This week's Pollwatchin' is brought to you by classic rocker Tom Petty and his 1980s hit Free Fallin':
And I'm free, free fallin'
Yeah I'm free, free fallin'
Okay, so maybe Mississippi State isn't in a COMPLETE free fall, but after a rough, rouuuugh weekend in Tuscon at the Hi Corbett Classic, the Bulldogs are hanging on by a thread to being a ranked college baseball team. Let's not waste anymore time reliving last weekend's sadness, so here are this week's MSU poll locations:
Pollwatchin': Week Four | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Poll | Ranking | Previous | Link | |
Baseball America | 24 | 12 | BA | |
College Baseball Newspaper | 23 | 14 | CBN | |
NCBWA | 20 | 12 | NCBWA | |
Perfect Game | 20 | 8 | PG | |
USA Today/Coaches | 19 | 10 | USAT |
Okay so yeah, when you see it all laid out for you, maybe State did take more of a dive than I originally realized. Still, the Bulldogs have bigger issues right now than worrying about whether they are ranked or not. As MSU heads into SEC play this weekend, they need to find consistency both in the pitching staff and on offense, or else they might be headed out of that poll quickly, and for good. Let's take a look at a few other poll-related notes from week four:
- UC Santa Barbara, who defeated MSU twice this past weekend in Tuscon, entered two polls this week after a great 10-2 start. The Gauchos came in ranked #20 in both the Baseball America and Collegiate Baseball polls.
- State opens SEC play this weekend with Georgia, but in two weeks the Bulldogs will really be challenged when Vanderbilt comes to town. The 15-2 Commodores are ranked anywhere from #3 to #7 in this week's polls. Yikes.
- State isn't the only team from last year's national championship series that is struggling so far in 2014. UCLA, who won last year's CWS, is currently 8-7 on the season, and hanging on by a thread in every poll. The Bruins just finished up a rough weekend of their own, going 1-2 in the past weekend at the Dodgertown Classic.
- Still think Tennessee isn't for real? The Volunteers are certainly doing everything they can to try and prove themselves, as they are off to a 14-1 start. That start and a 2-1 showing this past weekend at Arizona State has the Volunteers ranked for the first time since 2007! State will face the red-hot Vols on the second weekend of May.