Arkansas may have clinched the SEC West division title over the weekend at Texas A&M, but losing two of three to the Aggies caused the Razorbacks to fall in the USA TODAY Sports baseball coaches poll, released Monday, May 20.
Arkansas (43-12 overall, 20-10 SEC) fell two spots to No. 4 in the new poll. Texas A&M (44-11) climbed one spot to No. 3, and Kentucky (39-12) moved up to No. 2.
Tennessee (46-10) stayed at No. 1 for the third consecutive week after sweeping South Carolina to earn the top seed in this week’s SEC Tournament in Hoover. At 22-8 in conference play, both the Volunteers and Wildcats earned a share of the SEC regular-season title.
By virtue of winning the SEC West, Arkansas will be the No. 2 seed in the tournament and will face the winner of Alabama-South Carolina in the Diamond Hogs’ tournament opener Wednesday.
Clemson (40-13) rounded out the top five of the coaches poll. The Tigers were one of seven ACC teams to crack the Top 25 — the most by any conference.
The SEC had six schools ranked in the poll. In addition to the conference taking the top four spots in the coaches poll, Georgia (39-14) ended the regular season ranked No. 9. Mississippi State (36-19) also cracked the Top 25 at No. 16.