University of Oklahoma athletic director Joe Castiglione announced that a statue of softball coach Patty Gasso is to be unveiled next year when the Sooners begin playing at Love's Field, their new stadium.
As reported by Sooners Illustrated, Castiglione made the announcement Saturday during a bration of the program’s seventh national championshi, and third in a row.
“I get emails and social media posts and people stopping me, ‘When are we going to dedicate a statue for Patty Gasso?” Castiglione told the crowd assembled at Marita Hynes Field. “So, ya’ll we do things and we try to keep a secret for a while, but you just won’t let us keep a secret. So tonight I’m just breaking it out. We’re going to have a statue for coach Gasso next year.”
Gasso has coached 29 seasons with the Sooners and has a career record of 1,456-345-2 (.808). The Sooners swept Florida State in the Women’s College World Series Final to win their third consecutive national championship.
Gasso’s statue will be the first non-football statue commissioned by OU athletics.
"I'm honored," Gasso said as she choked back tears. "It's the first time you guys can be silent. I haven't heard you so silent... I first want to start off, a lot of the attention comes towards me, but this team knows this, I know this. You’ve got the greatest coaches in America right here.”
Gasso’s statue will be the first non-football statue commissioned by OU athletics. This season the Sooners went 61-1, won 53 straight games and became the second program to win three consecutive national titles.
"Winning is a remarkable thing to do, but we all know the truth. ... It's not in the winning, winning is a byproduct of who they really are," OU President Joseph Harroz said. "In a time when so much of intercollegiate athletics is in question, this team demonstrates what college athletics is all about, and they have the big picture."
All seven of the Sooners' championships, which started in 2000, have been under Gasso. She reached the Women’s College World Series 16 times during her tenure and in the process, advanced to the postseason in each of her seasons. She’s won more Big 12 games than any coach in the league’s history and has more than twice as many overall wins as any other coach in OU history. This season the Sooners went 61-1, won 53 straight games and became only the second program to win three consecutive national titles.
