College Rankings: Week 4… Oklahoma Remains Undefeated & #1; Clemson Debuts in Top 25 (Mar. 9, 2021)

Oklahoma continues to roll and some top 25 teams lost for the first time. Clemson makes its initial appearance after looking strong in conference.

After all the action in Week 4, here are the latest college rankings…

*****

Oklahoma nearly unanimous, Clemson debuts in 2021 USA Today/NFCA DI Top 25 Poll

Oklahoma continues to roll as it was nearly unanimous in this week’s 2021 USA Today/NFCA Division I Top 25 Coaches Poll. The Sooners (17-0) collected 31 of a possible 32 first-place votes and 799 points. Additionally, Clemson makes its NFCA rankings’ debut at No. 25.

Hosting the Courtyard Marriott Tournament, OU picked up five more wins, including a pair over then-No. 18 Missouri (5-2, 11-0). Over the five-game stretch that also included triumphs over Sam Houston State (7-0, 17-0) and ULM (9-0), the Sooners outscored their opposition 49-2 and the OU pitching staff hurled four shutouts.

Cracking the NFCA’s top 25 for the first time, the Tigers (13-2) are riding a 10-game winning streak following a four-game Atlantic Coast Conference sweep at Virginia. During that run, the Tigers have played in some pretty tight ball games, winning six by three runs or less.

Undefeated Arizona received the final first-place vote. The Wildcats (12-0) opened their seven-game Sunshine State tour with a pair of wins over USF (11-1, 8-0). No. 3 UCLA and No. 4 Alabama switched spots as did No. 5 Oregon and No. 6 Florida.

The Bruins (10-1) opened the week with neutral-site victories over the Ducks (9-3) and Utah (6-5), before returning home for run-rule triumphs over Cal State Fullerton (9-1) and San Jose State (14-0).

The Crimson Tide (19-1) had their 19-game win streak snapped by South Alabama (1-0) in the final game of the Easton T-Town Showdown. Prior to that, Alabama did top RV Mississippi State (4-0), Kent State (9-1, 11-3) and Northern Iowa (5-3, 8-0).

The Ducks (13-1) bounced back from their first defeat of the season with four wins in their first home games of 2021. Oregon defeated Portland State (4-2, 16-0) and Boise State (3-0, 10-2).  The Gators (14-1) also suffered their first loss of the campaign, dropping a 7-2 decision at then-No. 16 Florida State. UF did earn a 5-0 decision over the Seminoles (11-4) at home in the first of back-to-back contests against FSU.

Slowly making its way up the poll is No. 7 Oklahoma State. The Cowgirls (18-1) rose two positions after a 5-0 week, which saw wins over Omaha (8-0, 8-0), New Mexico (7-2, 4-1) and Tulsa (7-0). Washington, which swept a road series at Hawai’i, stood pat at No. 8.

No. 9 Kentucky picked up one spot and Texas slid down to No. 10. The Wildcats (19-0) own the highest win total amongst undefeated programs. UK swept five more games at FAU’s tournament and finished its Florida trip, 10-0.

After a 10-0 start, the Longhorns (10-2) were defeated in a twin bill at then-No. 13 LSU (2-1 in 8 inn. / 7-2). Texas did pick up an 8-5 win over the Tigers (13-6) in the series opener as well as a mid-week victory at Houston (9-0).

With the addition of Clemson to the top 25, then-No. 23 Iowa State (16-4) fell out of the rankings after it suffered two losses on the final day of the UT-Arlington Boerner Invitational.

The 2021 USA Today/NFCA Division I Top 25 Poll is voted on by 32 NCAA Division I head coaches, one representing each conference. Records reflect games played through March 7. Programs not competing in 2021 will not be eligible for ranking consideration.

