Dalton Guthrie and the Gators enter the season as the unanimous No. 1 team.
Gators Top 2016 Preseason NCBWA Poll
Monday, February 1, 2016 | Baseball
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The University of Florida was voted No. 1 in the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) Preseason Coaches' Poll released on Monday. It marks the second time in school history that the Gators have been at the top of the organization's preseason rankings (2012). Head coach Kevin O'Sullivan's club had previously been tabbed No. 1 by Baseball America, Collegiate Baseball, D1Baseball, Perfect Game and USA Today.
Florida headlines the top five, followed by Louisville, Vanderbilt, Texas A&M and Oregon State. The Orange and Blue will begin the 2016 campaign on Feb. 19 at McKethan Stadium, when Florida Gulf Coast visits for the opener of a three-game series, and the squad opens practice this Friday, Jan. 29.
The Gators are among nine SEC teams that are ranked in the preseason poll, more than any other league. The SEC also produced four of the top seven schools, with Vanderbilt at No. 3, Texas A&M at No. 4 and LSU at No. 7. Second-ranked Louisville leads a trio of ACC teams in the top eight, with Miami (Fla.) placing sixth and Virginia coming in at No. 8. The Pac-12 had five teams ranked in the poll, while the Big 12 had four.
Last season, UF went 52-18 and ranked third in the final polls after becoming the only program in the country to earn a top-eight national seed for NCAA play for the sixth time in seven years. The Gators also swept through the Gainesville Regionals and Super Regionals held at McKethan Stadium. The incoming class has been ranked No. 1 by Collegiate Baseball, the program's seventh consecutive time in the top eight classes in the country.
The contest with FGCU begins the 33-game home schedule at McKethan Stadium, where the Gators boast a 231-69 (.770) mark in O'Sullivan's tenure.
2016 NCBWA Preseason Poll
Others receiving votes (listed alphabetically): Alabama (32-28), Arizona (31-24), Arizona State (35-23), Auburn (36-26), Columbia (34-17), Duke (31-22), East Carolina (40-22), Florida Atlantic (42-19), Georgia (26-28), Georgia Tech (32-23), Grand Canyon (32-22), Illinois (50-10), Indiana (35-24), Iowa (41-18), Long Beach State (28-26), Loyola Marymount (33-21), Missouri (30-28), Nevada (41-15), New Mexico (32-27), Notre Dame (37-23), Old Dominion (27-29), Pepperdine (32-29), Radford (45-16), San Diego (33-22), San Diego State (41-23), South Alabama (37-20), South Florida (34-26), Southeast Missouri State (36-23), Southeastern Louisiana (42-17), Southern Miss (36-18), St. John's (41-16), Stanford (24-32), Stony Brook (35-16), Texas Tech (31-24), UAB (33-25), UC Irvine (33-23), UC Santa Barbara (40-17), UNC Wilmington (41-18), VCU (40-25), Wake Forest (27-26), Winthrop (40-19), Wright State (43-17).
Gators' 2016 opponents in Bold Italics
Season tickets for the 2016 Gator Baseball season are on sale and can be purchased online through FloridaGators.com or by calling the Gator Ticket Office at 1-800-34-GATOR from 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m., Monday through Friday.
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Florida headlines the top five, followed by Louisville, Vanderbilt, Texas A&M and Oregon State. The Orange and Blue will begin the 2016 campaign on Feb. 19 at McKethan Stadium, when Florida Gulf Coast visits for the opener of a three-game series, and the squad opens practice this Friday, Jan. 29.
The Gators are among nine SEC teams that are ranked in the preseason poll, more than any other league. The SEC also produced four of the top seven schools, with Vanderbilt at No. 3, Texas A&M at No. 4 and LSU at No. 7. Second-ranked Louisville leads a trio of ACC teams in the top eight, with Miami (Fla.) placing sixth and Virginia coming in at No. 8. The Pac-12 had five teams ranked in the poll, while the Big 12 had four.
