Tag: Skip Johnson

OU Baseball adds juco transfer Jeffrey Martz via portal

OU baseball adds a junior college transfer in the portal to continue a strong month.

The Oklahoma Sooners baseball team continued their hot July in the [autotag]transfer portal[/autotag] this weekend. OU added utility player Jeffrey Martz to the team from the junior college ranks.

Martz transfers in from GateWay Community College, after hitting .320 with a .402 on-base percentage over his two years of JUCO ball. He hit 12 home runs, 12 triples and 35 doubles.

Martz is capable of playing a variety of positions, primarily seeing time at catcher in his collegiate career. He is able to play first and third base as well. He arrives in Norman with two years of eligibility left.

Head coach Skip Johnson has been very active in the transfer portal in the month of July. He’s added players like Texas A&M‘s Jason Bodin and Liberty’s Brayden Horton after losing eight players to the 2024 MLB Draft this month. The Sooners won the outright [autotag]Big 12[/autotag] regular season conference title in 2024, and will now make the transition to the [autotag]SEC[/autotag].

Oklahoma basketball earns commitment from 2025 four-star wing Alec Blair

Oklahoma lands elite dual-sport athlete in Alec Blair.

[autotag]Porter Moser[/autotag] has had an incredibly fun end of July. On Tuesday evening, Moser’s July grew a bit brighter as the Sooners landed a commitment from four-star wing Alec Blair.

The top-50 junior is one of the best dual-sport athletes in the country. Alec plays at De La Salle High in Concord, California. He is a bit of a rarity as he is a top-notch baseball player and a star on the basketball court.

He’s an intriguing prospect on the court who uses his length and advanced knowledge of the game to attack defenses and create opportunities for others. It would not be shocking to see him play point forward or point guard in college. He’s that much of a talented facilitator.

He chose Oklahoma over offers to play at California, Clemson, Notre Dame and USC.

The Sooners offered him back in September 2023, and his relationships with Clayton Custer and head coach Porter Moser, along with his chats with the OU baseball team, led him to Norman.

He is a rangy outfield prospect with power to all fields on the diamond. As he continues to get stronger and matures physically, his upside as a lefty power bat should skyrocket. The MLB is always looking for lefty power, so it’s easy to see why he’s becoming a coveted prospect.

In January, Blair Blair spoke with Brandon Jenkins of 247Sports (subscription required) about his future as a two-sport athlete. “I have not made a decision in terms of if I want to play both sports or if I just want to play baseball,” Blair said. “I love basketball. Playing both sports would be a cool opportunity because it is very unique when discussing the sports I am playing.”

By landing Blair, Oklahoma has the No. 19 recruiting class for 2025. Blair is the No. 10 prospect in the 247Sports composite and the 38th-ranked overall prospect according to 247Sports 2025 basketball rankings. He is the No. 4 prospect in the state of California prospect.

It seems things are going to work out either way for Oklahoma athletics. The Sooners landed one of the nation’s best athletes, who will play basketball, baseball, or both in Norman, Oklahoma.

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Oklahoma Baseball lands commitment from infielder Mason Hamlin

Skip Johnson continues his hot streak on the portal trail, adding Mason Hamlin out of Division 2’s UT Permian Basin.

Oklahoma Sooners baseball head coach [autotag]Skip Johnson[/autotag]’s hot streak in the [autotag]transfer portal[/autotag] has continued into the weekend.

OU added infielder [autotag]Mason Hamlin[/autotag] out of the portal from Texas Permian Basin, a Division II school in Odessa, Texas, on Saturday.

Hamlin entered the portal on June 25th after a coaching change at UTPB, but was very productive for the Falcons in his two seasons in West Texas. He hit the ball at a .370 clip with 154 hits and seven home runs, and stole 49 bases while starting all 109 contests he played for UT Permian Basin.

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During both of his seasons at UTPB, Hamlin was instrumental in the program’s turnaround from an also-ran to a contender in the Lone Star Conference. In 2024, Hamlin helped the Falcons to the Division II NCAA National Championship Tournament, the first appearance in the program’s history.

