The Oral Roberts Golden Eagles are the sixteen intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Oral Roberts University , located in Tulsa, Oklahoma . The Golden Eagles compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level as a member of the Summit League , which it officially joined on July 1, 2014.
24-730: The Titans began play as an independent team in 1965 . In 1971 , the Titans moved up to Division I . From 1979 until 1987 , the Titans were a member of the Midwestern Collegiate Conference . In 1989 , they became an NAIA school. In 1991 , they returned to Division I. The team joined the Mid-Continent Conference (now The Summit League) effective 1997 . In 2012, the school joined the Southland Conference . In December 2013, ORU announced that it would return to
48-581: A Joe Mauer injury. After being sent down, he was designated for assignment on May 15. After the 2011 season, he elected for free agency. Holm signed a minor league contract with the Colorado Rockies on February 9, 2012. He was released on March 31. On May 3, 2012, Holm signed a minor league deal with the Miami Marlins . However, on July 5, he was released, after hitting .135 in Triple-A. Holm coached
72-547: A World Championship in 1989. Todd Burns (1982–84) was Moore's teammate in Oakland and helped the A's win three straight American League pennants (1988–90) and 1989 World Series. Keith Lockhart (1985–86) played in the 1999 World Series as a member of the Atlanta Braves and helped that team win five consecutive National League Eastern Division titles. Tom Nieto (1981) played in the 1985 world Series with St. Louis Cardinals and won
96-647: A World championship in 1987 as a member of the Minnesota Twins. Doug Bernier , Michael Hollimon and Steve Holm all made their Major League debuts in 2008. Alex "Chi Chi" Gonzalez was drafted in the 1st round (23rd overall) in 2013 and made it to the Rangers lineup for his MLB debut May 30, 2015. Jose Trevino (6th round, 2014) and Matt Whatley (3rd round, 2017) were also drafted by the Texas Rangers. Former head coach Larry Cochell guided ORU from 1977–86, leading
120-582: A climate-controlled environment. The facility is located down the right-field line. Johnson Stadium has been host to three NCAA Regionals (1978,1980,1981), 14 conference tournaments, and many All-Americans. Many Major Leaguers have played at Johnson Stadium, including Roger Clemens , Joe Carter , Kirk Gibson , Tony Gwynn , Keith Lockhart , Pete Incaviglia , Kevin McReynolds , Mike Moore , and Robin Ventura . The H. A. Chapman Indoor Practice Facility opened in
144-523: A regulation-sized infield, three pitching areas and three netted batting cages. The track & field area features a complete pole vault area, high jump pit and long jump & triple jump practice areas. 1965 in sports 1965 in sports describes the year's events in world sport. Men's professional Men's amateur Women's professional Steeplechases Flat races Australia England France USA Davis Cup Steve Holm Stephen Robert Holm (born October 21, 1979)
168-511: A short period of time on the Giants in 2009, he was sent back to Triple-A Fresno . Eli Whiteside then became the back-up catcher when Holm was unable to be re-called. Holm was designated for assignment to clear room for Matt Downs on June 16. In December 2010, Holm signed a minor league contract with the Minnesota Twins . On April 14, 2011, Holm was called up to the major leagues during
192-560: A shortstop for ORU in 2000. In 2000, he played collegiate summer baseball with the Hyannis Mets of the Cape Cod Baseball League . Holm was drafted by the Giants in the 17th round in 2001 . He beat Eliezer Alfonzo and Guillermo Rodríguez to earn a position on the major-league roster in 2008 spring training , but got sent down for Eliezer Alfonzo on July 1, 2008. He got re-called on July 23, 2008. After playing for
216-615: A vote of the student body, many of whom were from the East Coast or were either casual or serious New York Titans (now known as Jets ) football fans. The nicknames endured until 1993, when a search for a new nickname was concluded with the selection of the Golden Eagles. ORU's new mascot , "Eli" the Golden Eagle, hatched out of his papier-mache egg on November 17, 1993, before the start of an exhibition basketball game. With this unveiling,
240-656: Is an American baseball coach and former catcher in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played for the San Francisco Giants and Minnesota Twins between 2008 and 2011, and is currently the head baseball coach of the Illinois State Redbirds . Holm attended Sacramento's McClatchy High School , where he played shortstop . He played college baseball at Oral Roberts for coach Sunny Golloway from 1998 to 2001, and earned 3rd Team All-American honors as
264-863: The #3 team in the nation, the University of Kansas, at the Allen Fieldhouse in Lawrence, Kansas, 78–71. The team went on to win the Mid-Con conference championship on March 6, 2007, defeating #2 seeded Oakland , overcoming an 11-point halftime deficit to win 71–67. In 2008 , the Golden Eagles captured their third consecutive Summit League title, receiving a 13 seed in the South Region of the NCAA tournament . The Golden Eagles lost to 4th-seeded Pittsburgh , 63–82. The Golden Eagles are currently coached by Paul Mills , who took over
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#1732894960302288-464: The Fall of 2009. The 35,000-square-foot (3,300 m) facility, located just west of J. L. Johnson Stadium, features indoor practices areas for both baseball and track & field programs. Built at a cost of $ 1.2 million, the facility was funded exclusively through private donations, including a generous lead gift from the H. A. and Mary K. Chapman Charitable Trust. The baseball portion of the facility features
