Tim Corbin Addresses Vanderbilt Baseball's RPI Issues With NCAA Tournament Berth On The Line – Sports Illustrated

HOOVER—As Vanderbilt baseball coach Tim Corbin has sat at the podium in the basement of the Hoover Met and been asked to address Vanderbilt’s NCAA Tournament case, he’s often declined the opportunity in the name of trusting his group’s metrics and that the NCAA Tournament committee will include his team. 
Tuesday was different, though, even though Corbin wasn’t directly asked for his case as to why Vanderbilt should be in the field on Selection Sunday. Desperate times call for desperate measures, though. 
If the season ended today, Vanderbilt would likely be on the wrong side of the NCAA Tournament bubble despite having 15 SEC wins to its name. Vanderbilt’s RPI–which currently sits at 69–is squarely to blame for that, and Corbin isn’t acting as if he’s going down quietly with that reality in mind. 
“I think it's a tool,” Corbin said when asked about the RPI. “Is a tool, but I don't think it's the whole tool. I think common sense prevails. 
When you look at a body of work, I think you look at a team from start to finish, what they've done. I know we started off 13-12 and now we're 20-12 in the last half. We played on the road a little bit more. 
We scheduled tournaments tough, and we didn't get off to a good start. We've had our challenges obviously, with health, and we've overcome them to some degree. It hasn't been easy at all.” 
As Vanderbilt enters a Wednesday clash with Florida in Hoover, it sits with a 33-24 record, a number of bad losses to its name and some level of hope that the combination of its good wins and win total would get it into the field if the season ended today. 
Vanderbilt’s RPI would set a dangerous historical precedent if it doesn’t move up significantly and the Commodores are included in the tournament, though. The team to find its way in the field as a result of an at-large bid with the worst RPI was TCU in 2019–which had an RPI of 59 and made a deep run in the BIG 12 Tournament–and Vanderbilt is 10 spots lower than that team was. 
Corbin doesn’t believe his team should be evaluated solely on that metric, though. 
“I think we're a pretty damn good team,” Corbin said. “We’re judged by the best conference and the best teams in college baseball. But there's also a lot of precedent for a team that’s 14-16, but, obviously sitting in this seat, it's not about talk. 
It's about doing. But at the same time, I don't think the RPI is just the one indicator it may speak to what you have done, but doesn't speak to how you've done it in the body of work that exists with what we've done. Our margins have been small and some of the series we've lost, but it's Oklahoma, Texas, but we've played pretty good baseball down this stretch, and that's usually the committee takes that into effect, in terms of where a team is moving and our trajectory has been pretty good.”
Follow us onTwitter/X,Facebook,YouTube,Instagram,ThreadsandBlue Skyfor the latest news.
Loading recommendations… Please wait while we load personalized content recommendations
Joey Dwyer is the lead writer on Vanderbilt Commodores On SI. He found his first love in college sports at nearby Lipscomb University and decided to make a career of telling its best stories. He got his start doing a Notre Dame basketball podcast from his basement as a 14-year-old during COVID and has since aimed to make that 14-year-old proud. Dwyer has covered Vanderbilt sports for three years and previously worked for 247 Sports and Rivals. He contributes to Seth Davis' Hoops HQ, Basket Under Review and Mainstreet Nashville.
© 2026 ABG-SI LLC – SPORTS ILLUSTRATED IS A REGISTERED TRADEMARK OF ABG-SI LLC. – All Rights Reserved. The content on this site is for entertainment and educational purposes only. Betting and gambling content is intended for individuals 21+ and is based on individual commentators' opinions and not that of Sports Illustrated or its affiliates, licensees and related brands. All picks and predictions are suggestions only and not a guarantee of success or profit. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, crisis counseling and referral services can be accessed by calling 1-800-GAMBLER.

source