On Wednesday night in Omaha, Oklahoma met Georgia with a spot in the Men’s College World Series Finals on the line. The Sooners just needed a win over the Bulldogs to punch their ticket to the Finals, while Georgia needed a win to force a winner-take-all finale.
Oklahoma-Georgia gave us an incredible family moment at the Men’s College World Series
Kolby Branch’s final collegiate swing capped off a bittersweet night for the Branch family in Omaha
Mark Schofield is a former college quarterback and attorney covering the NFL and F1.
But one family knew the Finals were in their future.
That would be the Branch family.
Older brother Kolby is the senior starting shortstop for Georgia, while younger brother Kyle is the sophomore starting second baseman for the Sooners. The two youngest Branch brothers, Carson and Cooper, are still in high school. But Kolby and Kyle were in the starting lineups Wednesday night, the first time in Men’s College World Series history a pair of brothers met in Omaha.
Oklahoma pulled away, and by the time Kolby came to the plate in the top of the ninth, the Sooners held an 11-3 lead. But the Georgia shortstop made the most of his final collegiate swing:
Kolby belted a solo home run to left-center field, and on his way around the bases, he shared a quick moment with his younger brother, who appreciated the blast from his spot in the infield:
The two also met on the field after the game:
To cap off the night, the umpiring crew made sure to find their parents, Kari and Rusty, with a special gift. The lineup card from the game, marking the history the brothers made:
Rusty Brach talked after the game about that home run, and the night itself.
“Maybe the coolest thing was when Kolby hit the last home run and his brother gave him high five, we were too busy crying to see it,” Rusty said.
“We were saying goodbye to the team and the umpires came out and introduced themselves. They said we’d like to bring you back and they said we don’t ever do this but we thought this was a cool enough event and they gave us the lineup cards for both teams.”
While one son saw his collegiate career come to an end, the other will play this weekend for a national championship.
“It’s bittersweet, but we’re appreciative and proud of them,” Rusty said. “We’re hurting for one and we’re real excited for the second.”
While Kyle heads to the Finals this weekend against North Carolina, Kolby now turns his attention to next month’s MLB Draft.
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