By R.L. Bynum

After falling one win short of a second consecutive College World Series appearance, reigning ACC champion North Carolina is No. 11 in the preseason D1 Baseball poll.

UNC (46–15 last season), No. 9 in the final poll last season, enters its sixth season under Coach Scott Forbes.

The Tar Heels are one of eight ACC teams in the poll, led by Georgia Tech (41–19) at No. 5 and Louisville (42–24) at No. 8. Also in the poll are No. 16 Florida State (42–16), No. 17 N.C. State (35–21), No. 19 Clemson (45–18), No. 21 Wake Forest (39–22) and No. 22 Miami (35–27).

UCLA (48–18) is preseason No. 1, with reigning national champion LSU (53–15) at No. 2.

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UNC returns ace Jason DeCaro, the likely Friday starter, and left-hander Ryan Lynch and right-hander Walker McDuffie in a stacked pitching staff.

Junior infielder Gavin Gallaher is back, and bolstered by a strong transfer-portal class.

Carolina opens the season with a three-game home series against Indiana Feb. 13–15.

D1 Baseball Preseason Top 25

Ranking	Team	2025 record	Final 2025 ranking
1	UCLA	48-18	5
2	LSU	53-15	1
3	Texas	44-14	17
4	Mississippi State	36-23	NR
5	Georgia Tech	41-19	24
6	Coastal Carolina	56-13	2
7	Arkansas	50-15	3
8	Louisville	42-24	6
9	Auburn	41-20	11
10	TCU	39-20	NR
11	North Carolina	46-15	9
12	Oregon State	48-16-1	4
13	Florida	39-22	NR
14	Tennessee	46-19	12
15	Georgia	43-17	19
16	Florida State	42-16	10
17	N.C. State	35-21	NR
18	Kentucky	31-26	NR
19	Clemson	45-18	23
20	Southern Miss	47-16	22
21	Wake Forest	39-22	NR
22	Miami	35-27	16
23	Vanderbilt	43-18	18
24	Arizona	44-21	7
25	Texas A&M	30-26	NR