NORMAN — After beginning his career as a relief pitcher at Sam Houston State, junior left hander Braden Davis has become Oklahoma’s ace.

This season, Davis is 6-3 in 12 outings and has developed into OU’s No. 1 option on the mound, earning the honor of being the Sooners coveted “Friday night pitcher”.

The former Bearkat has helped lead Skip Johnson’s team to the No. 18 spot in the country and a three-game lead atop the Big 12. With the postseason less than two weeks away, Davis finding his rhythm is important for Johnson and company.

“I think he’s got a good mentality, he’s very competitive, he’s in control of himself,” Johnson said Thursday. “He just started doing this, it’s not like he’s done it for three years. … Braden has had to learn a lot in a short period of time and that just tells you what his aptitude is like.” 

In addition to moving over 360 miles to Norman when he transferred from Sam Houston State, Davis also went from pitching out of the bullpen to a starting role. Despite big changes in his personal life and on the diamond, Davis has become a solid starting pitcher for the Sooners.

The Dallas-area product’s emergence is crucial for Oklahoma as the regular season winds down. While Johnson’s squad has been good in the batter’s box this year, they have struggled to find consistency on the mound.

Recently, Davis has started to find some consistency himself, picking up four consecutive wins. If the Sooners have a solid option on the bump with their impressive offensive ability, they could be primed for a run this summer.

Davis said that his switch from reliever to starting pitcher began over the summer, saying that the transition required a shift in his mindset as well.

“Summer ball, I was kind of transitioning as a starter and was trying to, like, pace myself,” Davis said. “I kind of figured out, there’s no point in pacing yourself. Just kind of, you know, try and blow your motor almost and see how far you can make it, and I mean, it’s kind of been paying off. I’ve been able to go six, seven innings, and I’ll hopefully get to that eight or nine mark at some point in the season.” 

Davis has thrown 65 innings for the Sooners, tallying 84 strikeouts and six wins heading into OU’s series against Baylor. The former Bearkat has allowed at least seven runs in each of his three losses, but hasn’t allowed more than three runs in any of his wins.

The Keller, TX, product has lasted at least six innings in seven different appearances this year after pitching a season-high 4 1/3 innings in 2023 at SHSU. He logged six or more innings in each of his last three outings en route to victories over BYU, Texas and Texas Tech.

Davis said part of his ability go deeper into games is finally getting control of his off-speed pitches after struggling at times earlier in the year.

“The changeup, I think it’s kind of been coming along, and then the breaking balls, for sure,” Davis said. “I kind of struggled with them early in the year, but I’ve kind of found my rhythm with those and it’s helped set up a lot of other stuff.” 

With his confidence continuing to grow, Davis could be a key piece of another run to the College World Series if Oklahoma draws a favorable pool at their regional event.

This weekend, the Sooners welcome the Baylor Bears to town for a three-game series that wraps up the regular season home schedule before next week’s finale at Cincinnati. Friday’s first pitch is scheduled for 6:30 p.m.

David Taylor will add two more Happy Valley residents to his Oklahoma State coaching staff. OSU announced today that Thomas Gilman and Jimmy Kennedy will head to Stillwater to become Cowboy assistant coaches. 

Another Olympian joins the staff.

Welcome to Stillwater, Thomas Gilman!

📰: https://t.co/q0C9gKQ5re#GoPokes l @thomasgilmanusa pic.twitter.com/PEoQmICkac

— OSU Cowboy Wrestling (@CowboyWrestling) May 9, 2024

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DT got his guy.

Welcome to Stillwater, Jimmy Kennedy!

📰: https://t.co/q0C9gKQ5re#GoPokes pic.twitter.com/CBtmNolSJg

— OSU Cowboy Wrestling (@CowboyWrestling) May 9, 2024

This is a press conference scheduled for the afternoon of Thursday, May 9, where David Taylor will be formally introduced as the new head coach of the Cowboys.

Originally from Council Bluffs, Iowa, Thomas Gilman was a three-time NCAA All-American at Iowa before winning a bronze medal at 57kg at the Tokyo Olympic Games. Additionally, Gilman won a gold medal at the 2021 World Championships and two silvers at the 2017 and 2022 Worlds.

In the spring of 2020, Gilman moved from Iowa City, where he had been training since college, to State College, Pennsylvania, joining the Nittany Lion Wrestling Club. He had been competing as recently as last April when he lost in the finals of the Olympic Team Trials. 

Jimmy Kennedy, the new Associate Head Coach, was also a three-time All-American at Illinois, his home state. After graduating in 2011 he immediately began competing in freestyle on the senior circuit, earning medals at several prestigious competitions and making the 2014 World Team.

Kennedy joined the coaching staff of the Northwestern Wildcats 2018 followed by a move to the Penn State staff in 2022, where he was set to start his third season in State College before David Taylor’s seismic hiring at Oklahoma State redirected his destiny to Stillwater. 

Efforts to reestablish a prison rodeo appear to be stalled.

Oklahoma Department of Corrections Director Steven Harpe on Tuesday told a legislative panel his agency was no longer pursuing an $8.3 million appropriation this session to restart the prison rodeo at Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester.

Instead, the agency wants the Legislature to authorize an interim study on the issue so certain questions can be answered, Harpe said.

The last rodeo was held in 2009, according to the agency.

In 2010, state budget cuts, low attendance and crumbling facilities contributed to the rodeo closing.

At least two measures moving through the legislative process supported recreating the rodeo.

Critics, however, expressed concerns about the safety of participants, the welfare of the animals and other pressing issues facing the agency, such as staffing and infrastructure needs.

Harpe said although he is confident the rodeo would generate revenue, the agency could not restart it without additional dollars.

“At this point, we are looking at pulling back and going to the interim session during the summer so that we can bring in people like the PBR (Professional Bull Riders), IFR (International Finals Rodeo), other concert promoters that want to use the facilities so we can show the Legislature the fully thought through plan on how we would generate the revenue,” Harpe said.

He said the issue could be brought back next session.

“We are fully committed to getting this done,” Harpe said.

Sen. Blake Stephens, R-Tahlequah, said he supported reestablishing the rodeo and was excited about the interim study.

“It’s going to be great for the state of Oklahoma,” he said.

Harpe said the rodeo will not just benefit McAlester, but will generate revenue for the state.

“Inmates want this,” Harpe said. “They want the ability to do this.”

Sen. George Young, D-Oklahoma City, said he hoped the interim study would include all the costs associated with operating it.

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