Interesting draw for Hogs in latest D1Baseball Field of 64 projection
The Arkansas Razorbacks baseball team currently sits with a 33-12 overall record and a 14-7 record in SEC play with three weekends remaining in the regular season.
D1Baseball has the Diamond Hogs ranked No. 6 in its Top 25 poll and it listed the Razorbacks as the No. 5 overall seed in its Week 12 Field of 64 projection for the NCAA Tournament on Wednesday.
Arkansas has remained a top-eight seed since D1Baseball started its projections on April 6. What has changed is the teams that would be coming to the Fayetteville Regional, and the most recent projection has a two-seed that Razorback fans might not want to see:
D1Baseball Field of 64 Fayetteville Regional projection (5/3)
1. Arkansas (5) (33-12 overall record)
2. Oregon State (31-13 overall record)
3. Kansas State (28-18 overall record)
4. SE Missouri State (26-20 overall record)
Yeah. Oregon State. The team that beat Arkansas in heart breaking fashion in the 2018 College World Series Finals, which I do not need to write a recap of.
Arkansas would be matched up with SE Missouri State in its first game, and the Razorbacks already have a 12-2 midweek run-rule victory over SEMO this season.
Oregon State would face Kansas State in its first game. Assuming both Arkansas and Oregon State win, that would set up for the first meeting between the two since the Beavers beat the Razorbacks 5-0 in Game 3 of the 2018 College World Series Finals.
It's worth noting that the winner of the Fayetteville Regional is projected to matchup with the winner of the Eugene Regional, which features Oregon (No. 12 overall seed), Cal State Fullerton, Texas Tech and Loyola Marymount.
Obviously this is just a projection, and it is sure to change by next week.
The SEC had 11 teams projected to earn a bid, which was the most of any conference. That number is expected to dwindle down as the bubble shrinks down the stretch.
As far as Arkansas' resume goes, it ranks No. 6 in the RPI, which is is used to rank teams based upon wins, losses and strength of schedule. The Hogs dropped one spot from No. 5 following Tuesday's midweek loss to Lipscomb at Dickey-Stephens Park in North Little Rock.
Here is the Razorbacks' record against RPI teams:
1-25: 7-6 record
26-50: 7-0 record
51-100: 6-3 record
101-200: 8-2 record
200+: 5-1 record
The one loss to a team rated below 200 was against Eastern Illinois, who ranks 220th and beat Arkansas in Game 3 of the Razorbacks' first weekend series on Feb. 26.
Arkansas' overall strength of schedule ranks 14th, while its non-conference strength of schedule ranks 103rd. It's also worth pointing out that the Razorbacks are the only top-10 team with a losing record on the road (3-7), but their 28 home wins rank second behind Tennessee (29) for most in the country.
Up next for Arkansas is a trip to Starkville, Mississippi, for a three-game weekend series beginning at 6 p.m. CT at Dudy Noble Field. The first game will be streamed live on the SEC Network Plus.
*D1Baseball's Mark Etheridge, Kendall Rogers and Aaron Fitt assembled the postseason projections.