Fansided

College baseball rankings – Top 25: UCF makes statement with sweep of Auburn

By Ethan Lee

OMAHA, NE - JUNE 26: Pitcher Mason Hickman #44 of the Vanderbilt Commodores delivers a pitch in the first inning against the Michigan Wolverines during game three of the College World Series Championship Series on June 26, 2019 at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha in Omaha, Nebraska. (Photo by Peter Aiken/Getty Images)
OMAHA, NE - JUNE 26: Pitcher Mason Hickman #44 of the Vanderbilt Commodores delivers a pitch in the first inning against the Michigan Wolverines during game three of the College World Series Championship Series on June 26, 2019 at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha in Omaha, Nebraska. (Photo by Peter Aiken/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

The college baseball rankings this week still see Florida at No. 1 but UCF is making a charge after sweeping Auburn over the weekend.

Look, it’s still early in the college baseball season, but it’s hard not to be impressed with just how good Central Florida looked against Auburn. The Knights looked like one of the best teams in the country as they swept the Tigers, a team that made it to the College World Series last season and is a program on the rise under Butch Thompson’s guidance.

The top 10 for this week is loaded with teams from the South (looking at you, SEC and ACC), but No. 9 UCLA remains undefeated and is looking to make some noise in the Frisco Baseball Classic this coming weekend. The Bruins will have opportunities to face off against No. 17 Oklahoma State, No. 23 Texas A&M, and Illinois. Should the Bruins come out undefeated, expect them to move up.

Here’s how the top 25 shakes out this week:

FanSided Top 25 college baseball rankings

  1. Florida
  2. Vanderbilt
  3. Texas Tech
  4. Arkansas
  5. Mississippi State
  6. Miami
  7. Georgia
  8. Florida State
  9. UCLA
  10. Ole Miss
  11. Louisville
  12. North Carolina State
  13. UCF
  14. Arizona State
  15. Duke
  16. Dallas Baptist
  17. Oklahoma State
  18. Michigan
  19. Oklahoma
  20. Long Beach State
  21. East Carolina
  22. North Carolina
  23. Texas A&M
  24. Tennessee
  25. Auburn

Teams on the rise: Long Beach State, UCF

The Long Beach State Dirtbags had a strong showing over the weekend, sweeping the Wake Forest Demon Deacons with ease. Long Beach State will get another opportunity to prove how good they are when the Dirtbags host the Mississippi State Bulldogs this weekend.

UCF showed it’s playing for keeps this season. UCF demolished Auburn’s pitchers and had no issue winning all three games. The Knights swept Auburn, outscoring the Tigers 22-6 in the process. If UCF can play like this throughout the year, it’ll be a tough team to beat and there might be a spot in Omaha for the Knights.

Team trending down: Auburn

Of all the ranked teams, Auburn seemed to struggle the most over the weekend. The Tigers were demolished by UCF. The Tigers made it to the College World Series a season ago and have trended up as a program over the past few seasons under Butch Thompson’s leadership, but losing like this has to feel like a punch to the gut. But it’s still early in the season. There’s no need to panic. Thompson and the Tigers still have plenty of time to get everything worked out.