College baseball will be here before you know it. Opening day is just over a month away, and D1Baseball has officially released their preseason top 25 rankings.

LSU enters the 2026 season as the defending national champions, their second title in three years under Jay Johnson after winning in 2023 as well. The Tigers defeated Coastal Carolina to win it all, ending a fun year with a ton of turbulence at the top of the rankings.

The fun didn’t stop there, as a wild coaching carousel took over the offseason. Brian O’Connor left Virginia for Mississippi State, leading to Chris Pollard leaving Duke for Virginia. Duke hired Corey Muscara as Pollard’s replacement. And then of course, Tony Vitello just recently left Tennessee for the San Francisco Giants, with the Vols promoting Josh Elander to Vitello’s permanent replacement.

All of that, paired with another chaotic transfer portal cycle, is now settled and it’s time to get ready for baseball. Opening day is on Friday, February 13 across the country, and D1Baseball’s preseason top 25 give an early glimpse into some of the expected top teams in the sport.

2025 Record: 48-18
2025 Big Ten Record: 22-8
2025 Finish: Lost in College World Series

The first name you think of when it comes to UCLA is Roch Cholowsky, and for good reason. Entering the season, he’s the consensus top prospect in the 2026 MLB Draft and a big reason for UCLA’s hype. He’s far from the only piece, though, and the Bruins might have the deepest pitching staff in college baseball. They’re one of the favorites not only in the Big Ten, but the entire country for 2026 and that’s reflected by sitting atop D1Baseball’s preseason top 25.

Derek CurielDerek Curiel 6, The LSU Tigers take on Little Rock Trojans in game 1 of the 2025 NCAA Div 1 Regional Baseball Championship at Alex Box Stadium in Baton Rouge, LA. Friday, May 30, 2025.

2025 Record: 53-15
2025 SEC Record: 19-11
2025 Finish: National Champions

Expectations aren’t going anywhere for LSU, the winner of two of the past three national championships. As expected, the Tigers lost a lot to the MLB Draft and graduation, but they return a star-studded group led by Derek Curiel in the lineup and Casan Evans on the mound. LSU again looks to be one of the top contenders in the country heading into 2026, making their D1Baseball preseason top 25 ranking fitting.

2025 Record: 44-14
2025 SEC Record: 22-8
2025 Finish: Lost in Austin Regional Championship

2025 was Texas’ first season under head coach Jim Schlossnagle, and it was a memorable one. The Longhorns spent a ton of time ranked No. 1 in the rankings, and they enter 2026 similarly ranked highly in D1Baseball’s top 25. The key for Texas, like many others, will be health. When healthy, the lineup is full of power. On the mound, expectations are even higher. Texas impressed there a season ago and return most of its production. The Longhorns are one of the favorites in the SEC.

2025 Record: 36-23
2025 SEC Record: 15-15
2025 Finish: Lost in Tallahassee Regional Championship

Exit Chris Lemonis, enter Brian O’Connor. The longtime Virginia headman is now Mississippi State’s head coach, and he’s looking to get things back on track in Starkville. Ace Reese returns as the Bulldogs’ top offensive option, and he’s a key piece of this lineup. With some returning production paired with incoming transfers like Aidan Teel, James Nunnallee and others, the lineup should have plenty of options. With a pitching staff that’s largely been rebuilt with newcomers, O’Connor will have a lot of options to pick from. How they mesh together will determine just how quickly things improve for Mississippi State.

Drew Burress MLB mock draft© Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

2025 Record: 41-19
2025 ACC Record: 19-11
2025 Finish: Lost in Oxford Regional

James Ramsey takes over at Georgia Tech for Danny Hall, and he might have the best Yellow Jackets team we’ve seen in some time. Most of last year’s lineup production is back, notably Kent Schmidt, Vahn Lackey and Drew Burress among many others. Cal transfer Jarren Advincula brings even more star-power to this stacked lineup. If this team is missing one thing, it’s a true ace on the mound. Still, they have more than enough to get it done and it’s easy to see why Georgia Tech is ranked so highly in D1Baseball’s preseason top 25.  

2025 Record: 56-13
2025 Sun Belt Record: 26-4
2025 Finish: College World Series Runners-Up

It was a special season in 2025 for Coastal Carolina, running away with the regular season Sun Belt title and comfortably hosting a regional. The Chanticleers weren’t done, sweeping through the Conway Regional and Auburn Super Regional before falling to LSU in the College World Series championship series. Even after losing some pieces, Coastal Carolina looks poised for another strong campaign in 2026.

2025 Record: 50-15
2025 SEC Record: 20-10
2025 Finish: Lost in College World Series

There are a lot of new faces at Arkansas in 2026, losing 12 players that were either drafted or signed professionally. Still, the Razorbacks return one of the top pitchers in the country in Gabe Gaeckle. While just three players from Arkansas’ final 2025 lineup return, the three that are back are fantastic – Cam Kozeal, Kuhio Aloy and Ryder Helfrick. And Dave Van Horn has plenty of others behind them in the lineup and on the mound that are ready to step up.

© Dylan Widger-Imagn Images

2025 Record: 42-24
2025 ACC Record: 15-15
2025 Finish: Lost in College World Series

Louisville flew under the radar in 2025, but they turned it on when it mattered and went on a run to Omaha. Not many teams in the country have as strong of a lineup core as the Cardinals, and they have a strong nucleus of young talent on the mound that should take another step in 2026 too. Louisville is one of the preseason top contenders in the ACC, top ten in D1Baseball’s preseason top 25, and they won’t sneak up on anybody this year.

2025 Record: 41-20
2025 SEC Record: 17-13
2025 Finish: Lost in Auburn Super Regional

Auburn came on strong last year, in large part thanks to a strong freshman class that emerged in a big way down the stretch. That group now has a year of experience under their belt, and the Tigers will look to carry that into another strong year. There are questions on the mound, but the Tigers have enough options to keep them in a good position.

2025 Record: 39-20
2025 Big 12 Record: 19-11
2025 Finish: Lost in Corvallis Regional

TCU returns one of the country’s top arms in Tommy LaPour, who will again anchor the rotation on Friday nights. With quite a few options behind him to start and hold key roles in the bullpen, the Horned Frogs look strong on the mound. The lineup might be even better, returning five of their top hitters from a year ago, most notably Sawyer Strosnider. This is a dangerous club full of potential all-around, but especially offensively.

D1Baseball Preseason Top 25: 11-25

11. North Carolina
12. Oregon State
13. Florida
14. Tennessee
15. Georgia
16. Florida State
17. NC State
18. Kentucky
19. Clemson
20. Southern Miss
21. Wake Forest
22. Miami
23. Vanderbilt
24. Arizona
25. Texas A&M