Oklahoma Unveils Statue of Legendary Coach Patty Gasso at Love’s Field
NORMAN — The final piece for Love’s Field was finally set into place on Friday.
Patty Gasso, Oklahoma’s hall of fame softball coach, officially had her statue unveiled outside the front gates of Love’s Field.
Gasso had to wait through the summer after the weather scrapped the initial date in of the unveiling in the spring, but Brian Hanlon’s statue of the legendary softball figure is now in place to complete OU’s new softball palace.
“It is beyond, gosh, beyond humbling to even have this opportunity,” Gasso said during the 30-minute ceremony. “I never in a million years could think that this could be something happening in my lifetime.”
Oklahoma athletics director Joe Castiglione, university president Joseph Harroz Jr. and former OU captains Kelsey Arnold and Lynnsie Elam all spoke alongside Gasso as fans and softball alumna alike gathered to celebrate Gasso’s impact on the sport.
“Patty has changed the game,” Castiglione said during the ceremony. “… Oklahoma softball is the gold gold standard. This (statue) is going to be bronze when you see it, but it might as well be gold because she has set the standard for the entire sport and we could not be more proud of her.”
The statue, which depicts Gasso with an outstretched hand as she so often greets a Sooner rounding the bases after blasting a home run, is meant to be for the fans as well, Gasso said.
“Please, when you see me at the front gate hit my hand,” said Gasso, “because it will represent all former and future OU softball greats for the years to come.”
𝐏𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐲 𝐆𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐨. 𝐒𝐨𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐫 𝐋𝐞𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐝. 𝐅𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫. pic.twitter.com/6h7d0ihz4F
— Oklahoma Softball (@OU_Softball) September 13, 2024The ceremony will be something that sticks with Gasso forever, but she said she’ll cherish the moments with those closest to her from Friday.
“I think what I would remember is seeing, first of all, my family in the front, my grandkids,” Gasso said after the ceremony. “I look to my left, I see a bunch of alums, some who just left this past year and some I’ve never coached. I look to my right and I see all the baby girls who are ready to take over the program. Just really excited about it. I look out and I see fans way over by Imhoff standing out there watching from afar.
“… There’s so many things, but it was so joyful.”
Gasso concluded her 31st season in the coaches box at Oklahoma by again raising the bar for the sport.
The Sooners swept Texas in the 2024 Women’s College World Series finals, notching the first four-peat in the history of college softball.
It was Gasso’s eighth championship at Oklahoma (UCLA and Arizona are the only two other programs to win more than two national titles).
Gasso’s teams won 15 Big 12 regular season titles, including a string of 11-straight from 2012-2023, as well as nine conference tournaments.
In her 34 total years as a head coach, Gasso has a 1,676-411-3 (.802) career record. She ranks third all-time in both wins and winning percentage, and paces all active NCAA softball coaches in both categories.
Gasso has coached a pair of USA Softball Collegiate Players of the Year in Jocelyn Alo (2021 and 2022) and Keilani Ricketts (2012 and 2013), as well as 79 All-Americans.
Now, Gasso will lead Oklahoma to a new frontier.
The Sooners are preparing for their first run through the SEC, where the four-time defending national champions will be a major target in the country’s toughest softball conference.
Gasso’s legendary senior class graduated out, meaning she’ll only have eight returners off the 2024 roster to pair with five transfers and eight true freshmen to tackle the Southeastern Conference in 2025.
