College baseball notebook: Georgia Tech, Oregon, West Virginia, Texas top seeds in power conferences
Jockeying for NCAA Tournament bids ramps up in college baseball this week with conference tournaments taking center stage.
Tournament champions in 29 conferences will be automatic qualifiers in the 64-team national tournament, which opens with regional play May 30.
Regional hosts will be announced Sunday and the rest of the field next Monday. The College World Series is June 13 through June 22 or 23 in Omaha, Nebraska.
A look at the tournaments in the power conferences: Atlantic Coast Conference
Site: Durham Bulls Athletic Park; Durham, North Carolina.
Days: Tuesday to Sunday.
2024 champion: Duke.
Top seed: Georgia Tech.
Short hops: The Yellow Jackets won their first outright regular-season title since 2005, and it came in 32-year coach Danny Hall's final season. ... Six ACC teams won at least 17 conference games. ... Florida State LHP Jamie Arnold (6-2, 2.59 ERA) is the No. 3 MLB draft prospect by MLB.com. ... Jake Knapp's 2.14 ERA for North Carolina ranks second in the nation among pitchers with at least 80 innings pitched. ... This is the 51st ACC Tournament and 27th played in the state of North Carolina. Only Virginia and Clemson have participated in all of them. FSU's Alex Lodise is batting an ACC- and power conference-leading .422. Big Ten
Site: Charles Schwab Field; Omaha, Nebraska.
Days: Tuesday to Sunday.
2024 champion: Nebraska.
Top seed: Oregon.
Short hops: The Ducks shared the regular-season title with UCLA after sweeping Iowa on the road, outscoring the Hawkeyes 32-10 with 11 homers in the three games. ... The four former Pac-12 teams that entered the conference this season are all top-five seeds: No. 1 Oregon, No. 2 UCLA, No. 4 Southern California and No. 5 Washington. Iowa is No. 3. ... Oregon's Mason Neville leads the nation with 26 homers. ... UCLA's Michael Barnett (10-1) leads the Big Ten in wins. ... Benny Casillas of Michigan is batting a Big Ten-best .406. Big 12
Site: Globe Life Field; Arlington, Texas.
Days: Wednesday to Saturday.
2024 champion: Oklahoma State.
Top seed: West Virginia.
Short hops: The 12-team tournament will be played in a single-elimination format for the first time. ... West Virginia comes in off four straight losses after getting swept by Kansas. The Mountaineers finished percentage points ahead of the Jayhawks for their first outright regular-season title in baseball since joining the Big 12 in 2012-13. ... Kansas earned the second seed, its highest Big 12 seeding in program history. ... Arizona's 34 triples are most in the nation since New Mexico State had the same number in 2019. ... Cincinnati's Kennington Cross is batting a Big 12-best .414. Southeastern Conference
Site: Metropolitan Complex; Hoover, Alabama.
Days: Tuesday through Sunday.
2024 champion: Tennessee.
Top seed: Texas.
Short hops: Texas is the first team to win the SEC regular-season title in its first season since the league's inaugural campaign in 1933. ... The Longhorns' 42-11 regular-season record was its best since 2010. ... Tennessee's Andrew Fischer leads the SEC in homers (22), slugging (.779), on-base percentage (.502), on-base plus slugging (1.281) and walks (56). ... Arkansas' .983 fielding percentage is second nationally. ... Dylan Volantis' 11 saves in SEC play for Texas are a freshman conference record. In the polls
LSU (42-13) won two of three at South Carolina and remains No. 1 in the D1Baseball.com and Baseball America polls.
D1Baseball.com ranks Texas (42-11) second and North Carolina (39-12) third. Baseball America has North Carolina second and Georgia (42-14) third.
The Longhorns won two of three at Oklahoma, the Tar Heels took two of three at Florida State and the Bulldogs won two of three at home against Georgia. Cleanup spot
Columbia tied its program record with seven home runs in a 14-6 win over Harvard in the Ivy League championship game Sunday, making the Lions the first team to clinch an NCAA Tournament bid. ... East Tennessee State won its first Southern Conference regular-season title since 1980 with an 11-2 win over the Citadel on Saturday. ... Louisville scored at least one run in every inning of a 14-9 win over Wake Forest on Saturday. ... Charleston Southern's Kaden Smith tied the NCAA single-game record with five doubles in a 14-4 win over Gardner-Webb on Thursday. Smith became the ninth player to do it and first since Appalachian State's Luke Drumheller against Furman in 2019.
