Road to Big 12 crown was bumpy at first
AUSTIN — Long after the last autograph-seeking fan had exited UFCU Disch-Falk Field, Kody Clemens slumped down on the second-base bag, pensively basking in the afterglow of a Big 12 championship. There must have been so much for the Texas junior to reflect on in the wake of the program’s first regular-season title since 2011.
The championship, seized outright Saturday after UT downed TCU and Oklahoma State fell for a third time to Texas Tech, was by no means preordained. Conference coaches picked the Longhorns to finish third behind the Red Raiders and Horned Frogs, and the team’s shortcomings that critics saw were exposed early.
Coach David Pierce entered his second season of Big 12 play with nine wins, nine losses and a glut of questions. The worst portion of Texas’ opening month came during a five-game stretch in which it was outscored 47-14 by Stanford and Arkansas.
‘We were here for a reason’
Pierce’s pitching staff had a 5.19 ERA, and each call to the bullpen was more like a dice roll. The offense, Clemens excluded, failed to settle into a groove over the season’s first month. Little about the Longhorns screamed “title contenders,” but internally they believed the makings of one were buried somewhere, just waiting to be unearthed.
“We just kind of got together and talked about how we knew everybody was here for a reason, to try to gain some confidence back for some of the pitchers and hitters,” Clemens said. “Talking about how we’re all brothers, this is a family and we’re just coming together, gaining confidence back because we know we were here for a reason.”
Texas won five of its first seven conference series, sweeping Kansas and Baylor in the process. It took two of three from Oklahoma State and two of three from Texas Tech — victories that ultimately helped propel the Longhorns past the Cowboys on the final day of the regular season.
Along the way, the defense turned more double plays than any team in the country except Cincinnati, Clemens’ bat grew into arguably the most lethal in the Big 12, and a few reliable arms — Parker Joe Robinson, Kamron Fields and Andy McGuire — developed in the bullpen. And with more consistent offensive production emerging outside of Clemens, it appeared that many of the cracks had been repaired.
“It’s hard to really grow until you play together, and when you lose together or win together and you have to go through so much adversity … that’s what they’ve done and they just had enough,” Pierce said. “They committed themselves to each other and they’re reaping the benefits right now.”
Clemens and Co. step up
Clemens fortified his own legacy last week by launching a trio of homers in UT’s final two games against TCU, including a walkoff shot in the middle game and a towering leadoff blast in the finale. But the Longhorns don’t finish the job without Duke Ellis legging out a two-out infield single in the ninth inning to set up Clemens’ game-winner, freshman reliever Fields silencing the Horned Frogs’ offense Saturday or Masen Hibbeler driving in two crucial runs in the series opener.
It was such a rounded performance that Texas swept the conference’s weekly honors. Clemens, who has 19 homers and 61 RBIs, was named Big 12 player of the week, Nolan Kingham earned pitcher of the week and Masen Hibbeler took home the newcomer-of-the-week award.
“They’re playing with confidence, but it’s not even about their numbers right now,” Pierce said. “I mean it is when you sit down and kind of reflect, but at the end of the guys are trying to figure out whatever it takes to win and that’s fun.”
Sights set on hosting regional
After winning five consecutive games to end the season, the Longhorns (37-18, 17-7 Big 12) have climbed to No. 14 in RPI and are positioned to host an NCAA regional for the first time since 2011. Texas can solidify its résumé this week at the Big 12 tournament at Oklahoma City. The Longhorns open against eighth-seeded Kansas (26-28, 815), which it outscored 33-8 over a three-game sweep in March.
Pierce set Sunday aside for some well-earned rest and reflection. On Monday, preparation began for the next challenge.
“I don’t think you forget about this,” Pierce said of UT’s conference championship. “What you do is you build off of it. You don’t get arrogant, you don’t get complacent, you continue to understand why you got in this position, and that’s because you did little things and you worked for it.”