The first week of games have started for college softball, and many teams have made statements, with key players having significant influences on their teams’ early success. 

At the beginning of the season, Texas and Texas Tech shared the first place spot at the top of the polls. These teams faced off last year in the national championship, where Texas came out on top. 

After the first week of games, Texas Tech is now No. 1 out of 25 teams that are ranked. 

Texas Tech junior pitcher Nijaree Canady is a player to watch this season due to her success last year. She played a major part in Texas Tech reaching the national championship. 

Last year was her first year at Texas Tech, and she showed her power at the plate. Canady was named 2024 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year, 2023 NFCA Freshman of the Year, and 2024 Pac-12 Pitcher of the Year. 

Another player to pay attention to is Texas senior Reese Atwood. She is a catcher and is known for her big bat, hitting many home runs and having a high batting average. Atwood has been named the NFCA Catcher of the Year and the 2025 Johnny Bench Award winner, and she has earned multiple First-Team All-American honors. 

Texas played Abilene Christian University on Thursday, where Atwood hit her 59th home run. This is a new record in Texas softball history. 

Also this year, a new rule has been implemented into college softball which requires a safety bag at first base. A safety bag is an extra base connected to first base. The first baseman uses one base and the runner uses the other, so there is less chance of injury for either. 

Most high schools already have them, but some of them do not. Fewer injuries on the base paths are expected with this new rule. 

Softball has become a popular sport to watch over the years, and it gains more and more viewers each year. It averages around 1.3 million viewers across 15 games on ESPN.

Fans can watch college softball on various ESPN networks including, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, the SEC Network and the ACC Network.