Kolby Branch, Kyle Branch Meet At 2026 MCWS For Ou Baseball
Ou baseball reaches a family edge Monday evening when Georgia and Oklahoma meet in the 2026 Men’s College World Series, putting Kolby Branch and Kyle Branch on opposite sides. Kolby is Georgia’s senior shortstop and team captain; Kyle is Oklahoma’s sophomore second baseman.
Branch Brothers In Omaha
Georgia and Oklahoma will play for a spot in the right side of the bracket’s final, and the matchup gives the Branch family a rare chance to see two sons on the same stage at once. Kolby helped lead Georgia to the No. 3 national seed, while Kyle reached Omaha after Oklahoma beat Alabama in its opening game.
Kolby and teammate Tre Phelps watched Oklahoma’s walk-off win over Georgia Tech on Sunday, May 31, and the Georgia side had already handled Texas in its opener. That set up the brother-versus-brother meeting with both schools still alive in bracket play and one family watching the path narrow in real time.
Rusty And Kari Branch
The Branch family lives in Lucas, Texas, and Rusty and Kari Branch have four sons. The family had not all been together since Christmas, and Kari said, “We haven’t all been together as a family since Christmas.” She added, “There’s just no time to come home.”
The schedule around the postseason forced the family into split routes. After watching the Omaha games, Rusty and Kari flew home to catch Carson Branch in the 5A DII state championship for Lovejoy High School, where he was named state tournament MVP. Cooper Branch, the youngest brother, is playing 7-on-7 football.
Lovejoy Paths Cross Again
Kolby and Kyle both attended Lovejoy High School, and Rusty summed up the family’s stretch with one line: “We just went from oldest to youngest.” Kyle said of his brother, “We support each other, hands down no matter what,” and added, “It’s become one of my favorite relationships in my life.”
Kari said the trip to Omaha still felt unreal: “It still feels like we are floating above everything, to be able to watch both of them in the same day at the same place.” She also said, “As a boy, you dream of (playing at the Men’s College World Series), but to be here at all, and then with your brother, too, it’s amazing.”
Georgia already owns the SEC regular-season and SEC tournament titles, and Kolby was a second-team All-SEC selection in 2025. Oklahoma sent Kyle to Omaha after he made the All-SEC Freshman team in 2025, and Monday evening puts both brothers in the same bracket game with one family split between two dugouts.
