College Students, get a year of HawgBeat coverage for just $11.95. Request details via email from your school account (.edu) to nchavanelle@yahoo.com.

Not a subscriber? Subscribe for free for 30 days w/code HAWGS30
NEW USERS | RETURNING USERS

FAYETTEVILLE — It is still early in the 2021 season, but Arkansas is back on top of the college baseball world.

The Razorbacks’ sweep of Southeast Missouri State, coupled with Ole Miss’ series loss to UCF, has vaulted them to the consensus No. 1 team in the country.

They landed the top spot in five of the six major polls revealed Monday, topping the Baseball America, Collegiate Baseball, D1Baseball, NCBWA and USA Today Coaches polls. They are third in Perfect Game's top 25 ranking, behind Louisville and Florida

Those rankings ensure the Razorbacks will also top the weekly Rivals Composite Baseball Poll, which combines those six polls into one ranking and will be unveiled Tuesday.

After checking in at No. 8 in D1Baseball's preseason poll, Arkansas jumped up to No. 2 after beating Texas Tech, Texas and TCU at the State Farm College Baseball Showdown in Arlington, Texas.

Kendall Rogers, a national college baseball writer and co-managing editor of D1Baseball, had hinted that those wins might be enough to move the Razorbacks into the top spot of their, but Ole Miss - which was No. 6 in the preseason - also beat those teams at the same event and was tabbed No. 1.

The Rebels also earned the No. 1 ranking from Baseball America, the NCBWA and Perfect Game. However, they lost to unranked UCF twice this weekend. Meanwhile, Arkansas used a dramatic ninth-inning comeback to win its first game over SEMO and propel itself to a four-game sweep.

Baseball America, which announced its poll last Monday before the conclusion of the event at Globe Life Field, had Arkansas at No. 6 before moving it up to No. 1 this week.

It's the first time in Baseball America's 40-year history that the Razorbacks have been No. 1. It is believed to be the first time they've been the top-ranked team in any of college baseball’s major polls since being preseason No. 1 in the Collegiate Baseball, NCBWA and USA Today Coaches polls.

They quickly dropped out of that spot, though, after losing one of their first three games to Western Illinois. The last time Arkansas was No. 1 during the season is thought to be 2009, when it was No. 1 by Collegiate Baseball and swept a two-game midweek series with Arizona State - which was No. 1 in the USA Today Coaches and Baseball America polls.