Florida baseball is still very much in the hunt for a top-eight national seed.
The Gators’ current résumé has essentially guaranteed the right to host a regional, but having the path to the Men’s College World Series played only at Condron Ballpark is an obvious postseason advantage.
According to most postseason projections, UF is on the cusp of a top-eight seed, sitting at No. 9 or No. 10.
A strong performance in the SEC tournament could put Florida over the edge. However, the Gators could always use help from other teams in the hunt, as they underperform in their respective conference tournaments.
As of now, UCLA, Georgia Tech, Georgia, North Carolina, Texas and Alabama should have locked six of the top eight seeds.
Florida is seemingly in the mix between Texas A&M, Auburn and Southern Miss. Both the Aggies and Tigers have a series win against the Gators, while USM won the Sun Belt regular season after Coastal Carolina fell apart in the final stretch of the season.
The NCAA selection committee takes into account RPI, strength of schedule and unofficially a team’s record against the rest of the Field of 64.
How do the resumes stack up?
Auburn: No. 3 RPI, No. 1 SOS, 17-16 vs Quad 1 teams, 15-15 vs top 25, 18-19 vs USA Today’s projected Field of 64
Florida: No. 9 RPI, No. 2 SOS, 15-11 vs Quad 1 teams, 14-6 vs top 25, 16-15 vs projected field
Texas A&M: No. 11 RPI, No. 18 SOS, 10-12 vs Quad 1 teams, 10-11 vs top 25, 13-11 vs projected field
Southern Miss: No. 13 RPI, No. 28 SOS, 7-5 vs Quad 1 teams, 4-2 vs top 25, 9-6 vs projected field
What does Florida need to do?
Ideally, if the Gators can get to the SEC championship game, then UF should have done enough to earn the No. 8 seed, which would mean Florida would have beaten Kentucky, Alabama and then potentially Georgia to shore up the résumé.
However, outside of what Florida can control, the Gators could use outside help. If Auburn or Texas A&M go one-and-done in the SEC tournament, then it’s likely UF would benefit the most.
Outside the SEC tournament, Florida would also prefer that Southern Miss does not win the Sun Belt tournament. The Golden Eagles winning both the Sun Belt tournament and regular season could push USM’s resume into the top eight threshold.
Another key component that could help Florida, as well as other teams in the field, is if any of the non-conference opponents win their respective conference tournaments. The most notable would be if UAB wins the wild American Athletic Conference, which would give UF two more wins against the Field of 64 teams. The Blazers finished two games behind first place in the regular season.
In the end, even if Florida goes one-and-done, the Gators will still host a regional but will have to hope for an ideal Super Regional pairing.
Reach Florida Gators writer Andrew Abadie at AAbadie@usatodayco.com or on X (formerly Twitter) at @AndrewAbadie. You can also find him on Facebook at Andrew Abadie Sports Reporter or on Instagram @andrewabadie_sports.
This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Can a strong performance in the SEC Tournament help Florida baseball earn a national seed?
Reporting by Andrew Abadie, Gainesville Sun / The Gainesville Sun
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