Last season, UF went 52-18 and ranked third in the final polls after becoming the only program in the country to earn a top-eight national seed for NCAA play for the sixth time in seven years. The Gators also swept through the Gainesville Regionals and Super Regionals held at McKethan Stadium. The incoming class has been ranked No. 1 by Collegiate Baseball, the program's seventh consecutive time in the top eight classes in the country.
The contest with FGCU begins the 33-game home schedule at McKethan Stadium, where the Gators boast a 231-69 (.770) mark in O'Sullivan's tenure.
2016 NCBWA Preseason Poll
| Rank | School | 2015 Record | 2015 Final Rank |
| 1. | FLORIDA | 52-18 | 3 |
| 2. | Louisville | 47-18 | 9 |
| 3. | Vanderbilt | 51-21 | 2 |
| 4. | Texas A&M | 50-14 | 10 |
| 5. | Oregon State | 39-19-1 | 27 |
| 6. | Miami (FL) | 50-17 | 6 |
| 7. | LSU | 54-12 | 5 |
| 8. | Virginia | 44-24 | 1 |
| 9. | UCLA | 45-16 | 15 |
| 10. | California | 36-21 | 24 |
| 11. | Oklahoma State | 38-20 | 19 |
| 12. | TCU | 51-15 | 4 |
| 13. | UL-Lafayette | 42-23 | 16 |
| 14. | Florida State | 44-21 | 13 |
| 15. | Houston | 43-20 | 23 |
| 16. | Cal State Fullerton | 39-25 | 7 |
| 17. | Oregon | 38-25 | NR |
| 18. | Southern California | 39-21 | 21 |
| 19. | Mississippi State | 24-30 | NR |
| 20. | NC State | 36-23 | NR |
| 21. | North Carolina | 34-24 | NR |
| 22. | Arkansas | 40-25 | 8 |
| 23. | Coastal Carolina | 39-21 | NR |
| 24. | South Carolina | 32-25 | NR |
| 25. | Michigan | 39-25 | NR |
| 26. | Rice | 37-22 | 22 |
| 27. | Maryland | 42-24 | 14 |
| 28. | Missouri State | 49-12 | 12 |
| 29. | Texas | 30-27 | NR |
| 30. | Oklahoma | 34-27 | NR |
| 31. | Dallas Baptist | 46-15 | 18 |
| 32. | Kentucky | 30-25 | NR |
| 33. | Ole Miss | 30-28 | NR |
| 34. | College of Charleston | 45-15 | 20 |
| 35. | Tulane | 35-25 | NR |
Others receiving votes (listed alphabetically): Alabama (32-28), Arizona (31-24), Arizona State (35-23), Auburn (36-26), Columbia (34-17), Duke (31-22), East Carolina (40-22), Florida Atlantic (42-19), Georgia (26-28), Georgia Tech (32-23), Grand Canyon (32-22), Illinois (50-10), Indiana (35-24), Iowa (41-18), Long Beach State (28-26), Loyola Marymount (33-21), Missouri (30-28), Nevada (41-15), New Mexico (32-27), Notre Dame (37-23), Old Dominion (27-29), Pepperdine (32-29), Radford (45-16), San Diego (33-22), San Diego State (41-23), South Alabama (37-20), South Florida (34-26), Southeast Missouri State (36-23), Southeastern Louisiana (42-17), Southern Miss (36-18), St. John's (41-16), Stanford (24-32), Stony Brook (35-16), Texas Tech (31-24), UAB (33-25), UC Irvine (33-23), UC Santa Barbara (40-17), UNC Wilmington (41-18), VCU (40-25), Wake Forest (27-26), Winthrop (40-19), Wright State (43-17).
Gators' 2016 opponents in Bold Italics
Season tickets for the 2016 Gator Baseball season are on sale and can be purchased online through FloridaGators.com or by calling the Gator Ticket Office at 1-800-34-GATOR from 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m., Monday through Friday.
Follow the Gators
FloridaGators.com
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