Alright, Boomer, sooner. This week, Brent Venables received a sizable increase as Oklahoma and Texas get ready to formally join the SEC on July 1. Venables’s contract was extended by the Oklahoma Board of Regents for a period of six years and $51.6 million, which will keep him in Norman until 2029. This move will cost you a lot of money—an average of over $8.5 million annually—compared to the $43.5 million contract he signed in 2021. Fans of the Sooners may be rejoicing, but why now? remains a mystery. With Venables only in his third year and the program facing a new conference gauntlet, this extension feels like a gamble.
Concerns Regarding
Brent Venables
The Transfer to the SEC
Venerables and Oklahoma are going to be under pressure because of the impending transfer to the SEC. Sooners supporters have dominated the Big 12 and are accustomed to excellence. Their record of 14 conference titles—the most in the league’s history—a national championship (2000), and four College Football Playoff berths speak for themselves. Even the most ardent Texas fan would be in a state of shock at these accomplishments. Regarding that, the Sooners had defeated their Red River Rivals with ease. Since 2000, Oklahoma has a 17-8 record versus Texas. For the Sooners, the future doesn’t appear to be as clear-cut or idyllic as the past.
Heading to the SEC, the Longhorns are all gas and no brakes. After being completely destroyed in the first meeting, Venables is 1-1 against the Longhorns and emerged victorious in a nail-biting thriller at Red River last year. After reviving the Longhorns under Steve Sarkisian, Texas was sent out in style in 2023 with a Big 12 Championship and a trip to the College Football Playoffs. In the SEC, Venerables will face teams other than simply Texas. Lately, college football and the SEC have been dominated by Georgia and Alabama. In order to be relevant and at the top of college football, the Sooners will have to fight their way through a struggle akin to that of the Game of Thrones, going from being the hunted to the hunters.
Record of Coaching
Many unanswered issues remain about Venables’s time as head coach. In his two seasons in Norman, he had a record of 16–10, well below the Sooner norm. His first year, though, was a difficult beginning and a culture shock for the Sooners. The 2022 season was very disappointing for Oklahoma, who finished with an overall 6-7 record and an unusual 3-6 in the conference. It was the first time the program had a losing record since 1998. A 49-0 loss to Texas in the Red River game sparked a lot of concerns, but injuries also played a part.
2023 was an improvement, with the Sooners finishing with a 10-3 record. However, they still fell short of expectations. Venables redeemed himself in the Red River game by preventing the embarrassment of blowing a late 10-point lead in a thrilling finish. The Sooners drove 75 yards in five plays, scoring in under a minute to defeat the Longhorns. Despite this victory over Texas, the Sooners ended the season third in the league and suffered a loss to Arizona in the Alamo Bowl.
Changes in the Roster
Venables has experience assembling a club capable of winning championships. He was one of Dabo Swinney’s top recruiters at Clemson and his right-hand man. The Sooners are ranked eighth in the Class of 2025 and were 12th in the recruiting rankings in 2024. Although those are respectable figures and would place them in the top half of the Big 12, as Dan Hawkins once remarked, “This ain’t intramurals, brother.” Oklahoma needs to regularly stack the Top 5 classes in order to compete in the SEC against teams like Georgia and Alabama.
In contrast to Swinney, Venables must become proficient with the Transfer Portal in order to fill up holes and bolster his team in preparation for SEC play. When quarterback Dillon Gabriel transferred to Oregon at the end of the 2023 season, the portal took a serious damage to the Sooners. Jackson Arnold is ready to take over at quarterback, but there’s a deeper issue that emerges when one considers who will shield him. A worrying problem as the club moves into the tough SEC, Oklahoma lost all five of its starting offensive lineman from the 2023 campaign.
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