Is 'good enough' going to get the job done for OU softball in 2024?
You would absolutely believe the sky is falling for OU softball the way April has gone. That’s what a standard of unprecedented excellence can do.
A three-loss month feels like the end of the world, end of a dynasty. Reality is OU is 42-4 overall and No. 1 in the Big 12 at 18-3.
The other reality, and something head coach Patty Gasso is not afraid to say, is it’s not good enough right now. Again, there’s levels to this.
It’s so not good enough for Gasso at this moment that something strange happened Sunday. After completing a three-game sweep of Houston and outscoring the Cougars 23-2, it took Gasso nearly 40 minutes after the game to address the media.
“I don’t know, we’re in a little bit of a weird space right now but still finding ways to win games,” Gasso said. “Every team goes through it sometime during their season. Are we absolutely slumping? No, we’re not. But we are working to figure out how to get it all come together and we’re moving in directions where people are being called out and called up a little bit.
“For me, I don’t want to have any regrets. We’re dealing with a senior class that is absolutely special. They have done things that I don’t know if any other class can ever match. Sometimes we lose sight of that. Sometimes, it’s overbearing and tiring. It’s not too late. That’s one thing we’re really working on. KD (Kierston Deal) is a great example of someone who has understood the process of this. That’s what we’re continuing to grind on.”
Gasso prides herself on being old school. And it feels like ever since dropping two of three at Texas earlier this month, she has challenged the team.
There are times, again, where it does feel like OU is still the unquestioned No. 1 team in the sport. Then others where it’s just a bit off. All it takes is being a bit off in the circle or the plate or the field to be having an early exit in postseason.
Last season was the ultimate grind. You had the winning streak, had the 61-1 record. And so many of those same pieces are still around. Gasso has tried to send one message after another.
This team, as flawed as some might feel, still might be good enough to earn a ridiculous fourth straight national championship.
However, that light switch has to be flipped pretty soon. A three-game set at Central Florida, and then it’s time to go. Bedlam at home vs. Oklahoma State, and then officially postseason.
The Big 12 hangs in the balance the next two weekends. All the runners left on base and in scoring position? It might not hurt you vs. Houston. But it won’t work vs. the Longhorns or Cowgirls.
Good enough, as Gasso has said repeatedly this month, is not good enough. See how OU responds once again this weekend in Orlando.
“That is what I feel a little bit. It’s not for lack of trying,” Gasso said. “It’s just lack of being disciplined and saying what’s needed in this moment, right here and now. I think some of us are trying too hard, then I’ve got some freshman that are like, ‘Just give me the bat.’ Maybe they don’t enough yet and the beauty of that is they’re just trying to make it easy, and they’re really having good freshmen.”
