Oklahoma softball began the 2026 season at No. 3 in the major preseason polls. Since then, the Sooners have dropped back to fourth, fifth or sixth, depending on which top-25 poll you follow, despite a 19-2 record and a record-setting start offensively.
Some Sooner fans undoubtedly are not happy with the softball team’s current national ranking, believing the team is being undervalued. Whatever the present perception is, though, Oklahoma clearly has history on its side.
Sooners in rare spot under Patty Gasso outside of top 3
At this relatively early stage of the season, the top-25 rankings are not that meaningful except to excite fan interest and offer media debate. As always, once the more competitive conference schedules begin in earnest, we’re certain to see a lot of movement in the weekly national rankings, and as we’ve all been told, it’s not how you start, but where you finish that matters, right?
Although no team has finished the season in the No. 1 position in the national rankings more times since 2000 than Oklahoma with eight times, only five times over that span have the Sooners begun the season as the preseason favorite in 2017, 2018, 2022, 2023 and 2024…