Razorbacks finish 8th in final baseball coaches poll of 2021

Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn walks toward the dugout during an NCAA super regional game against North Carolina State on Saturday, June 12, 2021, in Fayetteville.
Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn walks toward the dugout during an NCAA super regional game against North Carolina State on Saturday, June 12, 2021, in Fayetteville.

FAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas was ranked eighth in the final USA Today Baseball Coaches Poll of the 2021 season.

The Razorbacks’ eighth-place finish matched their ranking in the preseason coaches poll. Arkansas finished the season with a 50-13 record and tied three other teams — national champion Mississippi State, Tennessee and Texas — for most wins.

The Razorbacks were ranked in the top 10 of the coaches poll for the third consecutive season that included a College World Series. The 2020 season was suspended after four weeks.

Arkansas spent most of this season ranked No. 1 in the coaches poll. The Razorbacks were ranked first in 11 of 15 polls released prior to the NCAA Tournament.

Prior to Thursday, the coaches poll was last updated May 31, one day after Arkansas defeated Tennessee in the championship game of the SEC Tournament.

The Razorbacks entered the NCAA Tournament as the No. 1 overall seed. Arkansas won a regional over Big Ten champion Nebraska before losing two of three games to North Carolina State in the super regional.

Mississippi State and Vanderbilt topped the final coaches poll after their matchup in the championship of the College World Series.

National semifinalists North Carolina State and Texas tied for third in the final poll, followed by Tennessee (5), Arizona (6) and Stanford (7).

All seven teams ranked ahead of Arkansas played in the College World Series. The only CWS participant not ranked ahead of the Razorbacks was Virginia, which was ranked ninth.

Notre Dame rounded out the top 10.

Arkansas finished with a 23-7 record against teams ranked in the final coaches poll. The Razorbacks played 12 teams — Mississippi State, Vanderbilt, Texas, NC State, Tennessee, Ole Miss, Texas Tech, TCU, LSU, Nebraska, Louisiana Tech and Florida — that were ranked in the final poll.

The coaches poll was less kind to Arkansas than other major polls released Thursday. Baseball America and D1Baseball ranked the Razorbacks fifth behind the four national semifinalists.

USA Today Baseball Coaches Poll, July 1

1 Mississippi State (50-18)

2 Vanderbilt (49-18)

T3 Texas (50-17)

T3 North Carolina State (37-19)

5 Tennessee (50-18)

6 Arizona (45-18)

7 Stanford (39-17)

8 Arkansas (50-13)

9 Virginia (36-27)

10 Notre Dame (34-13)

11 Ole Miss (45-22)

12 Texas Tech (39-17)

13 East Carolina (44-17)

14 Dallas Baptist (41-18)

15 Oregon (39-16)

16 TCU (41-19)

17 Old Dominion (44-16)

18 LSU (38-25)

19 Nebraska (34-14)

20 UC Irvine (43-18)

21 Louisiana Tech (42-20)

22 South Florida (31-30)

23 Southern Miss (40-21)

24 UCLA (34-20)

25 Florida (38-22)

Upcoming Events