NEW ORLEANS — Following a season in which two Sun Belt programs hosted NCAA Baseball Regionals for the first time in conference history and Coastal Carolina advanced to the championship series at the College World Series, the Sun Belt was well-represented in the national preseason polls. 
 
Coastal Carolina and Southern Miss—each regional hosts a year ago—were ranked in all five national preseason polls. 
 
Coastal Carolina—which has appeared in six of the last seven NCAA tournaments headlined by its run to the championship series at the College World Series in 2025—earned the conference’s highest ranking at No. 6 in the D1Baseball Preseason Top 25. The Chanticleers were also listed at No. 7 in the USA Today Sports Baseball Coaches Preseason Poll and the NCBWA Preseason Poll; No. 11 in the Baseball America Preseason Top 25; and No. 17 in the Perfect Game Preseason Top 25. 
 
Southern Miss—which has appeared in nine-straight NCAA tournaments and advanced to six-straight regional finals—was ranked as high as No. 20 in the D1 Baseball Preseason Top 25, the USA Today Baseball Coaches Preseason Poll and the NCBWA Preseason Poll. The Golden Eagles were also noted at No. 23 in the Baseball America Preseason Top 25 and the Perfect Game Preseason Top 25. 
 
After narrowly missing the NCAA baseball field for the second-straight season in 2025, Troy received votes in the USA Today Sports Baseball Coaches Preseason Poll and the NCBWA Preseason Poll. 
 
The Sun Belt has been a multi-bid conference in 30-of-36 seasons since 1989 and has earned four regional berths on six occasions since 2000, including three of the past four seasons. 
 
Over the past four seasons since expanding to 14 members, the Sun Belt has sent 14 teams to NCAA Baseball Regionals, 10 to NCAA Baseball Regional finals, two to NCAA Baseball Super Regionals and one to the championship series at the College World Series. That grouping has included four regional hosts and national seeds—No. 13 Coastal Carolina (2025), No. 16 Southern Miss (2025), No. 10 Coastal Carolina (2023) and No. 16 Georgia Southern (2022). 
 
NATIONAL PRESEASON POLLS
Perfect Game Preseason Top 25 (Jan. 8)
No. 17 Coastal Carolina
No. 23 Southern Miss
 
D1Baseball Preseason Top 25 (Jan. 12)
No. 6 Coastal Carolina
No. 20 Southern Miss
 
Baseball America Preseason Top 25 (Jan. 19) 
No. 11 Coastal Carolina
No. 23 Southern Miss
 
USA Today Sports Baseball Coaches Preseason Poll (Feb. 2) 
No. 7 Coastal Carolina
No. 20 Southern Miss
RV Troy
 
NCBWA Preseason Poll (Feb. 9)
No. 7 Coastal Carolina
No. 20 Southern Miss
RV Troy