Hamlin’s timely hits and stellar play at shortstop will now be tested at the Division I level, as he joins pitcher Jason Bodin and utility player Brayden Horton as portal additions this week for Johnson and his staff.

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Oklahoma baseball adds Liberty Flames’ Brayden Horton via transfer portal

OU continues to stay hot on the portal trail, adding Liberty’s Brayden Horton.

The Oklahoma Sooners added to their roster via the [autotag]transfer portal[/autotag] on Friday, picking up a commitment from utility player Brayden Horton. Oklahoma stayed hot on the portal trail after adding pitcher Jason Bodin earlier this week.

Horton, who transfers from Liberty, announced his decision to join OU on social media.

Horton played two years with the Flames, and he has has two seasons of eligibility to work with as he makes his way to Norman. Last season, he hit .274 with an on-base percentage of .403 to go with 11 home runs and 39 RBIs.

In 2023, as a true freshman, Horton hit at a .341 clip with an on-base percentage of .471 to pair with six home runs and 40 RBIs. In the last two years, Horton has played in 100 total games and made 90 starts.

Defensively, Horton brings a .984 career fielding percentage with 361 putouts and 18 assists with just six total defensive errors across his 100 games. [autotag]Skip Johnson[/autotag] needs to replace all of last year’s starting outfielders, and he lost eight players to the draft earlier this week.

Johnson and the Sooners head into the snake pit that is [autotag]SEC[/autotag] baseball, after winning the [autotag]Big 12[/autotag] regular season title outright in 2024.

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Sooners add former Texas A&M pitcher Jason Bodin via transfer portal

Jason Bodin arrives in Norman after spending one year in College Station.

The Oklahoma Sooners added to their pitching staff via the [autotag]transfer portal[/autotag] on Wednesday, picking up a commitment from right-hander Jason Bodin.

Bodin transfers in from Texas A&M, where he spent one season as an Aggie. He took to social media to announce his decision.

A true freshman out of Orange, TX, he appeared in just two games last season in relief, working just one total inning, allowing one hit, walking two, and picking up a strikeout. Out of high school he was ranked the No. 216 right-handed pitcher in the country and the No. 59 overall player in the state of Texas by Perfect Game.

Head coach [autotag]Skip Johnson[/autotag] will certainly be able to develop Bodin, as he’s become known as quite the pitching expert in the college baseball ranks.

Bodin is inexperienced, but he was a part of a Texas A&M team that made it all the way to the College World Series finals, falling in Game 3 of the championship round.

After the fantastic CWS run for the Aggies, head coach Jim Schlossnagle made the controversial decision to flip to the rival Texas Longhorns and become their head coach. Skip Johnson was rumored to be Texas A&M’s plan for a replacement, but OU’s skipper instead stayed in Norman, signing a contract extension.

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Oklahoma AD takes a jab at Lincoln Riley in ‘mic drop’ moment

Oklahoma athletic director Joe Castiglione went in on former head football coach Lincoln Riley during the Sooners’ SEC celebration.

The Oklahoma Sooners have officially joined the [autotag]SEC[/autotag]; the move became official on Monday. The university held several events across Norman to celebrate the move.

SEC Network was on hand with a showcase of Oklahoma athletics. [autotag]Brent Venables[/autotag], [autotag]Bob Stoops[/autotag], [autotag]Patty Gasso[/autotag] and [autotag]Skip Johnson[/autotag] were among the most notable OU figures to join SEC Network hosts.

But it wasn’t just present and former coaches who stepped into the bright lights of television. OU athletic director [autotag]Joe Castiglione[/autotag] and university president [autotag]Joseph Harroz Jr.[/autotag] joined “SEC Now” on Monday afternoon. The topic of discussion turned to the initial conversations with Oklahoma coaches about the school’s decision in 2021 to leave the [autotag]Big 12[/autotag] and join the SEC.

“I will tell you without reservation,” Castiglione said, “every coach we talked to was excited. And, you know what? The ones that weren’t aren’t here anymore. This is Oklahoma. Either get with it or get on with it.”

