Chris Lemonis has heard from his players about where Mississippi State baseball was picked in the preseason coaches poll. The Diamond Dawgs were picked to finish last in the SEC. That didn’t sit well.

Lemonis offered some insight into that reaction during a recent segment on SiriusXM.

“Our group is pissed, and hey, look at the SEC West, I think the last 3 national champions, and 4 out of the last 5, Arkansas had a chance to win it on the last play,” Lemonis said. “The West is just so talented. Should we be picked last? No. But that’s our fault, and our mindset is to change that. We do talk about it, it’s a little bit of a motivation. Hopefully I’ve got a pissed off group that they feel like they have something to prove.”

Lemonis’ job security is tenuous entering the season after he led the Bulldogs to a national championship in 2021, but the Bulldogs finished at the bottom of the SEC in 2022 and 2023. State outfielder Dakota Jordan made the All-SEC Second Team, and was the lone Bulldog to make the list.

Florida is predicted to finish first in the East, followed by Tennessee, Vanderbilt, South Carolina, Kentucky, Georgia and Missouri.

Arkansas is predicted to win the West, followed by LSU, Texas A&M, Alabama, Auburn, Ole Miss and MSU.