No. 13 Oklahoma State 2025 College Top 25 Preview

Image credit: Nolan Schubart (Photo courtesy Bruce Waterfield/OSU Athletics

• Last season: 42-19 (19-9 Big 12); eliminated in Stillwater Regional
• Final 2024 ranking: No. 18
• Coach (record at school): Josh Holliday (445-236-2, 14th season)

You can find our complete 2025 preseason Top 25 ranking here.

The Good News

With Texas and Oklahoma now in the SEC, Oklahoma State enters 2025 as somewhat of a standalone favorite in the Big 12, even with eight players from its nationally-seeded 2024 squad now in pro ball. The Cowboys returned their most productive offensive player from a year ago, corner outfielder and first baseman Nolan Schubart, as well as three other players who hit at least 10 home runs in 2024, catcher Ian Daugherty, first baseman Colin Brueggemann and third baseman Aidan Meola. Freshmen Brock Thompson and Garrett Shull were both highly regarded coming out of the high school ranks and are expected to contribute immediately as the Cowboys starting shortstop and designated hitter, respectively.

Holliday’s 14th squad in Stillwater is also plenty deep on the mound, where they’ll need to make up for the loss of their entire 2024 rotation. Early-round 2025 draft prospect Gabe Davis is expected to be at the forefront of the Cowboys’ efforts with a high-octane fastball. Hawaii transfer Harrison Bodendorf, who generated more whiffs with his changeup than nearly any other college player in the nation last year, also joins the Cowboys’ rotation as will St. John’s transfer Mario Pesca, at least to start the year.

The Bad News

For as much as the Cowboys return from their 42-win 2024 team, it’s hard to overstate the importance of the players they lost, including two-way player and first-round pick Carson Benge, staff ace Brian Holiday, starting shortstop Zach Ehrhard, No. 2 starter Sam Garcia, No. 3 starter Janzen Keisel and key leverage reliever Robert Cranz. Holliday told Baseball America that replacing them will take time and the team is prepared to effectively audition new players in their roles throughout the early portion of the regular season, which is a very similar process to how they established roles in 2024. It’s critically important that several starting pitchers emerge as viable options quickly.

Player To Know

Picked as Baseball America’s preseason favorite to win Big 12 player of the year, Schubart appears primed for a huge junior season after he led the Big 12 in home runs (23), on-base percentage (.513), OPS (1.351) and RBIs (68) in 2024 and became the 13th Oklahoma State player ever to earn all-America honors in multiple seasons. Schubart will be featured prominently in the Cowboys’ batting order and will play corner outfield and first base again.

Path To Omaha

Oklahoma State has garnered a somewhat nasty reputation in recent seasons as a team prone to early exits in the NCAA Tournament despite having the talent to make very deep runs. The Cowboys hosted three-straight regionals from 2022-24 but got left in Stillwater each time, a result that last year was the byproduct of offensive woes across their final 18 innings of play. If Oklahoma State can play to its talent level when it matters most, it could be one of the most dangerous teams in the country.

Projected 2025 Lineup

Pos	Player	Year	AVG	OBP	SLG	AB	HR	RBI	Note
C	Ian Daugherty	Sr.	.252	.358	.511	139	10	32
1B	Colin Brueggemann	Sr.	.251	.344	.507	223	14	50
2B	Avery Ortiz	So.	.258	.374	.447	190	9	34
3B	Aidan Meola	Sr.	.329	.416	.590	161	10	47
SS	Brock Thompson	Fr.							Liberty HS – Bakersfield, Calif.
OF	Nolan Schubart	Jr.	.370	.513	.838	173	23	68
OF	Kollin Ritchie	So.	.271	.419	.457	140	7	28
OF	Donovan LaSalle	So.	.194	.383	.333	36	1	3
DH	Garrett Shull	Fr.							Enid HS – Enid, Okla.
Pos	Player	Year	GS	IP	ERA	WHIP	SO	BB	Note
SP	Harrison Bodendorf*	Jr.	11	56.2	4.61	1.43	64	28	Hawaii
SP	Gabe Davis	Jr.	5	45.1	4.17	1.35	55	25
SP	Mario Pesca*	Jr.	15	76.0	2.96	1.42	53	38	St. John’s
RP	Sean Youngerman*	Jr.	12	70.1	3.71	1.08	69	15	Westmont College (NAIA)
RP	Ryan Ure	Jr.	0	3.2	4.91	1.91	7	4