How To Watch NCAA Baseball Top 25 Teams, Best Matchups & More This Weekend: Week 11 — College Baseball, MLB Draft, Prospects

Image credit: James Tibbs III (Brian Westerholt/Four Seam Images)

As we enter the home stretch of the regular season, each series’ importance is magnified to the nth degree. Whether it be a team fighting for a top-eight national seed, a hosting bid or even just getting into the tournament, each weekend from here on out will bring lasting implications as it pertains to the postseason landscape. This weekend is a bit of a “down” slate compared to the last few weeks, however—as always—there are a handful of enticing matchups. Between another top-10 ACC showdown, the potential final editions of two rivalry matchups and a big-time Sun Belt matchup, there is plenty to follow.

Additionally, here are some helpful links to aid your college baseball consumption this weekend…

No. 6 Florida State (32-8, 11-7 ACC) at No. 5 Duke (29-12, 13-8 ACC)

The eyes of the college baseball world this weekend will be on Durham, N.C. as the sixth-ranked Seminoles clash with No. 5 Duke. On top of being an outstanding matchup with loads of talent in each dugout, this series also comes with plenty of postseason implications. The Blue Devils right now are looking to cement themselves as a host. They have a pair of impressive series wins over Wake Forest and Virginia, respectively, but taking two of three from Florida State would be a big-time boost to their resume. Their RPI of 21 is approaching the danger zone as it pertains to hosting, and outside of a series against North Carolina on the last weekend of the season, this is the last marquee matchup on their schedule.

On the other hand, the Seminoles are squarely in the mix to be a top-eight national seed. Their turnaround from last year—in which they went just 23-31—has been remarkable. Their only real hiccup to this point was a late March sweep at Clemson but, like Duke, they are also looking for a statement series win to add to their resume. Everything optically—from their record to RPI of six—looks fantastic for the Seminoles, but the one thing they lack is a statement series win. They have a golden opportunity this weekend at Duke to patch up their lone wart.

I think the key to this series for both teams is how well they are able to pitch. Florida State right now is still without star sophomore Cam Leiter, while Duke’s bullpen has been somewhat worn down over time due to its extreme workload. If the Blue Devils can get depth out of their starting pitching—which they are more than capable of doing given the talent in their rotation—or if someone outside of Jamie Arnold can step up for the Seminoles, that will likely be the difference this weekend. I give the slightest of edges to Florida State due to depth offensively, but this series figures to come down to an all-important rubber game on Sunday.

After this weekend, Florida State has a chance to close out the season incredibly strong. Its schedule isn’t the most daunting with matchups against N.C. State, Pittsburgh and Georgia Tech, which also magnifies the importance of this weekend for the Seminoles. A series win would be a real feather in their cap and a sizable step toward a top-eight seed.

How To Stream

The series gets underway tomorrow night at 6:00 p.m. ET. Friday and Sunday’s games can be streamed on ACC Network Extra, while Saturday’s game will be broadcast nationally on ACC Network.

No. 18 Oregon (28-12, 11-7 Pac-12) at No. 13 Oregon State (31-9, 10-7 Pac-12)

With the end of the Pac-12 as we know it less than a month away, this is potentially the last weekend series between Oregon and Oregon State for quite some time. Speaking of the Pac-12, the standings—for lack of better phrasing—are a mess. The top five teams are all within two games of each other, and Oregon State is just half a game back of Oregon for second place. Each team is fresh off a disappointing week as Oregon lost its series to Stanford, while Oregon State was swept at California, which makes this series that much more important.

I’m willing to give the Beavers the benefit of the doubt last weekend, as their bullpen—which got hit around a little bit—had been a bright spot up to that point. They also boast a trio of quality arms in their rotation in Aiden May, Jacob Kmatz and Eric Segura, and a lineup that is gradually returning to full strength. When they’re firing on all cylinders, they look the part of a potential national championship team—consistency has just eluded them in the past couple of weeks. There would be no better way to get on track than with a ranked series win over their archrivals. As a cherry on top, Oregon State is an impressive 19-1 this year at home.

While Oregon has been playing .500 baseball since April 14 and last weekend was an uninspiring result, it was its first series loss since the first weekend of March. The Ducks have been a pleasant surprise this year after they lost a lot of production on both sides of the baseball from last year’s team that was just one win away from the College World Series. Their lineup is littered with respectable run-producers, with first baseman Jacob Walsh leading the charge. Their pitching struggled last weekend, but the Ducks have four solid starters they can turn to, which potentially bodes well for the postseason.

This series is huge for both teams, but for different reasons. Oregon’s tournament resume right now is tricky. On the surface, there might not appear to be any issues. The Ducks are ranked inside the top 20, are 28-12 and in second place in the Pac-12. However, they are a modest 61st in RPI right now with a less-than-stellar remaining schedule. This weekend is their final opportunity to secure a statement series win, and they have their work cut out for them.

