Tramel's ScissorTales: Are the 2022 OU Sooners the greatest softball team in NCAA history?
OU again rules NCAA softball. The Sooners rampaged their way to the Women’s College World Series championship last week, led by Patty Gasso, Jocelyn Alo, Tiare Jennings and, well, you know the script quite well.
The Sooners were historic and dominant. Their record was 59-3. They scored 64 runs in the WCWS and allowed 65 runs all season.
My favorite stat from the Gasso Gang: Alo scored 84 runs this season, Jennings 83, Jayda Coleman 70 and Grace Lyons 67. That’s right. Four Sooners individually outscored OU’s opponents.
The narrative arose that this Sooner team is the greatest college softball team of all time, and maybe it is.
But maybe it’s not. I’m always a little hesitant to crown the latest great thing with such laurel wreaths, without at least turning on my memory banks or a computer.
I went searching for the greatest teams of the Oklahoma City era, since the WCWS moved to Hall of Fame Stadium in 1990. I found at least three other teams worthy of consideration for greatest of all time.
More: How historic was the 2022 OU softball team? Check out these stats from the WCWS champions.
'I know what I’m losing': Why OU softball coach Patty Gasso teared up after winning WCWS title
► 1992 UCLA: The Bruins went 54-2 and featured one of the best pitchers ever, Lisa Fernandez.
► 1994 Arizona: The Wildcats went 64-3 and, like these Sooners, broke hitting records that few thought possible.
► 2001 Arizona: The Wildcats went 65-4 and were a combination of historic pitching and historic hitting.
Comparing teams from different eras is difficult. Modern softball is not what we saw when the World Series landed in Oklahoma 32 years ago.
Pitching still matters, but hitters have a chance these days. Sometimes hitting reigns.
In nine of the last 14 national title games, teams have combined to score at least nine runs, including finals of 10-5, 8-3, 15-9 and 11-0.
Here are the scores from the first five WCWS championship games played in OKC: 2-0, 5-1, 2-0, 1-0, 2-0. Heck, between 1996 and 2010, the losing team in the finals never scored more than two runs and seven times was shut out.
It’s a different game. So comparisons can be difficult.
So while yes, the 155 home runs and 579 runs scored by OU is not only impressive but difficult to fathom, they must be considered in context.
Let’s look at the three historic teams.
UCLA 1992
Before the days of social media, the internet or much ESPN, Fernandez was a star on the order of Jocelyn Alo. Softball-playing girls from Oklahoma knew all about Fernandez’s feats.
Her career record pitching was 93-7, with a 0.22 earned run average. In 1992, Fernandez was 29-0 with a 0.14 ERA, and she batted .401 and scored 47 runs. In her four-year UCLA career, Fernandez allowed only 32 runs, earned or not. Fernandez alone made the Bruins almost unbeatable.
But that UCLA team did lose twice, it went 54-2, including a robust 19-2 against the other teams that made the WCWS; by comparison, these Sooners went 12-3 against the WCWS field. The 1992 World Series field included three Pac-10 teams (UCLA, California, Arizona) and California schools Long Beach State and Fresno State, regular UCLA opponents.
Sure, college softball is deeper – much deeper in 2022. But that’s sort of the point in UCLA’s favor. The talent was more consolidated in 1992, and the Bruins had a ton of it. Led by the great Fernandez.
1994 Arizona
Before the ‘22 Sooners, there were the ‘94 Wildcats. Arizona in 1994 hit 93 home runs. Maybe that’s unimpressive compared to OU’s 155, but consider this. ‘Zona’s home run total broke the NCAA record. By more than double. The previous record in a season was 40. In the WCWS, only two teams arrived with more than 30 homers: Cal State-Northridge 36 and Utah 31. Mighty UCLA arrived with 17.
The 2022 Sooners have been compared to the 1927 Yankees. I’ve done it myself. But ‘Zona was the 1920 Yankees, who hit 115 home runs; runnerup in the American League that year was the St. Louis Browns, with 50.
