Jun 24, 2013; Omaha, NE, USA; UCLA Bruins head coach John Savage (22) looks on in the dugout before game 1 of the College World Series finals against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at TD Ameritrade Park. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Thorson-Imagn Images Bruce Thorson-Imagn Images

UCLA's Drops in Latest National Rankings

Originally posted on UCLA Bruins on SI | By Tom Cavanaugh | Last updated May 6, 2025 7:00 AM ET

The No. 18 UCLA Bruins (34-13, 17-7) fell four spots in this week's D1Baseball.com Top 25. The final seven games of its season will weigh heavily on UCLA's chances at a Big Ten title as well as a chance to host a regional series in the postseason.

The Bruins went 2-2 this past week, earning a midweek win over Loyola Marymount but dropping two of three games in the weekend rivalry series to the No. 25 USC Trojans (32-15, 16-8). The Trojans are now the third Big Ten team that is nationally ranked after their upset series victory.

Ranked as high as 10th just a few weeks ago, the Bruins have hit a rough patch, going 9-7 in their last 16 games since being ranked No. 10 overall. Granted, they have played top-ranked teams such as No. 5 Oregon, No. 10 Oregon State, No. 13 UC Irvine and the newly ranked Trojans.

UCLA has seven games remaining in the regular season and two conference matchups against traditional Big Ten teams: Illinois and Northwestern. How it performs over the final two weeks of the season will determine its chances at a conference title and becoming a host site for the postseason tournament.

The Bruins currently sit in second place of the conference standings, 2.5 games behind the league-leading Iowa Hawkeyes (32-15, 21-6). They will likely need to win at least five of their final seven games, with some Hawkeye losses to make the comeback for a Big Ten title.

In terms of the national tournament and College World Series, UCLA is shooting to be a top-16 team in the country by the end of the Big Ten tournament. The reason is that the top 16 teams are awarded national seeds and a chance to host the first round of regionals.

This would entail the Bruins hosting two other teams for a three-team series that spits out one team to reach the Super Regional. UCLA would have a chance to host once more in the Supers, with a chance to reach the College World Series for the first time since 2013.