___
AP college sports: https://apnews.com/hub/college-sports
recommended
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
USA Today
10 minutes ago
- USA Today
How to watch Tennessee versus UCLA soccer: Time, TV channel
No. 6 Tennessee (2-0) will look to remain undefeated Wednesday at No. 4 UCLA (1-0). Rankings reflect the United Soccer Coaches Poll. Kickoff between the Lady Vols and Bruins is slated for 10 p.m. EDT at Wallis Annenberg Stadium in Los Angeles, California. The nonconference matchup can be watched on Big Ten Network+. Wednesday will mark the fourth contest between Tennessee and UCLA all time. The Bruins lead the women's soccer series, 2-0-1, dating to Aug. 26, 2011. The Lady Vols tied UCLA, 0-0, on Sept. 5, 2024 at Regal Soccer Stadium. Tennessee also played at UCLA on Sept. 9, 2012, losing 1-0. Tennessee opened its 2025 regular season with a, 2-0, win over then-No. 1 North Carolina, and a, 9-0, victory versus Eastern Kentucky. Both matchups were contested at Regal Soccer Stadium. UCLA defeated Georgia, 1-0, at Turner Soccer Complex in Athens, Georgia to kick off its 2025 campaign. More: Tennessee soccer ties UCLA to extend unbeaten streak More: Lady Vols soccer defeats No. 1 North Carolina More: Alivia Stott scores five goals in 20 minutes for Lady Vols soccer Follow Vols Wire on Facebook and X (formerly Twitter).
USA Today
2 hours ago
- USA Today
Wisconsin football transfer edge named to Comeback Player of the Year watch list
Wisconsin football transfer edge rusher Mason Reiger was named to the Comeback Player of the Year watch list on Tuesday. Reiger, who missed the entire 2024 slate with a knee injury, was one of 75 players across 51 programs to earn a spot on the preseason list. Including Reiger, a total of 13 players from the Big Ten appeared on the lengthy list. The 6-foot-5 outside linebacker joined Luke Fickell's program in December following four seasons with the Louisville Cardinals. In 32 total games from 2021-23, the Illinois native logged 49 total tackles (32 solo), 17 for loss, 8.0 sacks, four forced fumbles and three pass deflections. As a redshirt junior in 2023, Reiger tallied a career-best 22 tackles and 5.0 sacks. In a top-10 win over Notre Dame, he showed out with a season-high four tackles, two sacks for 12 yards and one forced fumble. As a transfer this winter, Reiger was considered 247Sports' No. 18 overall edge and a four-star prospect. His addition to the Badgers' defense, which accounted for 17 total sacks and 42 tackles for loss in 2024, will provide a much-needed boost in scenarios where Mike Tressel elects to hunt the opposing quarterback. Reiger projects to line up at right outside linebacker ahead of veteran Aaron Witt. Darryl Peterson, Tackett Curtis and Christian Alliegro are slated to accompany the first-year Badger as starters in the linebacker room -- a group that has traditionally performed at a high level at the center of the Wisconsin defense. Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes and opinion
New York Times
2 hours ago
- New York Times
Why is Iowa State-Kansas State in Ireland? How ‘Farm O' Geddon' went international
The first time a Kansas State-Iowa State football game was referred to as 'Farmageddon' was the summer before their 2009 neutral-site matchup at Kansas City's Arrowhead Stadium. Two years ago, the nickname morphed into 'Snowmageddon' when six inches of snow fell during a 42-35 Cyclones win in Manhattan, Kan. Last November, 20-degree temperatures and brisk wind turned Ames, Iowa, into Frozen Farmageddon, and the Cyclones' victory sent them to the conference title game. Advertisement This week, one of the great rivalry series nicknames gets yet another temporary makeover: Farm O'Geddon. With Dublin's Aviva Stadium serving as the backdrop for the 2025 college football season kickoff, the two Big 12 title contenders will open the season on Saturday in the Aer Lingus College Football Classic. Ireland has leaned into early-season college football as a way to attract tourists from the U.S. What once was an occasional event involving Notre Dame and teams from the eastern United States — capitalizing on a special international game exemption to NCAA rule 17.11.4, which forbids teams from kicking off their seasons any earlier than the Thursday before Labor Day — has become an annual opener as the showcase game of Week 0. It's the fourth consecutive year the Emerald Isle has staged a college football game, and there are additional ones scheduled through 2027. But before Kansas State and Iowa State lock helmets for the 109th consecutive year, it's important to note none of the 10 previous Ireland games featured a rivalry like this or two ranked opponents. The No. 17 Wildcats and No. 22 Cyclones combined for 20 wins last season and feature two of the league's best quarterbacks in Avery Johnson (Kansas State) and Rocco Becht (Iowa State). So how did a rivalry with such historic importance end up as a neutral-site battle, with Kansas State giving up home-field advantage? It boils down to one person saying yes: K-State coach Chris Klieman. 'We had reservations about taking a home game out of our community and our economy,' Klieman said. 