DALLAS – The Tennessee baseball team has earned its third preseason ranking of the year, coming in at No. 20 in the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association Preseason Poll.

UT is also ranked 19th in the D1Baseball.com and Baseball America preseason polls. This year marks the first time that the Vols have been ranked in the preseason since 2007, when they entered the season ranked as high as No. 11.

As usual, the SEC led the way with 12 teams ranked in NCBWA’s 35-team preseason poll, including five teams in the top 10. View the NCBWA’s complete rankings by clicking HERE.

Tennessee was ranked as high as No. 11 last year before the season was halted and eventually canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Vols were off to a 15-2 start and ranked among the nation’s leaders in a number of statistical categories.

UT led the country in runs (180) and ranked second in home runs (31) while batting .320 as a team (fifth nationally). The pitching staff was equally as impressive, ranking fifth nationally in ERA (2.00) and second in WHIP (0.94).

Tennessee returns the vast majority of its production from last season. Returning players accounted for 74% of the team’s hits and 69% of the team’s runs batted in. From a pitching standpoint, UT returns 81% of its total innings pitched and 79% of its strikeouts from last year. The Vols also boast four preseason All-Americans in Max Ferguson, Connor Pavolony, Jake Rucker and Jackson Leath.

The Big Orange are set to open their season on Feb. 19 when they travel to Statesboro, Georgia for a weekend series against Georgia Southern. UT’s home opener is currently slated for Tuesday, Feb. 23 against Arkansas-Pine Bluff at 4:30 p.m. The full 2021 schedule can be found HERE.

There are a limited number of season tickets available for this season, which fans can purchase by visiting AllVols.com or calling the Tennessee Ticket Office at 865-656-1200. For more info on season tickets for the 2021 season, click HERE.

-UT Athletics