Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. OU Hosts No. 9 Arkansas
April 9, 2012
ARKANSAS PREVIEW
• Oklahoma (18-14 overall) looks to snap a three-game losing streak on Tuesday against No. 9 Arkansas (24-7). The midweek game is slated for a 6:37 p.m. first pitch at L. Dale Mitchell Park in Norman. The game is the first of a four-game homestand for OU.
• OU is not ranked in this week’s polls for the first time in 2012. Arkansas is No. 9 in both the coaches’ and Collegiate Baseball polls.
• The Sooners are 5-5 in their last 10 games after suffering a three-game sweep last week at then-No. 4 Texas A&M.
• The Sooners return five position starters from the 2011 squad that finished 41-19 overall and third in the Big 12 (14-11).
• Arkansas returns 19 letterwinners from the 2011 team that was 40-22 overall and 15-15 in SEC play (1st in West). The Razorbacks went 2-2 in the NCAA Tempe Regional last year. Arkansas is 5-5 in its last 10 games and last recorded a 2-1 series win with Georgia.
BROADCAST INFORMATION
• The OU radio broadcast with play-by-play announcer Toby Rowland and Chris Plank on color can be heard Tuesday on the Sooner Sports Network (KREF 1400 AM in Norman/OKC). Every game in 2012 is also online at SoonerSports.com.
• Tuesday’s game will be televised nationally on Fox College Sports with Chad McKee (play-by-play) and Ross Hubbard (color). DirecTV carries Fox College Sports on channell 617 or 623. Check with your local provider for coverage in your area.
• Live stats and a live webcast are also available on SoonerSports.com for Tuesday’s game.
PITCHING MATCHUP
Oklahoma: RHP Damien Magnifico (0-0, 4.76 ERA) vs. Arkansas: LHP Randall Fant (1-1, 5.49 ERA)
PLAYER TO WATCH - ERIK ROSS
The senior outfielder is riding a nine-game hitting streak (ties career high) with a .389 batting average (14-for-36) and three RBI in that span. Ross leads OU with 11 stolen bases and 14 walks despite missing seven games with a hamstring injury. He ranks 11th in Big 12 with a team-best .337 batting average and 10th in stolen bases.
2012 Season Stats: .337, 0 HR, 10 RBI, 11 stolen bases
OU vs. ARKANSAS SERIES NOTES
Arkansas leads the overall series 14-10.
- The Sooners last met the Razorbacks in Norman during a 5-2 win on May 18, 2010. The game on March 29 of last year was rained out in Fayetteville.
- Arkansas won the last meeting in Fayetteville, an 8-7 extra-inning game on April 28, 2009. That game was the first meeting in the series since 2002.
- The two met twice during the 2009 NCAA Norman Regional with Arkansas coming out on top in both games.
- OU won five of the first seven meetings in the series, but just five of the last 17 games.
- 14 of the 24 meetings have been decided by three runs or less with Arkansas holding an 8-6 edge. OU leads 5-4 when the game is decided by one run.
PROMOTIONS AND TICKETS THIS WEEK
Tickets are available at the gate the day of the game (open 90 minutes prior to first pitch) or tickets can be purchased by calling the OU Athletics Ticket Office at 800-456-GoOU (405-325-2424).
Tuesday is Faculty Appreciation Day and also marks another $.50 hot dog and coke night while supplies last … The first 250 fans will receive free OU roller banners … Over the weekend, the first 150 fans on Friday, Saturday and Sunday will receive free OU mini bats … On Saturday, the Sooners will sign autographs after the game, weather permitting … Fans that present their OU Football Spring Game ticket on Saturday will receive $4 off admission … On Sunday, kids can run the bases and play catch in the outfield after the game, weather permitting.
LAST WEEK
The No. 22 Sooners were swept at No. 4 Texas A&M last week. OU led game one on Thursday 3-2 after the seventh but fell 4-3 after 12 innings. In game two, the Sooners led 2-1 after six innings but lost 5-2. OU led game three 3-2 after four innings and suffered a 5-3 defeat.
