friday Night win, the Tigers were routed 15-6 on Saturday before returning the favor by claiming a 25-6 7-inning win on Sunday.

The 2-1 series result along with a midweek win over Air Force was enough to vault the Tigers up to the No. 19 spot in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll. [autotag]Butch Thompson[/autotag]’s squad leapfrogged Texas Tech following the Red Raiders series loss against in-state rival Texas.

Despite the high ranking, Auburn is only the eighth-highest-ranked SEC program on the board.

Arkansas (1), LSU (2), Texas A&M (4), Tennessee (6), Vanderbilt (10), Florida (11), and Vanderbilt (12), all rank ahead of the Tigers.

Auburn will have a chance to improve on the No. 19 ranking this weekend when they travel to Nashville to take on No. 10 Vanderbilt. The Tigers will have one final pre-SEC tune up before the series on Tuesday against Troy.

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Wisconsin fails to receive votes in latest AP and USA TODAY Coaches Polls

Wisconsin basketball failed to receive votes in the latest editions of both the AP Poll and USA TODAY Coaches Poll.

The team is off a 1-1 week which saw a comfortable home victory against Rutgers and a narrow road defeat at the hands of top-ranked Purdue. The regular season-ending frame put the Badgers record at 19-12 overall and 11-9 in Big Ten play — marks good enough for an NCAA Tournament birth but not good enough for inclusion in either top 25.

Today was the final edition of each poll before most postseason tournaments begin. Next week will be the final polls before the start of the 2024 NCAA Tournament.

Wisconsin is scheduled to play its first Big Ten Tournament contest Thursday afternoon against the winner of Rutgers and Maryland. Wins would mean more matchups for Greg Gard’s team, something it may need to improve its standing before Selection Sunday.

NEW: College Basketball AP Poll🏀https://t.co/x0juiASX9l pic.twitter.com/ykYlign9iT

— On3 (@On3sports) March 11, 2024

[lawrence-related id=72376,72360,72350,72336]

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Texas A&M baseball makes a move in the USA TODAY Coaches poll

Texas A&M moves up a spot after going 3-0 at the Kubota College Baseball Series

Head coach Jim Schlossnagle has the Texas A&M baseball team off to its hottest start in almost a decade, sitting at 11-0. The Aggies have been a consensus Top 10 team since the preseason and have not disappointed from the start.

Braden Mongomery and Jace LaViolette are living up to the All-American status. At the same time, freshman phenom Gavin Grahovac has been as good as advertised through the first 11 games of the season.

With A&M being one of the few remaining undefeated teams in the country, one would think they might have cracked the Top five in the latest rankings. However, some of the knocks on this team are that their schedule has been somewhat lackluster, and they tend to strike out a little more than desired.

They still did move up but only one spot in the USA TODAY Coaches poll from No. 7 to No. 6. The top two spots remained unchanged, with Wake Forest and LSU in the 1 and 2 spots. Arkansas jumped two spots to No. 3, TCU dropped one to No. 4, and Oregon State moved into the No. 5 spot.

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Diamond Hogs up two spots to No. 3 in USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll

LSU is the only SEC team ranked ahead of the Diamond Hogs, while the league had 10 teams in the top 30.

After a 4-0 week, the Arkansas baseball team is back close to where it started.

The Diamond Hogs jumped two spots to No. 3 in the nation in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll released on Monday. Arkansas leapfrogged Texas Christian, which fell to No. 4, and SEC rival Florida, which dropped to No. 8.

Arkansas beat Grambling by 20 runs last week midweek then swept Murray State in a three-game at Baum-Walker Stadium over the weekend. The Razorbacks are 9-2 and own a resume-building win over No. 6 Oregon State, who they beat two weekends back in Arlington, Texas.

The SEC, per usual, dominated the poll. LSU was ranked second, Texas A&M sixth, Tennessee eighth and Vanderbilt 10th to give the league six teams inside the Top 10. Alabama (13th), Auburn (20th) and South Carolina (21st) also cracked the rankings, while Georgia and Kentucky were de facto No. 27 and No. 30.

Arkansas is back on the diamond Tuesday against Central Arkansas and will host McNeese State for a three-game series on the weekend.

Auburn softball falls out of USA TODAY/NFCA Top 25 Coaches Poll

Despite going 3-0 at the Puerto Vallarta College Challenge, Auburn could not hang on to its top 25 ranking.

Auburn softball earned three wins last week at the Puerto Vallarta College Challenge, including one over then-No. 13 Utah.

However, they could hang on to their place within the USA TODAY/NFCA Top 25 Coaches Poll, as they were not included in week three’s poll that was released Tuesday morning.

One reason is the number of teams entering the poll who were unranked last week. Mississippi State, Arizona, California, and Texas A&M all enter the poll this week after missing out on a spot last time out.

