"You're doin' fine, Oklahoma!" Those are familiar lyrics from the popular Broadway musical "Oklahoma," and appropriately describe the 2026 OU softball season so far.
The Sooners (38-3) are No. 2 this week in the ESPN/USA Softball rankings and lead the SEC with an 11-1 conference record. Their next stop on the 2026 schedule is a weekend soiree in Austin, Texas, where the reigning national champions and No. 4 Texas Longhorns will be fired up and ready to host their visitors from north of the Red River.
Unlike Oklahoma's previous four SEC series this season, the series with the Longhorns (32-4, 9-3) at McCombs Field in Austin holds major conference title implications for both teams.
Red River Rivalry will be the Sooners' 1st real SEC challenge
Despite the lofty record and prodigious offensive numbers, though, we really don't know how good this Oklahoma team is. The Sooners clearly look look like a championship-level team on paper, as well as on the field, but their strength of schedule to this point tells a different story.
The Sooners' 2026 nonconference schedule was not as strong as it had been in recent seasons. D1Softball ranks OU's nonconference schedule 92nd in the country. Only Kentucky and Missouri have a lower strength of nonconference schedule than Oklahoma in the SEC, and when you factor in the schedule through five conference games, no SEC team has a worse overall strength of schedule ranking than the Sooners at No. 50.
Oklahoma's four conference opponents so far were Auburn (2-9 in conference play), Ole Miss (2-10), LSU (6-9) and Kentucky (1-14). So there is definite reason to question how good this Oklahoma team really is. That will become a lot more clear over the next four weeks, when the Sooners will face the strongest teams on their schedule and four of the best in the country.
Read more: SEC Softball Power Rankings: Alabama helps Oklahoma overthrow Texas
That perilous gauntlet begins this weekend at Texas, which until this past weekend was ranked No. 1 in the nation. The Longhorns (32-4, 9-3) dropped down to No. 4 this week after losing two of three last weekend to Alabama, which replaced Texas at No. 1. After the Texas series, the Sooners will play Arkansas, Georgia and Texas A&M. All four teams are ranked in the top 25.
Oklahoma owns a 64-28 record in all-time Red River Rivalry softball series. The Sooners swept the regular-season series last year in Norman, but they lost to the eventual national champions Longhorns last season in the Women's College World Series. OU lost two of three in its last trip to Austin in 2024, but is 21-13 overall when playing there.
What to know about Texas
Texas has three players in the starting lineup that hit above .400 on a team that averages .361, fourth best in the SEC, and 7.8 runs per game. Catcher Katie Stewart is the big bat in the Longhorns' lineup, hitting .489 with 20 home runs and 48 runs batted in. Texas is going to need others beyond Stewart to be on its game, though, to counter Oklahoma's explosive lineup.
Another Longhorn player with power numbers who presents a danger at the plate is catcher Reese Atwood. The NFCA Catcher of the Year and All-SEC First-Team selection last season has 15 home runs through 36 games and 47 RBI, one behind team leader Stewart.
The Longhorns began the season 31-1 before dropping three of six in series the past two weekends with Texas A&M and Alabama. Like most of the best teams in the country, Texas is especially hard to beat playing at home, where the Longhorns are 17-1 this season. The one loss was to rival Texas A&M.
The responsibility for slowing down the Sooner offense will fall on the Texas starters in the circle and a defense that has committed 38 errors in 36 games and ranks 13th of 15 SEC teams. Kavan Teagan is the ace of the Longhorn staff with a 15-2 record and a 2.68 ERA in 16 starts, along with 124 strikeouts in 99 innings. Teagan pitched a complete-game 7-6 win over Oklahoma in last year's Women's College World Series, striking out eight Sooners. Teagan is 1-1 against OU in three career starts (all last season) vs. the Sooners.
What to know about Oklahoma
After falling 3-1 in the second game of the LSU series, Oklahoma has reeled off five straight wins, outscoring opponents 51-12, including 15 home runs, with five of those by NCAA leader Kendall Wells. The Sooners have hit at least four home runs in 18 of their 38 games this season. OU's nation-leading 144 home runs features six players who have hit at least 10 this season.
The Sooners have collected 486 runs in 38 games. That is more than the 454 they had all of last season. In contrast to the three Texas players who have a batting average of .400 or better, Oklahoma has eight players in the starting lineup who hit above .400 and a ninth who is currently at. 397. As a team, Oklahoma leads the nation with a .428 batting average.
Oklahoma is 19-2 this season when the Sooners put the first run on the scoreboard and 32-2 against right-handed pitchers. Of the four Texas pitchers who have appeared in at least 10 games this season, all four throw from the right side.
Prediction
This will be a highly contested series with much at stake. The rule of thumb in athletic competition involving Oklahoma and Texas is to expect the unexpected. This is the part of the season where the Sooners, who dominate all of the major offensive statistical categories in college softball, must prove that they are legitimate national championship contenders. The Longhorns pose Oklahoma's toughest challenge of the season.