The Southeastern Conference (SEC) has consistently been the dominant force in collegiate baseball for over ten years. Their teams have secured nine out of the last fourteen national championships, including four consecutive wins, with LSU emerging as the victor in the previous season.
Looking ahead to 2024, the SEC remains a formidable presence with five teams ranked within the top ten and a total of eight teams featured in the Preseason Top 25. It is widely expected that the SEC will once again send multiple teams to Omaha, where they will contend for the national title. Notably, powerhouses like LSU, Florida, and Arkansas are considered strong contenders for the championship.
In addition to their team success, the SEC boasts an abundance of exceptional individual talent. In fact, the conference is responsible for five out of the fourteen first-team Preseason All-Americans for the current season, outpacing all other conferences with a total of seventeen players honored across the three teams.
The SEC has also undergone coaching changes, adding an extra layer of intrigue to the upcoming season. Of particular significance is Kerrick Jackson’s appointment as the head baseball coach at Missouri, making him the first Black coach to hold this position in conference history. Other notable coaching changes include Wes Johnson taking the reins at Georgia after serving as LSU’s pitching coach, and Rob Vaughn’s hiring at Alabama following his successful tenure and consecutive Big Ten titles at Maryland.
In summary, the 2024 season in the SEC promises to be another thrilling chapter in its storied history, with plenty of captivating storylines to follow throughout the conference.
Below, we delve deeper into the SEC, examining the teams and their respective rankings:
Eastern Division:
1. Florida (54-17, 20-10)
2. Vanderbilt (42-20, 19-11)
3. Tennessee (44-22, 16-14)
4. South Carolina (42-21, 16-13)
5. Kentucky (40-21, 16-14)
6. Georgia (29-27, 11-19)
7. Missouri (30-24, 10-20)
Western Division:
1. LSU (54-17, 19-10)
2. Arkansas (43-18, 20-10)
3. Texas A&M (38-27, 14-16)
4. Auburn (34-23-1, 17-13)
5. Alabama (43-21, 16-14)
6. Mississippi (25-29, 6-24)
7. Mississippi State (27-26, 9-21)