Laura Espinoza clubbed 30 home runs for Arizona that year, breaking the record by 13. Twenty-eight years before Gasso’s team outscored opponents 579-65, the Wildcats outscored 527-100. In a total pitcher’s era.
And Arizona could pitch, too. Susie Parra was an all-time WCWS great – she threw two World Series no-hitters in her career and in three seasons as ‘Zona’s ace, she never allowed a WCWS earned run.
That Arizona team went 11-1 against the WCWS field.
2001 Arizona
The ‘01 Wildcats went 65-4, including 19-2 in the Pac-10, which eventually provided half the WCWS field (California, Stanford and UCLA joined the Wildcats in OKC).
Arizona was led by the great Jennie Finch, who in 2001 had a record of 32-0. The Wildcats also were sluggers, with Toni Mascarenas doing a Laura Espinoza impression, with 25 home runs.
‘Zona won its final 26 games and forged a 14-1 record against the World Series field.
How would Jocelyn Alo fare against Lisa Fernandez? That’s an easy answer. Fernandez would not be as dominant facing a lineup like the ‘22 Sooners. The Sooners would not be as dominant facing a pitcher like Fernandez.
How do the slugging Arizonans of 28 years ago compare to the Gasso Gang? We’ll never know. We just have to guess. Here’s how I would rank these four historic teams:
1. Arizona 1994
2. UCLA 1992
3. Oklahoma 2022
4. Arizona 2001
Carlson: OU softball joins the rarified air of sports dynasties with sixth WCWS title
American settlement good for Houston, UCF and Cincinnati
The Big 12 received good news last week when the American Conference announced a settlement with Central Florida, Houston and Cincinnati over their departure for the Big 12.
The sooner the Big 12 gets about the business of rebuilding its brand, the better, and Brigham Young (already scheduled to join the conference in summer 2023), Houston, UCF and Cincinnati will help the Big 12 restoration in the wake of OU’s and Texas’ decision to leave for the Southeastern Conference.
But the settlement came with some other good news. The agreement does not appear to be financially crippling to the new Big 12 members.
Paying exit fees can be burdensome in conference realignment. That’s why OU is staying in the Big 12 for now, potentially until summer 2025; barring negotiations the Big 12 seems uninterested in conducting, the Sooners would be looking at upwards of $80 million to leave early for the SEC.
When schools switch conferences, it’s often a tradeoff of short-term harm for long-term gain. Athletic departments get hit on the front side with the buyouts to leave a league, then get hit on the back side when they don’t receive initial full shares of media rights on the back end.
That was the case with West Virginia and Texas Christian, when they joined the Big 12 in summer 2012. They were gradually smoothed into full Big 12 shares and were glad to make that deal, since whatever the Big 12 paid was a big upgrade over their previous leagues (TCU in the Mountain West, WVU in the Big East).
Still, it’s tough on schools jumping from mid-major to Power 5 leagues. Money is tight to start with, then there’s the buyout, plus a few years of making do with less money than the schools you just joined.
When TCU joined the Big 12, it came from the Mountain West, which had no buyout clause, but the Horned Frogs had agreed to join the Big East. TCU backpedaled when the Big 12 opportunity came along.
TCU and the Big East bickered, and the Big East filed a lawsuit, and TCU eventually agreed to pay the Big East $5 million.
West Virginia and the Big East bickered, too – there is never no bickering – but the sides settled on a deal that paid the Big East $20 million. WVU was responsible for half, the Big 12 for half, but the Mountaineers had to pay half the Big 12’s half. So $15 million in all for West Virginia. Significant money.
But the American settlement with UCF, Cincinnati and Houston was not backbreaking to the schools: $18 million each, but spread over 14 years, according to the Cincinnati Enquirer.
That’s $1.28 million per year. Doable, considering those schools are about to reap a lot more money with the Big 12 than they were receiving in the American Conference.
BYU largely was free of buyout clauses, since it was a football independent, and football is where the money is generated, but the Cougars did pay $500,000 to the West Coast Conference, which housed all the other BYU sports.
