OU baseball prediction for NCAA Super Regional vs Kansas: Can Sooners reach MCWS?
NORMAN — Skip Johnson is trying to stay out of his team’s way this week.
His Oklahoma Sooners (36-22) have fully bought into what he’s preached all season long and is finally putting it all together following a massive upset over No. 2 overall seed Georgia Tech in the NCAA baseball regional round. The Sooners battled back from behind four-plus runs to beat the Yellowjackets twice.
“They stopped trying and they started believing,” Johnson said Thursday before OU hit the road for the Lawrence Super Regional. “They thought they could, now they believe they can. You’ve just got to get out of their way, you take batting practice, you take ground balls and do the stuff that fundamentally you need to keep doing.
“Hopefully it just keeps carrying over from last week.”
Johnson knew he might have a special team on his hands way back in February during the first weekend of the season when the Sooners beat Texas Tech, Oklahoma State and TCU in three days. But OU went through a lull toward the end of a grueling SEC schedule, losing its last four series and exiting the conference tournament on the first day.
The Sooners started questioning whether they were any good or not over the past month, Johnson says. Now, there’s a sense of rejuvenated joy around the clubhouse as they prepare for yet another challenge in the form of No. 15 overall seed Kansas in a best-of-three series beginning Saturday.
OU is clicking on all cylinders. It hit .359 with 49 runs and 11 home runs in Atlanta, while using 15 pitchers, collecting 45 strikeouts and forcing six double plays.
“It’s been pretty fun to watch these guys interact with each other, that’s what I really like most about it,” Johnson said. “It’s not the winning for me, it really is not the winning for me. I want to win, absolutely. But I like watching these guys be happy. Really, that’s what makes me go.”
Johnson sees a lot of parallels between this year’s group and the team he led all the way to the College World Series championship series in 2022. That season, there was a similar sense of camaraderie, as well as an underdog chip.
Star shortstop Jaxon Willits described momentum like a drug. But during their practice Thursday, the Sooners wore “yesterday is dead” shirts to remind them to keep their eyes on the prize.
“(Beating Georgia Tech) definitely helps give us a boost of confidence, but we can’t let that get to overconfidence,” said Jackson Cleveland, who finished Monday’s win off by tossing 3 2/3 scoreless innings and four strikeouts. “We’ve got to keep the mentality of being an underdog and letting everyone think we’re not gonna do what we’re not gonna do.
“No one thought we would win that regional. Keep that mindset going into this as well.”
Johnson used a masterful pitching strategy last weekend, starting three consecutive freshmen. He announced Thursday that Cord Rager, who started last week’s regional opener, will start Saturday’s game against the Jayhawks.
From there, Johnson will do what he usually does: draw a name from a hat. Outside of that, he’s keeping a hands-off approach as his players prepare to possibly punch their ticket to the College World Series.
First pitch for OU and Kansas is set for 5 p.m. Saturday from Hoglund Stadium. The game will be broadcast on ESPN2.
“It feels unreal a little bit,” Lachance said. “Omaha, you’re like ‘wow, imagine one day I could be there’ and you don’t really believe it. But now it’s getting real a little bit.
“We’re two games away, so might as well do it at that point.”
Oklahoma vs Kansas Super Regional prediction
Oklahoma in three games: The Jayhawks have been one of the best stories in college baseball this season. Tyson LeBlanc headlines a dangerous KU lineup. But Skip Johnson’s team rolls into town with momentum following its upset over Georgia Tech in the Atlanta Regional. The Sooners have a hot offense of their own and the arms to get to Omaha.
OU at Kansas
Best-of-three NCAA Super Regional at Hoglund Ballpark in Lawrence, Kansas:
Game 1: 5 p.m. Saturday, June 6 (ESPN2)
Game 2: 5 p.m. Sunday, June 7 (TBD)
Game 3 (if necessary): TBD Monday, June 8 (TBD)
Colton Sulley covers the Oklahoma Sooners for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Colton? He can be reached at csulley@oklahoman.com or on X/Twitter at @colton_sulley. Support Colton’s work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing adigital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Prediction for Oklahoma baseball vs Kansas in NCAA Super Regional
