Karen Weekly says Oklahoma is 'loaded'

Many coaches fall into a cliche. They hype up a subpar opponent to terrify their team into taking the foe seriously. While this is often the case, Tennessee softball head coach Karen Weekly isn’t bluffing this time around.

After defeating Alabama 10-5 in the first round of the Women’s College World Series on Thursday, Weekly was all smiles. She had every right to be. Her team looked like an unstoppable force.

Unfortunately for her, the Volunteers are about to meet an immovable object: The Oklahoma Sooners.

“They’re loaded. They’re just absolutely loaded,” Weekly admitted. “It will be a great game, and I’m excited for our team to have that opportunity to play that game.”

No matter how much praise Weekly gave Oklahoma, it wouldn’t be enough. This past week, the Sooners set the NCAA D1 record for most wins in a row at 48 victories. They added another on Thursday and, if they’re lucky, Tennessee will be No. 50.

MAKE THAT 49-STRAIGHT WINS 🔥 🥎 @OU_Softball's DI-record win steak continues! pic.twitter.com/JVcNNzNjFp

— espnW (@espnW) June 1, 2023

Breaking records like they’re cheap pieces of glass, Oklahoma has been the main focus of the softball world this season. Whether Weekly wanted her players to know about the Sooners or not, they’re well aware.

“It’s hard not to know what Oklahoma is doing. I think we all hear about it,” Weekly said.

Saturday will be the first matchup between the two programs this year. Consequently, Weekly isn’t deeply familiar with the intricacies of the Sooners’ roster. Unless, the 27-year head coach is bluffing this time around.

"The mark of a good team, a team that can compete for championships, is the bottom of your order."

The #LadyVols 5-9 hitters combined for five hits. When the bottom of the lineup is going, UT is a dangerous force. @jamisonbrock9 @kltaylor18 @KarenWeekly pic.twitter.com/fA0tpLUTXs

— Reece Van Haaften (@Reece_VH) June 1, 2023

“I haven’t studied film on them because we never saw them during the regular season and there was never even a chance we were going to,” Weekly said. “I’ll get to work on that.”

Only so much film can be studied in 48 hours. The No. 4 seed Tennessee Volunteers will go toe-to-toe with No. 1 seed Oklahoma at 3 p.m. on June 3. The game will be broadcast on ABC.