Oklahoma Meets Kansas, Both Two Wins Away From Omaha

Call it good timing, call it luck or a team finally showing their true selves. Oklahoma will take any of them..

Whatever the secret sauce, the Sooners (36-22) find themselves on the road once again. This time, in the Super Regionals to face an old conference friend in the Kansas Jayhawks. For the sixth time in program history, OU can smell college baseball’s hallowed grounds in Omaha.

But the Jayhawks want the same thing. Despite downing the No. 2 team in the country, with perhaps the best offense in recent years, Oklahoma will be up against it when it faces the Big 12’s regular season and conference tournament champions.

On the mound first will be true freshman LHP Cord Rager. RHP LJ Mercurius will get the nod for Game 2 on Saturday.

How to Watch Game 1 of the Lawrence Super Regional

• When: Saturday, June 6
• Time: 5 p.m.
• Channel: ESPN2

Starting freshman has been a part of Skip Johnson’s philosophy during the postseason. OU has started three true freshman — Rager, Mercurius and RHP Nick Wesloski — for three straight games before the veterans were called on the final two against Georgia Tech. The Sooners went 2-1 in those three games.

OU’s pitching staff has been made stronger with Mercurius’ move to the bullpen — a decision he described as “tough” on Thursday, but that he “went to Skip and said ‘Let’s go win.’” The former starter pitched four innings to earn the save, only giving up two hits and no runs.

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Dayton Tockey’s home run has already reached viral status. It will be forever etched in Sooner lore — if not already — if OU can get past the Jayhawks (45-16).

Oklahoma is 169-90-2 going back to 1945 against Kansas. This year is a little different for the boys from Lawrence. KU can hit with the best of them — best shown by Tyson LeBlanc’s program season-record 24 home runs. Behind his hitting, KU has a shot to get to the College World Series for only the second time in school history.

If the Sooners prevail, it would be their 11th appearance in the College World Series. Their last came in 2022 when they finished as the national runner-up to the Ole Miss Rebels, who beat the Sooners in two games.

They may very well make it 11 if they keep hitting at the rate they’ve been since the end of May. OU has hit 28 home runs over the last 11 games.