ON DECK
OU continues the four-game homestand against Missouri over the weekend for a three-game Big 12 series. Friday’s opener is set for 6:30 p.m. and game two is also slated for 6:30 p.m. Sunday’s finale gets underway at 1 p.m. Fans that present their OU Football Spring Game ticket on Saturday will receive $4 off admission.
ONE-RUN GAMES UNDER GOLLOWAY
The Sooners are 5-6 in one-run games in 2012 after going 4-9 a season ago. OU is 72-41-1 (.636) in one-run games under head coach Sunny Golloway. OU has won double-digit games in that situation in 2006 (15), 2007 (11), 2009 (10) and 2010 (14).
DOUBLE DIGITS
The Sooners are 10-5 when collecting 10 or more hits in a game with wins over Pepperdine (game 1), Hartford (game 1-2), New Mexico (all 3 game), UAPB (game 1), Air Force (game 2) and at Texas Tech (game 2-3). OU is also 2-0 when scoring double-digit runs with victories over Hartford (2/25) and New Mexico (3/3). OU is 0-3 when allowing 10-plus runs against Pepperdine (2/18), UTA and Oregon State. The Sooners are 7-12 when giving up 10 or more hits.
TIME FOR A RALLY
In the 18 victories in 2012, the Sooners have come from behind in nine of those contests. Of Sunny Golloway’s 279 wins at OU, 141 (.505) have been in come-from-behind fashion, including 18 last year (22 in 2010).
LOCKWOOD COLLECTS TWO BIG 12 WEEKLY AWARDS
Freshman Hunter Lockwood was named Co-Big 12 Baseball Player of the Week and earned the Newcomer of the Week award outright on April 2. Lockwood hit safely in all four games last week to continue his season high eight-game hitting streak. He batted .429 (6-for-14) with two homers, eight RBI, a 1.000 slugging percentage and a .500 on-base percentage as OU won three of its four games, including a series win over KSU.
OVERTON AND GRAY COLLECT BIG 12 WEEKLY HONORS
Two Sooner hurlers earned Big 12 baseball weekly honors on for games played March 5-11. Dillon Overton earned the Pitcher of the Week award after winning two games in that week, including a complete game win against West Virginia in the Nike Showcase. Jonathan Gray was tabbed the Newcomer of the Week after striking out 10 batters in the win over No. 9 Oregon.
JOHN NAMED BIG 12 PITCHER OF THE WEEK
Redshirt sophomore reliever Jordan John was named the Big 12 Co-Pitcher of the Week on March 5 after tossing 5 1/3 scoreless innings in two games at New Mexico. John allowed one hit in the two appearances, combined for a shutout and held opponents to a .059 batting average.
GOLLOWAY GETS WIN No. 600
On Sunday, Feb. 26, 2012, the Sooners recorded an 8-3 victory, marking the 600th in head coach Sunny Golloway’s career. At OU, Golloway has won 265 games, the third most in school history and just 16 behind Jack Baer, who coached OU to the 1951 National Championship. In his 14 full seasons as a DI head coach, Golloway’s teams have averaged 42.14 wins per year.
OU PICKED THIRD IN BIG 12 PRESEASON POLL
The Sooners were picked to finish third in the 2012 Big 12 Coaches’ Preseason Poll on Feb. 14. It marks the fourth straight year that the Sooners were picked in the top four spots in the preseason poll.
Texas A&M was selected as the preseason favorite to win the 2012 Big 12 baseball regular season title, followed by Texas, Oklahoma, Baylor, Missouri, Oklahoma State,Texas Tech, Kansas and Kansas. A complete poll is listed on page 5.
PRESEASON TOP 25 POLLS
Oklahoma is ranked in the top 25 preseason polls for the fourth straight year, with its highest recognition coming from the National Collegiate Baseball Writer’s Association (NCBWA) at No. 14. OU is also ranked No. 15 by the USA Today/ESPN Coaches’ poll, No. 16 by Collegiate Baseball and No. 19 by Baseball America. Turn to page four for all the preseason listings.
WHO’S BACK
The Sooners return 15 letterwinners and seven starters (five position players, two pitchers) from the 2011 team. In the offseason, the coaching staff signed a class of 21 players that were ranked as high as No. 4 (Collegiate Baseball) in the recruiting rankings. View the listing of each player on page 3.
