Oregon closes the regular season at home against USC in Eugene with more than pride at stake. The Ducks can finish as high as second in the Big Ten if they take down the Trojans, then head to Omaha for the conference tournament with their postseason case still very much alive.
The stakes are real because Oregon, 19th in the RPI rankings before the series, is trying to turn a strong finish into a better position when the NCAA bracket comes out Monday after the conference tournament ends. USC arrives at No. 8 in the RPI rankings, a test that gives the Ducks one last chance to improve their standing before the selection committee sorts out the field.
One projection has Oregon in especially good shape. D1Baseball projects the Ducks as the No. 16 overall seed and the final team to host a regional round, which would give Oregon a second consecutive season hosting in Eugene if it holds. That projected Eugene Regional would include Arkansas as the No. 2 seed, Gonzaga as the No. 3 seed and Wright State as the final team.
Another projection paints a much different path. has Oregon as a No. 2 seed heading to Gainesville, Florida, for a regional hosted by Florida, which it projects as the No. 10 overall seed. In that bracket, NC State would be the No. 3 seed and SIU-Edwardsville the No. 4 seed.
The contrast shows how much remains unsettled for Oregon baseball. The Ducks’ postseason hopes depend on what they do against USC and how they perform in the conference tournament, with the final bracket not coming until Monday. A strong finish could preserve a regional host spot; a shaky one could send Oregon on the road instead.
For now, Eugene is the center of the season. Oregon has one final series to improve its case, and the next few days will decide whether the Ducks open the NCAA tournament at PK Park again or leave home as a traveling No. 2 seed.