'But just talking to our athletic director (Gene Taylor), it just gave our kids an opportunity. There's (110 players) on the roster that are going to get a chance to go abroad.' But the idea traveled a long way before Klieman had his chance to bless this trip overseas. With one of the better traveling fan bases and a home attendance that has exceeded 50,000 in 85 consecutive games, Iowa State was a natural target for game organizers. In 2022, Aer Lingus staff approached Iowa State athletic director Jamie Pollard about moving a 2025 Big 12 game to Dublin. But the Cyclones have only four conference home games this season and six overall. Moving one to a neutral site would not only impact Iowa State competitively but also deal a blow to the Ames economy. Pollard politely declined. Advertisement 'For us to be the home game, it just didn't work,' Pollard said. 'But we wanted to be part of it, and so we offered to be part of it as the visitor. We just had to find the right team to give up a home game.' The Cyclones' 2025 road schedule included trips to Cincinnati, Colorado, TCU, Oklahoma State and Kansas State. Game organizer John Anthony had approached Taylor previously about playing in Ireland, but the Wildcats had no interest in an early-season contest not involving another power-conference squad. At an athletic directors convention in 2022, Anthony met with Taylor again and asked if he'd consider shifting Farmageddon to Dublin. 'I'm like, 'What?'' Taylor said. 'He goes, 'Would you think the Big 12 would move it?' I said, 'There's no way Klieman is moving the Iowa State game to a neutral site in Ireland.' And he said, 'Would you just ask?'' Anthony brought his staff to Manhattan for a presentation. Taylor and Klieman went over the details, and the coach polled his colleagues at Northwestern and Nebraska, which played in Dublin in 2022. The feedback was encouraging. One of the coaches called it 'the greatest experience their kids have ever had.' That sealed it for Klieman. 'Chris came down to my office, and said, 'Let's do it,'' Taylor said. 'I was shocked, literally, because of the importance of the game. It's a conference game. It's the first game of the year. I didn't think he'd do it.' Iowa State and Kansas State pull together multi-day road trips almost every December for bowl games. This one is different in both vibe and process. For road trips or bowl games, the teams usually load their equipment into a semi-truck and haul it wherever it needs to go. In this case, they had to prepare a cargo jet well in advance to fly their equipment to Dublin. On most road trips, teams pack gameday helmets and shoulder pads in the truck. This time, those items, in addition to knee braces and cleats, will travel with the players. Advertisement 'It's kind of like a bowl game, kind of not like a bowl game,' Iowa State associate athletic director for football Greg Brabenec said. 'I've had a year and a half to plan. Where a bowl game, you have like 10 days to plan. So that's one major difference.' As the home team, Kansas State was more involved, with a February visit that included a tour of the hotel, stadium, practice field and airport. Aer Lingus provides the team planes, which will fly Iowa State from Des Moines (40 miles) and K-State from Kansas City (130 miles). Unlike other charters, the players will go through the airport's main terminal and, of course, customs. There's also the challenge of dealing with passports for the entire team. That process began a year ago. 'For the players who did not already have passports — about 50 percent of the roster — we scheduled individual appointments in January and February to complete and submit their applications,' said Kacey Feldkamp, Kansas State's director of football operations. This is night before your packing list due for your overseas trip where they pickup your equipment week + before the game. — K-State Equipment (@KStateSWAG) August 1, 2025 The teams are scheduled to fly out Wednesday and will return Sunday morning. Iowa State coach Matt Campbell spoke with Philadelphia Eagles coach Nick Sirianni and New England's Mike Vrabel about the logistics. Campbell compared this trip to what the Eagles experienced last September in traveling to Brazil for the season opener. The Iowa State staff spoke with nutritionists and sports science professionals about not only preparing for this game but returning to a regular-season routine the following week. Klieman and his wife went on the Ireland trip in February, which he called 'a great opportunity.' Campbell echoed that sentiment: 'You're very honored to play in this game. It just makes it a really unique opportunity.' Each fan base has bought more than 10,000 tickets for what will be the Cyclones' first international trip and Wildcats' first since 1992. Kansas State's helmets feature a unique 'Celtic' design to commemorate the trip. Iowa State chose to wear traditional road attire with cardinal helmets and pants rather than spend $75,000 for a special jersey. Fan requests for the Cyclones to add a fourth color were rejected for non-monetary reasons. 'They can pick yellow uniforms or Coach Campbell,' Brabenec said. 'You can't have both.' See you in 15 days @kstatesports — Iowa State Athletics (@CycloneATH) August 8, 2025 Jokes may surface on Saturday that the proud land-grant institutions now will include potatoes or clover as staple crops alongside corn and wheat. But when the rivals kick off at noon ET, there's plenty at stake. The winner will certainly remain ranked and likely become the Big 12 frontrunner. Ultimately, there's nothing more important than victory. 'Eighteen months ago, this is the greatest thing,' Klieman said. 'Now it's coming up on us pretty fast.' Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Play today's puzzle