All in all, a net positive for the Big 12 newcomers, which means a net positive for the Big 12.
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Andrew Wiggins a cautionary tale
Andrew Wiggins was the best player on the court in Game 5 of the NBA Finals on Monday night. Good lesson for the Thunder. Good lesson for all of the NBA.
Wiggins is a reminder that once an NBA Draft concludes, it’s best to toss a player’s selection slot into the sea of forgetfulness. It no longer matters other than to inflict harm on a player’s career.
Wiggins was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2013 draft. He’s yet to reach superstar status and probably never will. Golden State doesn’t seem to mind.
The Warriors beat the Boston Celtics 104-94 Monday night to take a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven series. Wiggins was the difference.
While Golden State’s Steph Curry struggled, and Celtic stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown withered, Wiggins shined. He scored 26 points on 12-of-23 shooting, and it wasn’t like he just got hot – Wiggins missed all six of his deep balls, which means he had to score from inside the arc, where the Celtics were hounding him. Boston’s defense is not the problem in this series.
Wiggins also had 13 rebounds (he had 16 rebounds, to go with 17 points, in Game 4) and played solid defense, often guarding the likes of Tatum or Brown.
Wiggins is a cautionary tale for any team with a high draft selection, including the Thunder, which picks No. 2 next week in the draft. Don’t get caught up in where a guy was picked. It matters no more. Doubling down on the pressure that already comes from the public on a high pick does no team or player any good.
Barring trade, OKC will pick No. 2 and No. 12 next week. It’s likely that the No. 2 pick will have a better NBA career than the No. 12 pick, but it’s not assured.
Looking at a player five years into his career as a No. 1 pick is no way to run a franchise.
Just look at Minnesota, which traded Kevin Love for Wiggins in summer 2013, after Cleveland made Wiggins the overall first pick.
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Wiggins remains a disappointment in some eyeballs. Overall No. 1 picks are supposed to be superstars.
It’s a bogus premise, by the way. We’ll not count the four most recent overall No. 1 picks – Cade Cunningham, Anthony Edwards, Zion Williamson and Deandre Ayton, all of whom have had their moments in the NBA and still have vast potential. But gauging the 10 overall No. 1 picks before that, Wiggins falls somewhere in the back half.
Anthony Davis, Kyrie Irving and Blake Griffin are/were superstars. Derrick Rose was there or headed there before a catastrophic injury. Ben Simmons was there before he declined to shoot a playoff layup, and now who knows where his career is headed?
John Wall was perhaps not a superstar but a clear star. Same with Towns. Markelle Fultz and Anthony Bennett were busts.
Wiggins was somewhere in between. Not close to a bust. But not a superstar. A really good player in Minnesota who was considered an underachiever; a really good player with Golden State who was considered a rehab case for the Warriors.
All based on where he was drafted. Instead, we should have been focusing on who Wiggins was drafted by.
A guy can get lost in the Minnesota menagerie. A dysfunctional franchise. A hamster wheel of an NBA team.
Wiggins played 5½ seasons with the Timberwolves. He averaged 19.7 points and wasn’t terribly efficient; 33.2 percent shooting from deep, 44.1 percent overall.
But he was on bad teams with a bad organization. It’s much more difficult for a player to develop under those conditions, and Wiggins didn’t.
Then Minnesota traded Wiggins to the Warriors.
The biggest difference between successful and unsuccessful NBA franchises is not market size or financial resources. The biggest difference is brains and lack of brains.
On February 6, 2020, a month before the Rudy Gobert Game, the Warriors traded D’Angelo Russell, Omari Spelling and Jacob Evans to Minnesota for Wiggins, a second-round draft pick and a first-round draft pick that was top-three protected in 2021 but unprotected if it conveyed to 2022.
That pick indeed conveyed, and the Warriors last summer got Jonathan Kuminga with the No. 7 pick overall.
So basically, Golden State got the superior player in Wiggins (over Russell) and got an intriguing draft pick like Kuminga. All in the name of the Timberwolves trying to placate Karl-Anthony Towns, who wanted to team with his buddy Russell.
