The King Has Been Dethroned: Tennessee Baseball Drops
Tennessee baseball has dominated the game since the start of last season. The 2024 College World Series Champions reclaimed their spot at the top of the rankings early in the season as the former one seed and national runner-up, Texas A&M, fell quickly. However, this week the tables have turned. The dynasty that is Vols baseball has been dethroned, at least for now, as the Vols drop from first-ranked to fourth in the D1 baseball rankings.
What happened to the Vols? It’s almost comical. It’s bigger than a series loss for Tennessee. This past weekend, the Tennessee Vols fell not once but twice to the national runner-up Texas A&M. After losing in the College World Series, the Aggies were looking for a rematch, and finally got what they wanted. Despite a 10-0 win to start the series, the Vols seemed to run out of gas fast. In game two, the Aggies wanted revenge, and they wanted it bad, taking game two with a 9-3 win. The Vols didn’t have it in them to come back and take the series. On Sunday, they took their fourth loss of the season, allowing the Aggies to win by a whopping 11 points.
Falling to an unranked team 17-6 doesn’t look great for any team, but falling to a team that has had as many setbacks as A&M this year really doesn’t look good for a one-seed team on an eight-game winning streak. Arkansas should really thank the Aggies for bumping the first-ranked team down three spots so that they could claim their spot at the top. The Razorbacks now have a strong 30-3 record this season, and are on a strong seven-game win streak. Being able to hold onto that streak through a weekend series is what sets them above the Vols this week.
The Razorbacks didn’t just sweep their series last weekend either. They absolutely dominated Missouri, scoring double-digit runs and forcing the run rule in all three games. Friday’s game was an absolute blood bath, the Razorbacks won 21-3, and fans went home with hours to spare before the sun went down. Though Missouri is unranked, forcing the run rule in all three games of a series is just absurd baseball. The Razorbacks, with the help of Texas A&M, have dethroned the king of NCAA baseball and taken their rightful place at the top of the pack.
