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.