By Kenny Burgess
Everyone in sports loves an underdog story and in the past couple of years, Oral Roberts has been responsible for some of the most memorable college sports moments. In 2021, ORU had an incredible run in the Men’s NCAA Basketball Tournament, making it all the way to the Sweet 16 as a No. 15 seed. This run surprised many around the country and the Golden Eagles, led by the nation’s top scorer, Max Abrams, became just the second No. 15 seed ever to reach the Sweet 16.
In 2023, the Golden Eagles are back and shocking the sports world again. This time, it’s on the diamond. ORU is heading to Omaha for the first time since 1978 and will be the biggest underdog in the field at +2200. Being the underdog is nothing new to the small school from Tulsa, Oklahoma as they won their regional tournament despite being the No. 4 seed. What came as no surprise was when the Golden Eagles won their 21st Summit League Tournament, earning them a spot in regionals. The shocking part however was ORU sweeping the regional tournament by defeating then-No.11-ranked Oklahoma State followed by wins over Washington and Dallas Baptist.
Following their surprising regional run, the only team left standing between the Golden Eagles and Omaha was the Pac-12 Champion, Oregon Ducks. ORU easily could have folded after losing its first game in Eugene after blowing an 8-0 lead to the Ducks. Instead, the Golden Eagles were able to keep the Ducks at bay and pulled off an 8-7 win, powered by a two-run walk-off. The Golden Eagles followed it up the next day with an 11-6 victory, punching their ticket to Omaha.
ORU has found itself in Omaha mostly due to its explosive offense of six players boasting averages over .300 and OPSs over .900. The Golden Eagles are led by Jonah Cox, a junior transfer and, like ORU, a true underdog. Cox played his freshman year at Butler Community College and his sophomore year at Eastern Oklahoma State College. Since his transfer, Cox has been dominant in his first season with the Golden Eagles, hitting .420, driving in 67 runs, and stealing 28 bases.
The Golden Eagles also have a dangerous power threat in red-shirt senior Matt Hogan, a highly touted recruit who saw very little playing time in his first three college seasons at Vanderbilt. Hogan spent his senior year at South Carolina, but still didn’t get much of an opportunity and only had 17 starts. Finally getting a chance to be a full-time player, Hogan has flourished for the Golden Eagles, hitting .332, blasting 18 home runs, collecting 70 RBIs, and sporting a 1.155 OPS.
The first step in completing their Cinderella run will come on Friday, Jun. 16 when the Golden Eagles face the TCU Horned Frogs. To no one’s surprise, ORU will yet again be the underdogs and the odds are set at +135 to win the opening game. Only time will tell if the slipper fits the Golden Eagles or if the clock will strike midnight on their fairytale run.
Photo credit: ORU Baseball’s Instagram