This, of course, drew quite the reaction from the panel on “SEC Now,” that included ESPN’s Dari Nowkhah and Alyssa Lang, as well as SEC commissioner [autotag]George Sankey[/autotag]. All were well aware of who Castiglione was likely referencing.

“We call that a mic drop,” Harroz Jr. said.

Castiglione’s remarks are most likely about former head football coach [autotag]Lincoln Riley[/autotag], who departed for USC a few months after news broke that OU would be leaving for the SEC. Riley denied the SEC move had anything to do with him leaving. Oklahoma fans, on the other hand, have long believed it’s because he didn’t want to play against the strict competition in the SEC.

Riley had three attempts against the SEC in the playoffs and came up empty. Then reports came out that Riley and the Trojans tried to get out of playing LSU this year and next. And then USC and Ole Miss canceled their two-game series.

But Castiglione dropped the biggest nugget in the whole sage.

This may be the closest thing we ever get to confirmation from Castiglione that Sooner Nation’s suspicions were, in fact, true. After news broke in July of 2021 that the Sooners were moving conferences, Riley led an unfocused 2021 regular season and bolted to Los Angeles hours after it was over.

We all remember the L.A. Times report that stated Riley’s move was months in the making. Riley, on the other hand, insists that Southern Cal convinced him to move his family across the country and be their coach in a matter of hours. Riley hopped on a plane headed west less than a day after losing to Oklahoma State at the end of 2021.

The SEC would have provided harsher competition that the Big 12 did. That’s still absolutely the case. Whether or not that’s why Riley walked may never truly be known. The important thing is Castiglione has his guy to lead the Sooners into the SEC. [autotag]Brent Venables[/autotag] embraced the challenge of the toughest conference in college athletics, and the Sooners are finally official members of the SEC.

All that’s left now is to win football games.

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Skip Johnson to stay with Oklahoma Sooners

Skip Johnson is set to stay as Oklahoma’s head baseball coach amid Texas A&M rumors.

Oklahoma’s baseball program and the fans around the program can take a deep breath. Skip Johnson is here to stay.

The last few weeks in the college baseball world have been a bit noisier than usual after Jim Schlossnagle surprisingly bolted from his post as the Texas A&M baseball coach for that exact position with the Texas Longhorns.

He is a two-time National Coach of the Year and, simply put, one of the best head baseball coaches in the country. After his Aggies lost in this year’s College World Series championship, he took the vacant Texas Longhorns job.

In the time that has followed, Texas A&M has been feverishly trying to find his replacement. One name that was brought up was Oklahoma’s Skip Johnson.

Reports surfaced Friday afternoon that Johnson was the guy for the Aggies. Josh Callaway of Sooners Illustrated for 247Sports and Kendall Rogers, managing editor for D1Baseball, denied them.

Today, athletic director Joe Castiglione announced that Skip Johnson will stay on as Oklahoma’s head coach and receive an extension that will run through 2029.

Johnson’s work in Norman hasn’t gone unnoticed, and he has the Sooners on an upward trajectory as it enters the SEC.

The key for Oklahoma to take the next step is to back it up financially in name, image, and likeness and upgrade the facilities to match some of the investment other SEC baseball programs receive. If the baseball team can get to that level, with Skip Johnson’s baseball insight and leadership, Oklahoma can touch unfamiliar heights in baseball.

With questions about Johnson’s future in Norman behind them, the Sooners can now focus on preparing for next season and attacking the transfer portal hard as they prepare for the first baseball season as SEC members.

One Texas A&M baseballl coaching candidate is reportedly out of the mix

Oklahoma head coach Skip Johnson is now reportedly out of consideration for Texas A&M HC vacancy

Things are getting interesting on the rumor front regarding Texas A&M baseball’s head coach search, just days after Jim Schlossnagle’s shocking departure to rival Texas after three seasons at the helm and just a day after the Aggies’ College World Series Finals loss to Tennessee.