2011 DRAFT RECAP
OU will feature some new faces in 2012 as 11 Sooners were drafted last June, a mark that led the Big 12 and marks the most taken in program history, topping the 10 selected in 1998 and 1995. The 11 selections ranked in a tie for second place in the nation behind Vanderbilt (12). Arizona State, Florida and South Carolina also had 11 while Texas was eighth with nine selections. The most players drafted in the Sunny Golloway era was nine, accomplished twice in 2009 and 2006. Overall, 43 Sooners have been drafted on Golloway’s watch, including at least four in every season but one. In addition, 22 of the players came to Norman undrafted in their careers. Of the 11 Sooners taken in 2011, eight were selected for the first time and two others improved their draft status by at least four rounds.
DRAFTED PLAYERS ON 2012 ROSTER
Below is a look at the nine players taken in the Major League Baseball Draft on the current roster. It spans the last three years and includes seven players taken a year ago, including two-time draftees Jonathan Gray and Steven Okert.
Chris Burgess (2011 - 30th round - Tampa Bay)
Adam Choplick (2011 - 17th round - Arizona)
Jonathan Gray (2011 - 10th round - NY Yankees and 2010 - 13th round - Kansas City)
Jordan John (2011 - 28th round - Houston)
Hunter Lockwood (2011 - 17th round - LAA Angels)
Damien Magnifico (2009 - 5th round - NY Mets)
Steven Okert (2011 - 33rd - Milwaukee and 2010 - 43rd round - Milwaukee)
Dillon Overton (2010 - 26th round - Boston)
Drake Roberts (2011 - 49th round - Minnesota)
BREAKDOWN OF 2012 SCHEDULE
- 30 home games, including four Big 12 series
- Home Big 12 series with Texas, KSU, Missouri & Baylor
- Non-conference home games vs. Oral Roberts, Air Force, Arkansas, DBU and TCU
- Other key non-conference games vs. Pepperdine, New Mexico, Connecticut, Oregon, West Virginia, Oregon State and Oklahoma State.
- Bedlam Series in Tulsa and OKC, May 4-6
- 12 opponents from 2011 NCAA Tourney (28 games)
- 8 teams that finished 2011 ranked in top 25
- Seven foes with 40-plus wins a year ago
- Two 2010 CWS participants (Texas & Texas A&M)
- Three other Super Regional teams (DBU, Oregon State and Connecticut)
- First time opponents in Oregon, Connecticut, West Virginia, Alabama State, Hartford and Samford
BASEBALL ON KREF 1400 AM IN 2012
The 2012 season marks the second with KREF 1400 AM serving as the flagship station of Sooner baseball. The partnership provides expanded coverage for OU fans to listen to 50-plus regular season games live over the air and extends into postseason play.
Additionally, 18 of the 24 Big 12 games are set to be carried on the Sooners Sports’ Network, enabling fans to listen to OU baseball on various stations across the state starting on March 30 against Kansas State. Overall, 23 games will be carried on the network with non-conference games against Arkansas, Oklahoma State, Oral Roberts and TCU.
The entire 56-game regular season schedule will also be broadcast live on the internet via Oklahoma All-Access, OU’s premium content site.
2012 TELEVISION SCHEDULE
The University of Oklahoma announced the television schedule for the 2012 Sooner schedule and 16 baseball games produced by the Sooner Sports Network will be televised in the state of Oklahoma on Cox Communications Cable (Cox Ch. 3/703 HD). Six of those same games will be carried nationwide on DirecTV via Fox College Sports (Ch. 617 or 623).
Each of the games will be televised live from Norman with local sports personality Chad McKee calling the play-by-play and additional contests will be added throughout the season. Please check your local cable or satellite provide for coverage in your area.
The Sooners are also scheduled to appear in two games on Fox Sports Southwest. The first of the two nationally televised games will be played on Friday, May 4 in Tulsa, Okla., for the Oklahoma Farm Bureau Bedlam Series. That game is scheduled for 7 p.m. at ONEOK Field in downtown Tulsa. The second game comes during the final Big 12 series of the year against Baylor. The Sooners and Bears will tangle at 2 p.m. on Saturday May 12 on FSN.
