John Klein: Is college baseball making a comeback in this region?

By JOHN KLEIN Senior Sports Columnist on Jul 11, 2013, at 2:29 AM??Updated on 7/11/13 at 7:17 AM

This summer has marked a new era of college baseball in this region, and one can only hope it matches what happened around here in the late 1970s.

Oklahoma State hired some guy from Yavapai Junior College, a former phys ed teacher took over at Arkansas and the hitting coach at Oklahoma started a program at Wichita State.

Not since Gary Ward revived baseball at Oklahoma State, Norm DeBriyn resurrected Arkansas and Gene Stephenson started the program at Wichita State in the late 1970s has college baseball in this region undergone such change.

Changes at Oklahoma and Wichita State, just a year after a change at OSU, would seem to indicate a new commitment to college baseball in this region.

We can only hope it ushers in similar results.

From 1978 through the 1990s, college baseball flourished in this region. All five teams in this region went to the College World Series. Oklahoma and Wichita State won national titles.

Oklahoma State went to a record seven straight College World Series (reaching the finals three times) and won a record 16 straight conference baseball titles. Arkansas went to the College World Series four times (reaching the finals in 1979). Oral Roberts reached the College World Series in 1978, the start of a magnificent run of 14 conference championships and 22 NCAA Tournaments for the Golden Eagles.

And, Wichita State, coached by two Oklahomans, raided this state for talent, won the 1989 national title and became OSU's chief rival for supremacy in this region.

Now, after a period of transition, all five baseball-playing schools in this region appear ready to once again make a push to be among college baseball's elite.

OU hired Pete Hughes after Sunny Golloway, a successful but unpopular coach, left the Sooners for Auburn.

"The goals are simple," said Hughes. "We want to compete to win championships.

"OU baseball is built to go to Omaha (College World Series) and win national championships."

Wichita State pushed Gene Stephenson out the door after 36 years. In comes former OU player Todd Butler, who has spent the last eight years as an Arkansas assistant.

"To start off without a ball, without a bat and then to win a national championship - I can't say enough about it," said Butler of Stephenson.

All of this comes just a year after Oklahoma State hired Josh Holliday and brought on former Oral Roberts coach Rob Walton as pitching coach. Plus, the Cowboys are on the verge of starting construction of a new stadium.

In other words, all the schools in this region appear serious about playing college baseball at the highest levels.

That's good news and would appear very possible.

There is enough talent in this region to stock these teams with quality players.

In fact, some would argue there is more high school baseball talent than any other prep sport in our state. Certainly, in recent years, Major League Baseball has found Oklahoma to be a fertile ground on draft day. There's a number of current major leaguers from Oklahoma, including perennial all-star Matt Holliday of the St. Louis Cardinals, who is from Stillwater and a former Tulsa Driller.

OU pitcher Jonathan Gray, from Chandler, was the third pick in the recent MLB draft.

When college baseball was flourishing in this region during the early 1980s, ORU was stocked with players from California, where then-coach Larry Cochell had fabulous connections. Of course, ORU's most famous baseball alum, Mike Moore, was from Oklahoma and was the No. 1 pick in the Major League Baseball draft.

Oklahoma State under Ward, with assistant Tom Holliday, were able to land top prospects from all over the country, especially the northeast (New Jersey) and the west (Oregon down to southern California). In fact, one recruiting class including future big leaguers Pete Incaviglia and Darryl Strawberry from California. But the core group of players were from Oklahoma.

Arkansas went to the national finals in 1979 with a handful of starters from Oklahoma.

Wichita State's best teams were stocked with future big leaguers from Oklahoma like Charlie O'Brien from Tulsa and Joe Carter from Oklahoma City. Of course, Stephenson was from Guthrie and pitching coach Brent Kemnitz was from Perry.

Arkansas continues to lure players from Oklahoma, although not nearly in the numbers it did in the past.

Holliday grew up in Stillwater and played at OSU. Butler is a former OU player and Kemnitz is the lone holdover on the Wichita State staff.

OU has been successful in recent years because of Oklahoma players.

The moves would seem to signal a renewed effort for college baseball.

That should be good for high school baseball prospects and fans all over this region of the country.

Original Print Headline: College baseball: Is it making a comeback?

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