And Golden State got a really good ballplayer who is about to help the Warriors win another NBA championship. If Wiggins had been selected No. 15, he would be hailed as a prescient pick. Instead, he’s seen as some kind of failure.
Tell that to the Warriors.
The Thunder mission looms. Whoever goes No. 2 or even No. 12, stay patient, groom with wisdom and never get caught up on where they were selected.
Mailbag: Dallas Cowboy running backs
In honor of the late Don Perkins, for the Monday ScissorTales, I ran a list of the top 10 running backs in Dallas Cowboys history. Some detected some omissions:
Carter: “I would certainly have Dan Reeves in the top 10. Maybe Duane Thomas, although he was a head case!”
Tramel: I don't really see Reeves as a candidate. He had only two years in which he either rushed for at least 200 yards or caught more than 20 passes, and those were the same two seasons, 1966 and 1967. Julius Jones, Felix Jones, etc. have done a lot more. Ron Springs is more than 500 scrimmage yards ahead of Reeves on the all-time Dallas list.
Duane Thomas had two good years with the Cowboys. In those two years, he gained 803 yards and 793 yards rushing. Then he was gone. Good player for a short time, but everyone on my list had a lot more impact on the Cowboys.
Tramel: OU baseball's stealth rise to College World Series gives hope for future in SEC
More: OU baseball makes 'some magic happen' vs. Virginia Tech to reach College World Series
The List: Conferences in the College World Series
The Southeastern Conference dominates college baseball. Four teams in the 2022 College World Series, plus soon-to-be SEC teams OU and Texas.
The SEC has qualified an average of almost three teams per year over the last decade for the eight-team CWS. Here’s how the conferences rank in CWS appearances from 2012-22:
1. SEC 29: It’s easier to list the SEC schools that HAVEN’T reached Omaha in the last decade – Kentucky, Alabama, Missouri and Georgia. Florida and Arkansas have gone five times each. Vanderbilt and Mississippi State four times each. Louisiana State thrice. Auburn, Ole Miss and Texas A&M twice each. Tennessee and South Carolina once each.
2. Atlantic Coast 15: This ranking comes with a caveat. The ACC has 14 baseball schools. The Big 12 has nine baseball schools, so the Big 12 has sent a higher percentage of its teams to Omaha. The ACC has sent Virginia and Florida State thrice each; North Carolina State, Louisville, Miami and North Carolina twice each; and Notre Dame once.
3. Big 12 14: Texas Tech, Texas Christian and Texas have made it to Omaha four times each over the last decade, while OU and OSU have made it once each.
4. Pac-12 11: The Pac-12 has 11 baseball schools. Arizona and Oregon State have made it thrice each, UCLA and Stanford twice each, and Washington once. Arizona State and Southern Cal once ruled the sport; they’ve combined for 43 trips to Omaha and 17 championships, but ASU hasn’t been to the CWS since 2010 and USC hasn’t gone since 2001.
5. Big West 4: Cal State-Fullerton has been twice; Cal State-Santa Barbara and Cal-Irvine have gone once each.
6. Big Ten 2: Indiana and Michigan have been to Omaha once each in the last decade.
7. Big South 1: Coastal Carolina not only made it to Omaha in 2016, the Chanticleers won the championship.
7. Big East 1: Louisville made it to Omaha in 2013, its final year in the Big East, which transitioned to a non-football league.
7. American 1: Louisville also went to Omaha in 2014, its one season in the newly-formed American Conference.
7. Mid-American 1: Kent State made it to Omaha in 2012.
7. America East 1: Stony Brook, the ultimate Cinderella, also crashed Omaha in 2012.
Berry Tramel: Berry can be reached at 405-760-8080 or at btramel@oklahoman.com. He can be heard Monday through Friday from 4:40-5:20 p.m. on The Sports Animal radio network, including FM-98.1. Support his work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Are the 2022 Oklahoma Sooners the best softball team in NCAA history?
