Florida A&M in the “large school” division and Talladega College in the “small school” division head Black College Nines’ fourth regular season top 10 polls of 2025.
In the large school division poll, just like in the Southwestern Athletic Conference, Florida A&M University and Bethune-Cookman University remain as close as can be with the FAMU Rattlers barely edging out the Wildcats of B-CU for first place in the fourth edition of the Black College Nines “large school” top ten poll. Fellow SWAC members Alabama State and Texas Southern hold down the third and fifth spots with Costal Athletic Association’s North Carolina A&T University sandwiched between the two in the fourth spot.
Grambling State University, Southern University, Jackson State University and the University of Arkansas Pine Bluff fill out spots number six through nine with Northeast Conference member Coppin State completing the top ten in the large school division.
In the “small school” division of the Black College Nines top ten poll, Talladega College continues to lead the pack with SIAC member Savannah State not far behind. HBCUAC rival Wiley University comes in at number three and two other SIAC members round out the first five with Edward Waters at number four and Albany State at number five.
Florida Memorial, a member of the very strong SUN Conference ranks sixth in the small school poll with Benedict College, Southern University of New Orleans, Stillman College and Dillard University completing the top ten.
The small school Top 10 poll will have national implications throughout the 2025 regular season which will lead to HBCU baseball programs competing for a national title in the fifth annual Black College World Series scheduled for May 7-10, 2025, at Rockabillys Stadium (home of the Jackson Rockabillys) in Jackson, Tennessee.
Black College Nines HBCU Baseball Ranking Committee determines the Top 10 rankings for both large schools and small schools.
Records indicated are through April 13th.
The two divisional polls are as follows…
Large School Poll
| Rank | School | Current Record | Winning Pct. | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama State University (SWAC) | 18-19 | 0.486 | 3 | |
| Arkansas Pine-Bluff University (SWAC) | 8-26 | 0.235 | 9 | |
| Bethune Cookman University (SWAC) | 20-16 | 0.556 | 2 | |
| Coppin State University (NEC) | 10-22 | 0.312 | 10 | |
| Florida A&M University (SWAC) | 19-16 | 0.543 | 1 | |
| Grambling State University (SWAC) | 15-19 | 0.441 | 6 | |
| Jackson State University (SWAC) | 17-16 | 0.515 | 8 | |
| North Carolina A&T University (CAA) | 12-22 | 0.353 | 4 | |
| Southern University (SWAC) | 15-19 | 0.441 | 7 | |
| Texas Southern University (SWAC) | 16-20 | 0.444 | 5 |
Receiving Votes: Alabama A&M, Mississippi Valley State, Prairie View A&M
Small School Poll
| Rank | School | Current Record | Winning Pct. | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Albany State University (SIAC) | 23-18 | 0.561 | 5 | |
| Benedict College (SIAC) | 17-11 | 0.607 | 7 | |
| Dillard University (HBCUAC) | 19-18 | 0.514 | 10 | |
| Edward Waters University (SIAC) | 26-15 | 0.634 | 4 | |
| Florida Memorial University (SUN) | 18-21 | 0.462 | 6 | |
| Savannah State (SIAC) | 23-10 | 0.697 | 2 | |
| Southern Univ at New Orleans (HBCUAC) | 20-15 | 0.571 | 8 | |
| Stillman College (HBCUAC) | 20-18 | 0.526 | 9 | |
| Talladega College (HBCUAC) | 29-14 | 0.674 | 1 | |
| Wiley University (HBCUAC) | 28-13 | 0.683 | 3 |
Receiving Votes: Huston-Tillotson University, Miles College, Paine College, West Virginia State University, Xavier University of Louisiana
2025 Poll Dates (with links to poll results):
Pre-Season
Week 1 (March 5, 2025)
Week 2 (March 19, 2025)
Week 3 (April 2, 2025)
Week 4 (April 16, 2025)
Week 5 (April 23, 2025)
Week 6 (April 30, 2025)
Week 7 (May 14, 2025)
Week 8 (May 23, 2025)
Final Poll (May 28, 2025)
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 are named in two divisions… the “large school” division will is composed of the 17 HBCU schools representing NCAA Division I and a “small school” division made up of the 37 HBCU schools with NCAA Division II, NAIA and NCCAA status.