Alabama State leeps into “large school” top spot while Albany State holds steady in “small school”baseball poll.
Alabama State has moved into the No. 1 ranking in our Black College Nines 2023 Historically Black College and University (HBCU) regular season baseball poll announced on April 4, 2023.
The Hornets, 18-11 overall and 7-2 in Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC), received the most first-place votes and total points in the “large school” division made up of NCAA Division I baseball programs. ASU has won ball games with pitching and timely hitting. Right behind Alabama State and moving up to the No. 2 spot in the poll rankings is Bethune Cookman University.
Jackson State falls from the previous ranking to No. 3, Florida A&M moves up two spots to No. 4, Texas Southern dropped two spots to No. 5. The remaining “large school” has Grambling State at No. 6, North Carolina A&T fell from the previous polling No. 2 to No.7. Coppin State listed in the preseason poll, enters the ranking for the first time this season at No. 8. Southern stays at No. 9 for the second time this season and Prairie View A&M reenters the Top 10 Poll from week one at No. 10.
In the “small school” division, Albany State remains the No. 1 ranked team in Black College Nines Top 10 rankings. The Golden Rams are 21-5 overall and 19-1 in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC). Talladega College, from the Southern States Athletic Conference (SSAC), moves into the No. 2 spot. Savannah State fell from the previous No. 2 ranking to No. 3. West Virginia State unranked enters at No. 4, while Florida Memorial dropped one spot to No. 5.
The remaining small school Top 10 has Virginia State at No. 6, Miles College climbs from the previous Week Two polling of No. 10 on March 19th to No. 7. Morehouse University, previously unranked, enters for the first-time this season at No. 8, Kentucky State drops down a spot to No. 9 as Paine College closes out the small school rankings at No. 10.
The small school Top 10 poll will have national implications throughout the 2023 regular season which will lead to HBCU baseball programs competing for a national title in the third annual Black College World Series scheduled for May 10-13, 2023, at Riverwalk Stadium (home of the Tampa Bay Rays Double-A affiliate Montgomery Biscuits) in Montgomery, Alabama.
Black College Nines HBCU Baseball Ranking Committee determines the Top 10 rankings for both large schools and small schools.
Records indicated are through April 2nd.
The two divisional polls are as follows…
Large School Poll
| Rank | School | W/L Current Record | Winning Pct. | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama State University | 18-11 | 0.621 | 1 | |
| Bethune Cookman University | 16-12 | 0.571 | 2 | |
| Coppin State University | 10-17 | 0.370 | 8 | |
| Florida A&M University | 13-15 | 0.464 | 4 | |
| Grambling State University | 12-15 | 0.444 | 6 | |
| Jackson State University | 16-9 | 0.640 | 3 | |
| North Carolina A&T University | 13-15 | 0.481 | 7 | |
| Prairie View A&M | 9-19 | 0.321 | 10 | |
| Southern University | 9-17 | 0.346 | 9 | |
| Texas Southern University | 19-11 | 0.633 | 5 |
Small School Poll
| Rank | School | W/L Record | Winning Pct. | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Albany State University | 21-5 | 0.808 | 1 | |
| Florida Memorial University | 14-13 | 0.519 | 5 | |
| Kentucky State University | 12-13 | 0.480 | 9 | |
| Miles College | 16-15 | 0.516 | 7 | |
| Morehouse College | 13-12 | 0.520 | 8 | |
| Paine College | 10-9 | 0.526 | 10 | |
| Savannah State | 18-8 | 0.692 | 3 | |
| Talladega College | 21-10 | 0.677 | 2 | |
| Virginia State University | 14-12 | 0.538 | 6 | |
| West Virginia State University | 14-10 | 0.583 | 4 |
2023 Poll Dates (with links to poll results):
Pre-Season (1/10/23)
Week 1 (March 7, 2023)
Week 2 (March 21, 2023)
Week 3 (April 4, 2023)
Week 4 (April 18, 2023)
Week 5 (April 25, 2023)
Week 6 (May 2, 2023)
Week 7 (May 16, 2023)
Week 8 (May 23, 2023)
Week 9 (May 30, 2023)
The voting committee is made up of an informed and impartial group of individuals who follow college baseball on all levels, including Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) baseball. Included in the group are college athletic administrators and educators, college baseball writers and other sports journalists and broadcasters, former HBCU and other college ballplayers and above all else… college baseball enthusiasts who have an interest in promoting HBCU baseball.
As the college baseball season concludes, champions will be named in two divisions… the “large school” division will be composed of the 17 HBCU schools representing NCAA Division I and a “small school” division made up of the 35 HBCU schools with NCAA Division II, NAIA and NCCAA status.