Another reason is due to its performance against Utah. A 1-0 win in a defensive battle with a top-25 team is always respected. However, the Utes lost three of its four games in Mexico last week and fell seven spots in this week’s poll, which waters down the win. It also does not help matters that Saturday’s game with No. 9 Clemson was canceled due to rain, which prevented Auburn from boosting its chances to keep its spot in the rankings.

Eleven of the SEC’s 13 teams make up this week’s USA TODAY/NFCA coaches poll, with Auburn receiving votes. Georgia is this week’s top-ranked SEC squad, checking in at No. 3. Tennessee, LSU, and Alabama represent the conference within the top 10. The Bayou Bengals took the biggest leap in this week’s poll, moving from No. 12 to No. 6.

Complete week one rankings from USA TODAY/NCFA

Rank	Team	Record	Points	Last Week
1	Oklahoma	9-0	800	1
2	Texas	7-0	750	3
3	Georgia	9-0	738	4
4	Washington	6-1	679	6
5	Tennessee	4-2	623	2
6	LSU	8-0	585	12
7	Oklahoma State	6-2	562	6
8	Duke	4-1	557	5
9	Clemson	6-2	496	8
10	Alabama	10-0	494	11
11	Missouri	10-0	474	14
12	Florida State	5-3	460	7
13	Stanford	5-4	447	9
14	Florida	8-1	359	16
15	Arkansas	8-2	353	15
16	Kentucky	6-2	321	18
17	South Carolina	8-1	242	20
18	Texas A&M	9-0	234	NR
19	UCLA	3-4	168	19
20	Utah	5-4	143	13
21	California	10-1	120	NR
22	Arizona	10-1	120	NR
23	Oregon	6-5	119	17
24	Northwestern	5-2	115	22
25	Mississippi State	8-1	113	NR

Others Receiving Votes

Auburn (102), Virginia Tech (88), Baylor (61), Louisiana (31), Boston University (22), San Diego State (9), Miami University (6), Penn State (3), Boise State (2), Grand Canyon (1), Indiana (1).

Dropped Out

No. 21 Virginia Tech, No. 23 Louisiana, No. 24 Baylor, No. Auburn

Auburn falls two places in USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll after loss to Kentucky

Auburn suffers minimal damage in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll after dropping its first home game of the season on Saturday.

Auburn basketball experienced the highs and lows of playing an SEC schedule last week.

The Tigers began the week by defeating then-No. 11 South Carolina by 40 points on Wednesday, only to suffer its first home loss of the season on Saturday to then-No. 20 Kentucky on Saturday.

How does a week like the one Auburn experienced affect its place in the USA TODAY Coaches Poll? Voters are a little forgiving of teams who sustain a loss to lower-ranked teams. This week, Auburn checks in at No. 14 in the coaches poll, down two from last week.

After losing on the road at Auburn, South Carolina dropped its weekend contest to LSU. Their tough week plummets them to No. 20, making them the biggest drop of the week. As for Kentucky, they rise three places to No. 17.

Five SEC programs are in this week’s coaches poll. Tennessee remains the top SEC team at No. 5 while Alabama jumps ahead of Auburn at No. 13.

A look at the full Coaches Poll powered by USA TODAY Sports:

Rank	Team	Record	Points	Change
1	UConn	24-2	800 (32)	–
2	Houston	22-3	764	+1
3	Purdue	23-3	715	-1
4	Arizona	20-5	710	+2
5	Tennessee	19-6	641	+4
6	Iowa State	20-5	607	+4
7	Duke	20-5	580	+1
8	Marquette	19-6	553	-4
9	North Carolina	20-6	546	-4
10	Kansas	20-6	538	-3
11	Baylor	19-6	508	+2
12	Illinois	19-6	431	+2
13	Alabama	18-7	417	+2
14	Auburn	20-6	335	-2
15	Creighton	19-7	329	+1
16	Dayton	21-4	300	+2
17	Kentucky	18-7	291	+3
18	Saint Mary’s	21-6	251	+1
19	San Diego State	20-6	185	+12
20	South Carolina	21-5	180	-9
21	BYU	18-7	105	-4
22	Washington State	20-6	97	+12
23	Texas Tech	18-7	71	+4
24	Colorado State	20-6	65	+1
25	TCU	18-7	64	+8

Schools Dropped Out

No. 21 Oklahoma; No. 21 Wisconsin; No. 23 Virginia; No. 24 Indiana State

Others Receiving Votes

Gonzaga 61; Virginia 59; Florida 40; South Florida 35; Utah State 24; Michigan State 23; Grand Canyon 23; Wisconsin 16; Clemson 12; Oklahoma 9; Florida Atlantic 9; Nevada 4; James Madison 1; Boise State 1