No team had a better opening weekend than Oklahoma, which went 3-0 at the Shriners Children’s College Showdown played at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas.

Oklahoma, unranked in most preseason polls, beat Texas Tech, Oklahoma State and TCU by a combined score of 32-6

The biggest development for Skip Johnson’s team occurred on the mound Friday afternoon when junior Cameron Johnson delivered by far the best performance of his collegiate career. Johnson, who started his career at LSU, struck out 11 and walked only three, while giving up three hits and no earned runs in six innings to beat Texas Tech.

A Maryland native, Johnson was ranked the No. 11 overall and No. 2 left-handed pitcher by Perfect Game in the Class of 2023, but he threw very few meaningful innings in his first two seasons due to a lack of command. In 2024, he made 13 appearances for LSU, giving up 12 earned runs and walking 16 in 12 innings. Last year at Oklahoma, he walked 25 in 21 innings over 10 games.

There were positive reports out of Oklahoma in the offseason that Johnson had finally figured things out. Those reports, at least through one game, appear to be accurate.

Around this horn

It was quite a Baylor debut for transfer first baseman Tyce Armstrong, who powered his way into the NCAA record book by hitting three grand slams in the Bears’ 15-2 win over New Mexico State in the 2026 opener.

THREE. GRAND. SLAMS.

🤯😱🤯😱#SicEm 🐻⚾️ | #Together pic.twitter.com/FfvIs42mDm

— Baylor Baseball (@BaylorBaseball) February 14, 2026

Armstrong, a senior transfer from UT Arlington, became the second Division I player ever to hit three grand slams in one game, joining Jim LaFountain of Louisville, who accomplished the feat in 1976 against Western Kentucky.

“I’m speechless. I mean, that was the most cool thing I’ve ever been a part of,” Armstrong said in the postgame media session. “I just stuck to my approach, planning on hitting the fastball hard. It’s a great feeling, for sure, and I’m hoping to keep it going, but this team is great. Best team I’ve ever been a part of. Coolest night of my life, for sure.”

Armstrong wasn’t the only player to hit three home runs on opening night. Vanderbilt catcher Colin Barczi hit three prodigious blasts in the Commodores’ 5-4 loss to TCU at Globe Life Field. Barczi’s homers traveled a combined 1,340 feet with exit velocities of 111, 112 and 118 mph, and he also hit a single with an exit velocity of 115 mph.

Colin Barczi is NOT HUMAN 🤯

His third HR, a 458 footer. Vandy trails by one in the bottom of the 9th 👏

📺: https://t.co/7mscUgtZJA#CollegeBaseballSeries | @CBS_Arlington | @VandyBoys pic.twitter.com/C2FbUpR66j

— FloCollege | Baseball (@FloCollegeBSB) February 14, 2026

It wasn’t all good news for Barczi. He made a critical throwing error with two outs in the top of the eighth inning, allowing two runs to score — a play that ended up deciding the game.

Vanderbilt lost two of three at the Shriner’s Children’s College Showdown, losing the opener to TCU, beating Texas Tech 13-3 on Saturday and dropping an 11-1 decision to Oklahoma State on Sunday.

Barczi’s three home runs were part of a promising power surge for Tim Corbin’s club. The Commodores, who ranked 13th in the SEC with 66 home runs in 2025, hit nine in three games at Globe Life.

Arizona has started 0-3 for the second consecutive season. A year ago, the Wildcats went winless at the Shriners Children’s College Showdown (losing to Ole Miss, Clemson and Louisville). This year, the Cats opened the season with losses to Stanford, Oregon State and Michigan at the College Baseball Series in Surprise, Ariz.

In 2025, Chip Hale’s club rebounded quickly, winning 17 of its next 18 games and en route to an eventual College World Series trip.

This year’s team has the talent to turn things around, but the Cats will have to do so without All-America closer Tony Pluta, who is out for the season with a torn UCL in his right arm.

Michigan, meanwhile, won its first three games in Surprise, beating Oregon State, Stanford and Arizona. The Wolverines play Oregon State again on Monday afternoon.

Stanford transfer Joey Volchko allowed only two hits and one earned run over four innings in Georgia’s 13-1 win over Wright State on Friday. He also walked just two, a good sign for a talented pitcher who struggled to find the strike zone during his two years with the Cardinal (72 walks in 113 innings).

