Tennessee set to see top-15 foes in five straight series

season No. 3 Florida will travel to Rocky Top for a chance at revenge after getting swept and bested in the SEC Championship by the Vols.

Following a program record 57 wins and SEC regular season and tournament titles, the No. 2 Vols look to reload for their 2023 slate. However, in a season full of so much triumph, the one thing that leaves a gaping hole is the absence of a trip to the College World Series in Omaha.

While Omaha is the ultimate goal, Tennessee faces a 56-game slate in preparation for the postseason. The Vols will play 38 games at home, 15 on the road and three at neutral sites.

Tennessee will kick things off in Phoenix at the Desert Invitational for a three-game slate from Feb. 17-19. The Vols will face Arizona, Grand Canyon and UC San Diego.

The Vols will take a short two-day break and head back to Knoxville to open a 15game home stand from Feb. 21-March 14 at Lindsey Nelson Stadium beginning with a two-game series against Alabama A&M and ending with a matchup against Lipscomb.

From there, Tennessee will begin its SEC title defense by heading to Missouri from March 17-19.

The Vols will head home for a matchup with West Carolina on March 21 before embarking on the gauntlet of their SEC slate. With matchups against UNC Asheville, Eastern Kentucky and Texas Tech sprinkled in, Tennessee will face preseason top-15 opponents for the next five series.

From March 24-26 the Vols welcome preseason No. 7 Texas A&M to town. The

Aggies are one of two teams that made it to Omaha last year that Tennessee will play.

The Vols will close out March and open April in Baton Rouge for a potential battle of No. 1 and No. 2 and face top-ranked LSU, who had both the top recruiting and transfer class this offseason and boast one of the most talented rosters in college baseball.

Back at Lindsey Nelson, rival and pre-

Tennessee will head back out on the road for a matchup with preseason No. 11 Arkansas. Along with Texas A&M, the Razorbacks were the other team on the Vols schedule that made the trip to Omaha. Both were in the semifinal round of the tournament, but ultimately came up short. Arkansas was a win away from the finals but lost two straight heartbreakers to Ole Miss, who took home the World Series title.

The gauntlet ends back in Knoxville on April 21 against in-state rival and preseason No. 6 Vanderbilt, whom the Vols swept last season for the first time since 2000 and knocked out of the SEC Tournament.

Tennessee will be able to somewhat coast for the remainder of the season with series against Mississippi State, Georgia and Kentucky before ending the regular season in Columbia to face South Carolina from May 18-20.

The SEC Tournament will be held from May 23-28 in Hoover Met Stadium in Hoover, Alabama and if all goes according to plan, the NCAA Tournament will run from June 2-26.