On Friday, D1Baseball’s Kendall Rogers, who has been the most consistent source since Schlossnagles’ exit, provided yet another update on Texas A&M AD Trev Albert’s search to replace the man who brought the program to two CWS appearances in two of his three seasons.

After noting that Oklahoma head coach Skip Johnson, former hitting coach Michael Earley, and Wake Forest head coach Tom Walter were legitimate candidates, Rogers has confirmed that Johnson is no longer in consideration and will likely sign an extension to stay in Norman.

Rogers also stated that Albert has three final candidates in line before making a decision, which likely includes Earley and Walter. The current roster players clearly favor Earley returning to the program in some capacity after expressing so on social media.

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Three more candidates have interviewed for Texas A&M baseball’s HC job

Three notable names, including Oklahoma head coach Skip Johnson, have interviewed to replace Jim Schlossnagle

What a week it has been for Texas A&M’s baseball program. The shocking news that head coach Jim Schlossnagle was leaving for the Texas Longhorns just a day after the Aggies had played for the College World Series championship has been one of the biggest stories in all of sports media.

While more information regarding Schlossnagle’s abrupt exit emerges, Texas A&M athletic director Trev Alberts is focused on hiring his replacement as soon as possible. He has already interviewed several candidates over the last two days.

While plenty of rumors (mostly unfounded) have spread on social media, D1Baseball’s Kendall Rogers provided an update, combined with insider information from TexAgs’ Billy Liucci.

On Friday, Rogers confirmed three candidates, including Oklahoma’s Skip Johnson, Wake Forest’s Tom Walter and former Texas A&M hitting coach Michael Earley, who followed Schlossnagle to Austin, have interviewed for the open position.

Do these three options represent the finalists? Time will tell, but a decision could be made as soon as this weekend.

Of the three, Earley is the only coach without any head coaching experience. However, he is an excellent recruiter with obvious ties to the roster, including star hitters Jace LaViolette and Gavin Grahovic, who entered the transfer portal this week.

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Skip Johnson named ABCA Central Region Coach of the Year

Oklahoma baseball coach Skip Johnson is the ABCA Central Region Coach of the Year.

Oklahoma Sooners head baseball coach [autotag]Skip Johnson[/autotag] was been named the ABCA Central Region Coach of the Year, the university announced earlier this week.

The ABCA/ATEC Regional Coaches of the Year are selected by members of the ABCA All-America & Coach of the Year Committees in all nine divisions: NCAA Divisions I, II and III, NAIA, NJCAA Divisions I, II and III, Pacific Association Division and high school.

Oklahoma won the program’s first [autotag]Big 12[/autotag] regular season championship and made its 41st NCAA Tournament appearance in 2024. The Sooners also hosted an NCAA Regional in Norman for the first time since 2010.

The excellent season had an impact on attendance, as plenty of attendance records were set at L. Dale Mitchell Park in 2024. Three of the top four single-game crowds in school history came through the gates, with a program single-game record 4,812 in attendance on April 26. Oklahoma also broke the single-season attendance record with 60,962 fans attending regular-season games in 2024 and a single-game postseason record crowd of 4,332 for OU’s 14-0 regional-opening win over Oral Roberts.

OU got to 40 wins for the second time in the last three seasons and 25th time in program history. On their way to winning the Big 12 regular season title, OU swept a program record six conference series, tying the Big 12 record for sweeps in a season, and finished with a program record 23 wins in Big 12 play (23-7). Those 23 wins were good for the second most conference wins in Big 12 history. OU won 23 of its final 30 games, including 14 of its last 16 conference games, with sweeps in four of the last six weekends.

In his seventh season in Norman, Johnson collected OU’s first [autotag]Big 12 Coach of the Year[/autotag] honor.

The regional coach of the year award is Johnson’s second in the last three seasons. He also received the honor in 2022 when he led the program to a runner-up finish in the [autotag]College World Series[/autotag].

With all of the talk this week about coaching movement in college baseball at a couple of programs not too far from home, Johnson remains a steadying hand ready to guide the Sooners into the [autotag]SEC[/autotag].

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