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Who will win the College World Series? Power ranking final eight headed to Omaha by odds

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5 months ago

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Who will win the College World Series? Power ranking final eight headed to Omaha by odds

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The College World Series field has been trimmed down to its final eight.

After one final super regional clash on Monday evening, eight teams punched their tickets to Omaha, Nebraska for a final double-elimination bracket in the NCAA baseball tournament. They are the Florida Gators, Florida State Seminoles, [Georgia Bulldogs], Kentucky Wildcats, [N.C. State Wolfpack], North Carolina Tar Heels, Tennessee Volunteers, Texas A&M Aggies and Virginia Cavaliers.

Of those teams, two have previously won a national title in baseball: Florida and Virginia. Florida State (23), North Carolina (11) and Texas A&M (7) are among teams with the most trips to Omaha without a championship. The Seminoles have been runners-up three times, most recently in 1999.

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This year’s Omaha field also includes a team making its Omaha debut. Kentucky will play in the College World Series for the first time in program history despite eight previous appearances in the college baseball postseason tournament.

Here’s how all eight teams stack up according to their betting odds to win a title courtesy of BetMGM.

College World Series power rankings: Odds for eight Omaha teams

1. Tennessee Volunteers (+250)

Tennessee, owners of the best record in all of college baseball during the regular season, are still favorites to win their first national title in program history. The Vols got a scare during the super regionals when heavy underdog Evansville forced a Game 3 with a 10-8 victory in the second game of the best-of-3 series. But the SEC champions put all doubt to rest with a dominating, 12-1 win to punch their ticket to Omaha. The Vols are one of four SEC teams in the final eight and will try to continue their run of dominance to a championship.

2. Texas A&M Aggies (+300)

Texas A&M is one of the other SEC teams in the tournament atop the power rankings. They showed off just how potent their offense can be in Game 2 of their super regional against Oregon to clinch a spot in Omaha. Trailing 7-3 after the third inning and 8-4 after the sixth, the Aggies put together a nine-run seventh inning to turn the tables for a 13-8 lead ahead of the final two frames. The SEC regular season runners-up hope to give their fellow SEC competitors a run for their money when the Omaha bracket begins.

ROAD TO OMAHA: 2024 Men’s College World Series teams: Who are the final eight teams?

3. Kentucky Wildcats (+500)

For the first time ever, Kentucky will play for the College World Series in Omaha. After finishing the season second in the latest USA TODAY Coaches’ Poll, the Wildcats have kept their momentum going through the early rounds of the tournament. They now finally get a chance to play in Omaha and do so among favorites as one of the best teams in the SEC and the country. Kentucky clinched their spot in dramatic fashion when closer Johnny Hummel entered the game against Oregon State in the bottom of the ninth inning with two outs and runners on the corners. He proceeded to strike out Beavers outfielder Micah McDowell – owner of a .403 batting average entering the super regional – on three pitches.

4. North Carolina Tar Heels (+700)

North Carolina made back-to-back CWS finals in 2006 and 2007. The Tar Heels lost to Oregon State both times. Now that the Beavers are out of the tournament (thanks to Kentucky), might this be the year for North Carolina? This season is its first return to Omaha since the 2018 tournament – in which Oregon State also knocked out the Tar Heels en route to a national title. The ACC regular season champions took down West Virginia in the super regionals with a walk-off, 8-6 win in Game 1 and a pitcher’s duel, 2-1 victory in Game 2.

5. Florida State Seminoles (+800)

Will this finally be the year for Florida State? No other program has more than 12 appearances without a CWS championship. The Seminoles have 23, including three years as the runners-up. After 2023 brought the team’s first losing season (23-31) in program history, Florida State is headed back to Omaha for the first time since 2019 thanks to an extra innings win in Game 2 of its super regional clash with UConn.

COLLEGE WORLD SERIES: 2024 NCAA baseball tournament field, bracket and schedule

6. Virginia Cavaliers (+1000)

7. Florida Gators (+1400)

8. N.C. State Wolfpack (+1500)

How to watch 2024 College World Series

ESPN will provide live broadcast and streaming coverage on ESPN and ESPN2 throughout the Men’s College World Series.

Streaming coverage is available on ESPN+.

HOW TO WATCH: Catch the men’s College World Series with a subscription to ESPN+

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