Oregon Baseball’s Mindset Puts Texas on Notice in Austin Super Regional

The No. 11 Oregon Ducks are only two wins away from punching their ticket to the College World Series in Omaha for the first time since 1954. Standing in the way of a potential historic Oregon season?

The No. 6 Texas Longhorns who, like Oregon, dominated in the regional round in a clean sweep to go 3-0. The Austin Super Regional is shaping up to be a must-see series between two of the biggest brands in college sports.

Oregon catcher Burke-Lee Mabeus celebrates an out at the plate against Oregon State on day three at the NCAA Eugene Regional Tournament at PK Park in Eugene May 31, 2026. | Chris Pietsch/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Ducks will travel south to UFCU Disch-Falk Field where the Longhorns fans are loud, proud and rowdy. It's the first time Texas has hosted a Super Regional since 2021 and the Longhorns pose a serious threat to the Ducks' CWS dreams with elite pitching and big bats.

Oregon's Mindset Before Facing Texas In Austin Super Regional

For Oregon baseball, the same mindset and attitude that has catapulted them to play Texas in the Austin Super Regional, remains the foundation for what comes next.

Texas Longhorns' Temo Becerra (1) scoops a ground ball as Arkansas Razorbacks take on Texas Longhorns during the SEC baseball tournament at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium in Hoover, Ala. on Friday, May 22, 2026. | Jake Crandall/ Advertiser / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Oregon coach Mark Wasikowski has clearly instilled a team chemistry that embraces pressure and feeds off the energy of a crowd. The Ducks actually set a goal to play Nebraska at the Big Ten Tournament in front of 12,083 mostly-Nebraska fans and thrived in the hostile environment to beat the Cornhuskers, 8-0.

Oregon pitcher Miles Gosztola shared the pride the Ducks feel in representing their home state in SEC country for the Super Regional.

"It's fantastic feeling to move on regardless of who we play. And I think (coach) Waz has done a fantastic job of coaching our mentalities, not necessarily to play against the opponent, but to play against the game itself," Gosztola said after beating Oregon State in the Eugene Regional Final. "It's a great feeling to move on and represent Oregon. It's a great ball club overall and I'm really excited for what we're going to do in the future."

Texas baseball coach Jim Schlossnagle during the NCAA college baseball game against Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee on May 8, 2026. | Saul Young/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Oregon senior third baseman Drew Smith echoed a similar sentiment as Gosztola but shed light into what it was like to play his final game at PK Park.

"This place is very special, and it was a place I wanted to go to since I was five or six," Smith said. "It's deeper than just family. It's just something really special. It's friends I'm going to have for the rest of my life. Relationships that I've built over the last four years are intangibles that you can't really get anywhere else. So I had chances in high school to not even come to this place, and looking back on it, I'm very happy I did decide to come here because this has been the greatest four years of my life..."

"And I don't plan it ending anytime soon," Smith said with a smile.

Oregon’s Drew Smith, left, and Naulivou Lauaki Jr. celebrate a home run by Lauaki as the Oregon Ducks host the USC Trojans on May 14, 2026, in Eugene, Oregon. | Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Oregon's gritty mindset was on full display when the Ducks learned they'd be hosting their in-state rivals, the Oregon State Beavers, in the Eugene Regional. The Oregon baseball team burst into cheers during Selection Monday when they learned they may have a chance to end the Beavers' season. As fate would have it, that's exactly what happened.

Now, the Ducks take that attitude to Texas where Oregon has a shot to upset the Longhorns on their own home field.

Battle Tested Ducks vs. Tough Longhorns

Oregon is battle tested. The Ducks have played, and beaten, some of the most talented teams in college baseball and are the only Big Ten team (along with potentially USC, who plays in the regional final on Monday night) to win a regional. Both No. 1 seed UCLA and No. 13 seed Nebraska lost at their home regionals.

The Ducks fan base rallied at PK Park to give Oregon a true home field advantage as the baseball team dominated the Eugene Regional with three straight wins in front of three sold out crowds.

An elite atmosphere at PK Park.

And a familiar face in the stands: Oregon football coach Dan Lanning

MORE⬇️ #GoDucks https://t.co/BWt9L5f9z7 pic.twitter.com/6TQungLsSX
— Bri Amaranthus (@BriAmaranthus) June 1, 2026

The Ducks beat in-state rival Oregon State Beavers in the regional final, 4-1, to advance on the road to the CWS. The crowd was intense and there was a familiar face in the stands: Oregon football coach Dan Lanning, who is a big supporter of the Ducks baseball program.

Oregon will face a different animal in Texas. Although the Ducks might carry the "faceless opponent"

Oregon pitcher Luke Morgan celebrates getting out of seventh inning against Oregon State on day three at the NCAA Eugene Regional Tournament at PK Park in Eugene May 31, 2026. | Chris Pietsch/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Oregon and Texas will face off in the NCAA Austin Super Regional on either Friday or Saturday. The schedule and TV information will be announced after the completion of the other NCAA Regionals.

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