With the Oklahoma Sooners and Texas Longhorns set to join the Southeastern Conference next season, there were questions on how the SEC Conference portion of the schedule would look with 16 teams now in the conference.
We got a part of that answer today as the SEC announced that each school would have 2 permanent opponents set in respective schedule for the future scheduling format.
For OU those two schools are a familiar face and the other is a former “friend.” The Sooners will play the Texas Longhorns and Missouri Tigers each year in the SEC starting in 2025.
Instant Reaction
Having the Longhorns on OU’s schedule each year just makes sense. Even before the formation of the Big 12 in 1996, OU and UT have been linked together on the athletic fields of play going way back. Couple that with both of them joining the SEC at the same time (I personally don’t think either one joins the SEC if the other doesn’t) and they are even more joined together in history.
As far as Mizzou goes, I guess it is ok? On the one hand it is an advantage for the Sooners because historically the Tigers haven’t been any good in baseball in a while (especially in the SEC). On the other hand, from a fan perspective I’d rather see the Sooners play Arkansas or even Texas A&M.
History with Texas
The Sooners have a long history with the Longhorns in baseball. The first time they met was way back in 1947. However, the Sooners haven’t faired very well against the ‘Horns. The Sooners’ all time record vs Texas is 59-141-2. Six of those losses against Texas came in the College World Series where 4 of those losses eliminated the Sooners.
OU has gotten the better of Texas the last couple of seasons though. They beat the Longhorns in the 2022 Big 12 Championship game on their way to a national runner up finish and they swept them in Austin in 2023.
History with Missouri
OU has had a better history with the Tigers over the years. Going back to when both teams were in the Big 8, they played their first game against each other in 1962. The Sooners lead the all time series 128-85.
Missouri before joining the SEC
Missouri does have some good history in baseball. They won the College World Series in 1954 and have been runners up twice (’52 and ’58). The Tigers have reached the College World Series a total of 6 times and have reached the NCAA Tournament 22 times and a Super Regional once. Mizzou has won 18 conference titles going back to the 1920s.
Perhaps the longest success the Tigers program has seen was under head coach, Tim Jamieson’s time in Columbia. The Tigers won the Big 8 in 1996. Starting in 2003, Mizzou made the NCAA Tournament 7 consecutive years with a Super Regional appearance in 2006. From 2005-2008, Mizzou finished the regular season ranked in the top 25.
Missouri since joining the SEC
It is safe to say that Mizzou has not had a good experience in the SEC when it comes to baseball. Since joining the conference in 2013, the Tigers are a combined 108-192-1. Their only non-losing season in conference was in 2015 when they were a .500 team at 16-16. Over the last 3 years, they’ve been even worse than their average at a combined 28-62.
The Tigers will have a new head coach starting this season. It is a significant hire as Kerrick Johnson is the first ever black head coach of an SEC baseball program.
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