Caden Aoki, a transfer from USC, finished things up for Georgia with three scoreless innings of two-hit ball.

Another of the Bulldogs’ heralded newcomers, Kenny Ishikawa, a two-way player from the University of Seattle, made an impact at the plate (3-for-5, 3 runs scored, .778 on-base percentage) and on the mound (4 1/3 innings, one hit, eight strikeouts) in the opening weekend. Georgia took two of three from Wright State.

Tennessee also received strong contributions from a trio of notable transfers in a weekend sweep over Nicholls. Blaine Brown, an outfielder/DH who transferred from Rice, went 8-for-14 with three home runs. Henry Ford, a third baseman who played his first two years at  Virginia, went 5-for-12 with a home run. Pitcher Landon Mack, a transfer from Rutgers, struck out nine and allowed four hits and one run in six innings in Game 2 of the series.

Xavier has played an extremely aggressive nonconference schedule in recent years. Last season, the Muskeeters did not make the NCAA Tournament despite having an RPI of 42 and a nonconference strength of schedule that ranked No. 5 nationally. The problem? Not enough wins. They went 32-27 overall and had only five Quad 1 victories.

Well, it’s obviously very early, but Billy O’Conner’s team is off to a great start in 2026 after taking two of three from East Carolina on the road. There will be plenty of other opportunities for quality wins over the next month. The Muskeeters play at Louisville on Tuesday and then, over the next three weekends, play at Arkansas, Cal State Fullerton and Oregon State, followed by a two-game, midweek series at Oregon.

And finally

• Kentucky swept its opening series at UNC Greensboro by a combined score of 34-11, but the Wildcats will be without standout shortstop Tyler Bell for the foreseeable future. Bell, a draft-eligible sophomore who is expected to be a first-round pick in July, injured his left shoulder diving for a ball and is out indefinitely.

• Michigan State announced a contract extension for veteran coach Jake Boss on Thursday and then opened the season with a series win at Louisville. The Spartans took the first two games, 4-3 on Friday and 13-4 on Saturday, before dropping the finale, 9-1. Michigan State, which went 28-27 overall and 13-17 in the Big Ten last season, has not played in the NCAA Tournament since 2012.

• Florida right-hander Liam Peterson, widely considered to be one of the top college arms in the 2026 MLB Draft, was roughed up in his season debut. In 3 1/3 innings, he gave three hits, four earned runs and walked five in the Gators’ 9-7 loss to UAB in 10 innings.

• USC opened up the new Dedeaux Field on campus by sweeping Pepperdine. On Saturday, sophomore Grant Govel and freshman Cameron Fausset combined to throw a seven-inning no-hitter in the Trojans’ 11-0 victory.

• Texas lefty Dylan Volantis, the 2025 SEC Freshman of the Year for his work as a closer, made his first career start on Sunday. It went well. In seven innings, he allowed one hit and no earned runs while striking out eight and walking only one.

• The Chris Pollard era at Virginia opened with a sweep over Wagner. First, the good news: The Cavs scored a combined 69 runs, setting a school record with 25 runs on Saturday and then breaking it with 31 on Sunday. The bad news is that they gave up at least seven runs in each game, totaling 26.

• Kansas picked up a nice series win, taking two of three on the road at Southland favorite UTRGV. The Jayhawks are looking to advance to the NCAA Tournament in back-to-back seasons for the first time since 1993 and 1994.

• Southern Miss lost the opener but rallied to take the next two games to win a series from UCSB in Hattiesburg, Miss., in a battle of two of the top midmajor programs in the nation. On Friday, UCSB All-American Jackson Flora was magnificent, allowing three hits with five strikeouts and no walks in six shutout innings.

• Kent State, picked second in the MAC, swept three games at Southeastern Louisiana, one of the top teams in the Southland.

• Houston won its first three games at the Puerto Rico Challenge, beating Wake Forest, Boston College and Manhattan. The Cougars, who went 30-25 overall and 12-17 in the Big 12 last year, play Washington on Monday at 1 p.m.

• The Huskies, meanwhile, lost their first three game in Puerto Rico and have yet to score a run. They lost to NC State (13-0), Wake Forest (5-0) and Boston College (10-0).