The Beavers, like a number of other teams around college baseball, are fighting to host. They are in a solid spot with an RPI of 12, but a ranked series win—which is something their resume is lacking—would go a long way. I like the Beavers to do just that this weekend. They thrive at home, will have an outstanding crowd behind them and have the advantage on both sides of the baseball. It might not be a sweep, but I expect Oregon State to come out on top.

How To Stream

While Saturday’s game will be televised nationally on ESPN2, both Friday and Sunday’s games can be streamed free of charge on the Pac-12’s website.

Texas (25-17, 11-7 Big 12) at No. 16 Oklahoma (25-14, 14-4 Big 12)

Speaking of rivalry series and jumbled conference standings, Texas this weekend travels to Oklahoma for a series that feels like a must-win for the Longhorns. They have one of the most “bubbly” resumes of any team in the country. They currently sit at 66th in RPI and are still in search of a marquee series win to add to their resume. A handful of puzzling midweek losses certainly hasn’t helped the Longhorns’ cause, but they will look to carry over the momentum they built last weekend against TCU into Norman.

Simply put, Lebarron Johnson Jr. needs to recapture some of the magic he had in 2023. The reigning Big 12 pitcher of the year has worked a modest 5.03 ERA with 56 strikeouts to 30 walks in 48.1 innings pitched. However, last weekend was a major step in the right direction as he allowed only one run on three hits across 6.1 innings. This would be the perfect time for Johnson Jr. to round into form, and another quality start this weekend could propel his team to a key series win.

If Texas is the most “bubbly” team in college baseball, there is an argument to be made that Oklahoma is the streakiest. After vaulting into the Top 25 back in March, the Sooners promptly lost consecutive series to West Virginia, Lamar and Oklahoma State. They have since won eight straight games, including sweeps over Kansas State and BYU, respectively, as well as a quality midweek win over a tough Wichita State team.

The Sooners are a balanced team with weapons on both sides of the baseball. There are a plethora of quality bats in their lineup as well as a bevy of reliable arms on their pitching staff. Oklahoma certainly has the talent to make a run to the College World Series, it just needs to become more consistent in its performance. It can’t look like world-beaters one week and anything but the next, because that is a potential recipe for disaster when the postseason rolls around.

The state of the Big 12 right now is a lot like the Pac-12 in that it is also a mess. At 14-4 Oklahoma is in first place by three games, but three teams—including Texas—are tied for second. With a series win this weekend, the Sooners could start to run away with the regular-season conference championship. Another interesting wrinkle to this matchup is that Oklahoma does not play remarkably well at home, while Texas has actually played well on the road. The Sooners’ home record of 14-8 is rather modest when looking at the rest of college baseball, while the Longhorns are 7-3 in true road games. The Red River Rivalry is one of the best in college sports, and the atmosphere this weekend in Norman is sure to be phenomenal.

How To Stream

The series gets underway tomorrow night at 7:30 p.m. ET and all games can be streamed on ESPN+.

Southern Mississippi (26-15, 11-7 Sun Belt) at No. 25 Louisiana (31-12, 15-3 Sun Belt)

While Georgia—who is on the cusp of being ranked—at top-ranked Texas A&M is an excellent matchup, I wanted to continue to highlight the Sun Belt. From this chair, the SBC is one of the most underrated conferences in the country. From a standings perspective, it is shaping up to be an exciting race down the stretch with eight teams in contention to finish within the top three. Not only will seemingly every series from here on out be significant, but the talent level on the field is also high.

Two of the more talented teams square off this weekend as the Golden Eagles travel west to take on the Ragin’ Cajuns. The Cajuns are in a little bit of a rut right now. After losing their first Sun Belt series of the season last weekend against No. 15 Coastal Carolina, they lost to Houston Christian last night. For the most part, midweek losses are rather insignificant when looking at the big picture, but last night’s result really hurt Louisiana’s hosting chances. The Huskies came into the game just 231st in RPI, and the loss dropped the Cajuns’ RPI 14 spots down to 57. That is a steep hill to climb with a little over three weeks left in the regular season.

Unlike last weekend in Conway, runs figure to be at a premium this weekend. Southern Miss and Louisiana boast two of the better pitching staffs in the Sun Belt, and neither team—especially the Golden Eagles—features a high-powered offense. Whoever wins this series will likely have done so on the back of its pitching. Louisiana’s rotation matches up well with Southern Miss’ lineup, but the Golden Eagles have the arm talent to go punch-for-punch with the Cajuns.

I expect a crisp, well-played series that likely comes down to game three on Sunday. I lean Louisiana, but even with a series loss, Southern Miss will be in a fine spot as it pertains to earning an at-large bid. However, it has a chance to solidify itself as a tournament team with a series win either this weekend or next weekend against No. 15 Coastal Carolina.