*****

2021 USA Today / NFCA Division I
Top 25 Coaches Poll – March 9 (Week 4)

New to Poll: No. 25 Clemson

Dropped Out: No. 23 Iowa State

Receiving Votes: Baylor (28), Southern Illinois (27), Iowa state (26), Illinois (23), Northwestern (16), Liberty (8), Stanford (6), Mississippi State (4), Notre Dame (3), South Alabama (2), Texas State (2), Wichita State (2), James Madison (1).

The 2021 USA Today / NFCA Division I Top 25 Coaches Poll is voted on by 32 NCAA Division I head coaches with one representing each of the NCAA’s Division I Conferences. Records reflect games played through March 7.

*Programs not competing in 2021 will not be eligible for ranking consideration.

*****

ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25

2021 Season – Week 4 – Mar. 9, 2021

Improving to 17-0 through Week 4 of play, Oklahoma remains atop the ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25 Poll. The Sooners garnered 19-of-20 first-place votes after going 5-0 as hosts of the Courtyard Marriott Tournament in Norman.

Claiming the remaining first-place vote is No. 2 Arizona (12-0) who posted two wins over USF. No. 3 UCLA jumps ahead one spot with 452 points following a 5-0 week in which they bounced back against then-No. 6 Oregon for a 9-3 win at home. Rounding out the Top 5 is No. 4 Alabama (19-1) and No. 5 Florida (14-1) who each suffered their first loss of the season to South Alabama and then-No. 16 Florida State, respectively.

1.	Oklahoma (19) Big 12 Record: 17-0	Previous Rank: 1
		Points: 499
2.	Arizona (1) Pac-12 Record: 12-0	Previous Rank: 3
		Points: 462
3.	UCLA Pac-12 Record: 10-1	Previous Rank: 4
		Points: 452
4.	Alabama SEC Record: 19-1	Previous Rank: 2
		Points: 450
5.	Florida SEC Record: 14-1	Previous Rank: 5
		Points: 400
6.	Oregon Pac-12 Record: 13-1	Previous Rank: 6
		Points: 386
7.	Oklahoma State Big 12 Record: 18-1	Previous Rank: 8
		Points: 352
8.	Washington Pac-12 Record: 16-2	Previous Rank: 9
		Points: 341
9.	Arizona State Pac-12 Record: 15-1	Previous Rank: 10
		Points: 323
10.	Kentucky SEC Record: 19-0	Previous Rank: 11
		Points: 321
11.	Texas Big 12 Record: 10-2	Previous Rank: 7
		Points: 307
12.	LSU SEC Record: 13-6	Previous Rank: 12
		Points: 285
13.	Duke ACC Record: 15-1	Previous Rank: 15
		Points: 234
14.	Louisiana Sun Belt Record: 13-4	Previous Rank: 13
		Points: 222
15.	Virginia Tech ACC Record: 7-2	Previous Rank: 14
		Points: 210
16.	Florida State ACC Record: 11-4	Previous Rank: 16
		Points: 208
17.	Tennessee SEC Record: 17-1	Previous Rank: 19
		Points: 171
18.	Missouri SEC Record: 15-4	Previous Rank: 17
		Points: 147
19.	Arkansas SEC Record: 16-2	Previous Rank: 20
		Points: 124
20.	South Carolina SEC Record: 12-3	Previous Rank: 18
		Points: 115
21.	Georgia SEC Record: 14-2	Previous Rank: 21
		Points: 93
22.	Auburn SEC Record: 15-1	Previous Rank: T23
		Points: 89
23.	Northwestern Big Ten Record: 6-0	Previous Rank: 25
		Points: 60
24.	UCF AAC Record: 12-3	Previous Rank: T23
		Points: 59
25.	Michigan Big Ten Record: 4-2	Previous Rank: 22
		Points: 46

Parenthesis denotes first place votes.

Others receiving votes: Baylor (36), Illinois (27), Clemson (20), Oregon State (19), Minnesota (12), Mississippi State (9), Texas A&M (8), Stanford (6), Texas State (3), NC State (2), Iowa State (1), Southern Illinois (1).