312-585: The Golden Eagle nickname became the official symbol of a new era in ORU athletics. The Golden Eagles basketball teams play at the Mabee Center . The baseball team plays at J. L. Johnson Stadium . The volleyball team plays at Cooper Aerobics Center. The soccer teams play at the ORU Soccer Complex. The golf teams play at Indian Springs Country Club. The Mabee Center, an outstanding collegiate arena, has been home to
336-468: The Golden Eagles 1972. Mabee Center was built as an elliptical cable-suspension structure with basketball in mind. The arena has 10,575 permanent theater seats – with no obstacles to clear viewing. The splendid viewing and playing areas have drawn nine different national tournaments since the building opened. The Golden Eagles themselves played in the first NCAA tournament held here in 1974. Four other NCAA regionals (1975, 1978, 1982 and 1985) have been based at
360-551: The Mabee Center. The National Invitation Tournament picked ORU as host four times (1977, 1980, 1982 and 1983). J. L. Johnson Stadium has been the home of Golden Eagles baseball since 1978. It hosted its first game on March 6, 1978. In 2008, a 20,000-square-foot (1,900 m) facility was added which includes coaches offices, a state-of-the-art weight room and the Grand Slam Room in which boosters and fans can watch ORU games in
384-602: The NCAA Elite Eight in the 1974 Tournament before losing to Kansas 90–93 in overtime, in what has been called "the most important basketball game ever played in Tulsa." Most recently, the men's basketball team went to the 2021 NCAA tournament as the #15 seed, advancing as a cinderella to the Sweet 16, losing to #3 seeded Arkansas , 70–72. In the 2006–07 season, on November 15, 2006, the unranked Oral Roberts basketball team stunned
408-616: The NCAA Tournament in 2004 . Memorable Players: Nicole Bucelluni, Tayah Schroter-Gillespie, Lindsay Ruisch, Michelle Hoogveld, Kellie Fenton ORU's athletic teams for both men and women are known as the Golden Eagles , a change which became effective on April 30, 1993. Originally, ORU's nicknames were the Titans for men and the Lady Titans for women. These monikers were adopted in 1965 by
432-659: The Southland Conference. In 2006 , they advanced to the NCAA Super Regional. ORU continues to compete against regional rivals such as Arkansas, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas, and Wichita State, as well as dominating the Summit League. Mike Moore was an ORU standout from 1979–81 and first-round draft pick. He played 14 seasons in the big leagues and was selected an American League All-Star in 1989. He played in consecutive World Series with Oakland (1989–90), winning
456-562: The Summit League for all sports in 2014. As of 2009, ORU has had 22 players selected in the NBA draft , and 28 baseball All-Americans . Andretti Bain , who won a silver medal for The Bahamas as part of its 4 x 400 metres relay team at the 2008 Summer Olympics , also attended ORU. A member of the Summit League , Oral Roberts University sponsors teams in eight men's and eight women's NCAA sanctioned sports: The men's basketball team reached
480-505: The Year honors after guiding the Golden Eagles to a regional championship and final Top 25 ranking in all three major, a program first. Walton also served as the head coach for USA Baseball's National Team during the summer of 2008. Since taking over for Walton in 2013, Ryan Folmar led ORU to a 132-93 record and three NCAA Tournament berths in his first five years. In 2017, the Golden Eagles were 43-16 (25-4 Summit League) and beat Oklahoma State in
504-449: The nation's best winning percentage (.820) while also setting a Summit League mark with a 50–11 overall record. The 2004 Golden Eagles were ranked in the Top 20 for 12 consecutive weeks, reaching a high of No. 13 in late May...Walton led ORU to its ninth consecutive Summit League Tournament title and the program's 18th NCAA Regional appearance in 2006. Walton also earned ABCA Midwest Region Coach of
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#1732894960302528-414: The program prior to the 2017-18 season. Mills took over for Scott Sutton, who was the all-time winningest coach in ORU history with 328 wins (328-247) in 18 seasons. Coaching Career Records Coach Tenure Yrs. Record Pct. The ORU baseball team has won the Mid-Con and Summit League tournament titles in 18 of the last 20 years, with the only exceptions being the 2013 and 2014 seasons in which ORU competed in
552-465: The school to seven NCAA Regional appearances and the 1978 College World Series. Former coach Sunny Golloway was one of the winningest active skippers in the NCAA Division I, guiding the Golden Eagles to a 294–136 record and five NCAA Regional appearances in seven years at the helm. He was an assistant coach for Team USA in the summer of 2002. As first year head coach in 2004, Rob Walton guided ORU to
576-645: The second game of the Fayetteville Regional in the NCAA Tournament. Having 4 conference championships under their belt in the 8 years since joining the Mid-Continent Conference (now The Summit League ), the team has a solid reputation among fellow mid-major programs. Head coach Jerry Finkbeiner was hired in July 1996 and has delivered all four of the school's NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Championship appearances. The women's soccer team advanced to
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