Given the recent run of success the SEC has enjoyed in college baseball, it will probably not come as a shock that the league is featured prominently in the preseason USA TODAY Sports coaches poll. SEC teams hold down the top three positions and four of the top five, as voted by our panel of 30 coaches.
Texas A&M will open the campaign at No. 1. The Aggies, who finished as national runners-up in Omaha last season, were picked first on 17 ballots. They return a strong lineup that includes standouts Jace LaViolette and Gavin Grahovic and have ace Ryan Prager leading the pitching staff.
Defending College World Series champ Tennessee will start at No. 2, claiming 10 first-place votes. The Volunteers lost several key pieces from last season but return infielder Dean Curley and added a strong transfer class. Just a single poll point behind Tennessee is perennial power and 2023 national champ LSU, which received just one first-place vote but numerous No. 2 nods. Virginia, the only non-SEC member to get a first-place vote, will begin at No. 4, with the last top vote going to No. 5 Arkansas.
TOP 25:Complete USA TODAY Sports preseason baseball poll
Joining Virginia in the preseason top 10 are fellow ACC members Florida State at No. 6 and North Carolina at No. 8. Oregon State, playing this season as an independent, opens at No. 7. No. 9 Georgia and No 10 Florida give the SEC six squads in the top 10.
The SEC has 11 ranked teams in all, with league newcomer Oklahoma tied for 25th with Troy. The ACC is next with seven ranked squads, with three from the new-look Big 12 headed by No. 17 Oklahoma State.
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