Sooner Sports Network-Cox Ch. 3 in OKC/Tulsa)
March 16 - Texas (6:30 p.m.)
March 17 - Texas (2 p.m.)
March 18 - Texas (1 p.m.)
March 20 - Air Force (6:30 p.m.)
March 21 - Air Force (3 p.m.)
March 30 - Kansas State (6:30 p.m.)
March 31- Kansas State (2 p.m.)
April 1 - Kansas State (1 p.m.)
April 10 - vs. Arkansas (6:30 p.m.)
April 13, 15 - vs. Missouri (6:30 p.m., 1 p.m.)
May 11, 13 - vs. Baylor (6:30 p.m., 1 p.m.)
May 15 - vs. TCU (6:30 p.m.)
May 17,18,19 vs. Samford (6:30 p.m., 6:30 p.m., 1 p.m.)
Fox College Sports
March 16, 17 - Texas (6:30 p.m., 2 p.m.)
March 30 - Kansas State (6:30 p.m.)
April 10 - vs. Arkansas (6:30 p.m.)
May 13 - vs. Baylor (1 p.m.)
May 15 - vs. TCU (6:30 p.m.)
Fox Sports Southwest
May 4 - vs. Oklahoma State (7 p.m. in Tulsa)
May 12 - Baylor (2 p.m.)
ESPNU
April 7 - at Texas A&M (3:30 p.m.)
SOONERS INK 15 FOR 2013 SEASON
Oklahoma signed 15 student athletes as part of the 2013 incoming class back in November.
The OU coaching staff inked 11 high school players, including four of the state of Oklahoma’s best in Jacob Evans, a two-way player from Broken Arrow H.S., Taylor Hawkins, a catcher from Carl Albert H.S., Carson McPherson, a left-handed pitcher from Ardmore H.S., and Colt Pickens, an infielder/outfielder from Yukon H.S.
The Sooners also plucked three of the best south of the Red River in Kolbey Carpenter (infielder from West ISD), Ralph Garza (RHP/INF from New Braunfels H.S.) and Huntey Haley (INF/OF from Central Heights H.S.), while adding Justin Burba (OF from Wichita Campus High), the No. 3 recruit from the state of Kansas.
Overall, 11 of the 15 recruits are from the high school ranks while the Sooners also added four junior college players.
Craig Aiken | OF | R/R | 5-10 | 160
Coppell, Texas (Coppell H.S.)
Justin Burba | OF/1B | L/L | 6-0 | 185
Wichita, Kan. (Wichita Campus H.S.)
Kolbey Carpenter | INF | R/R | 6-0 | 175
Waco, Texas (West H.S.)
Jacob Evans | 1B/LHP | L/L | | 6-2 | 205
Broken Arrow, Okla. (Broken Arrow H.S.)
Ralph Garza Jr. | RHP/INF | R/R | 6-3 | 185
New Braunfels, Texas (New Braunfels Senior)
Hunter Haley | INF/OF | R/R | 5-10 | 175
Nacogdoches, Texas (Central Heights H.S.)
Taylor Hawkins | C | R/R | 5-11 | 185
Oklahoma City, Okla. (Carl Albert H.S.)
Kyle Hayes | INF/RHP | R\L | 6-2 | 210
Santee, Calif. (Santana H.S.)
Anthony Hermelyn | INF | R/R | 6-1 | 200
McKinney, Texas (McKinney H.S.)
Hayden Jones | 1B/LHP | L/L | 6-1 | 190
Houston, Texas (Langham Creek H.S.)
Hector Lorenzana | INF | R/R | 5-11 | 190
San Diego, Calif. (Howard College)
Carson McPherson | LHP | R/R | 6-0 | 190
Ardmore, Okla. (Ardmore H.S.)
Colt Pickens | UTL | R/R | 5-8 | 165
Yukon, Okla. (Yukon H.S.)
Benny Suarez | RHP | R/R | 6-0 | 195
Houston, Texas (Hill College)
Robert Tasin | RHP | R/R | 6-1 | 190
Klein, Texas (Howard College)
