Brent Venables among coaches that can improve their stock
Every season, plenty of head coaches come into the fall with something to prove. In the case of Oklahoma Sooners head coach Brent Venables, he's looking to prove that he does, in fact, belong as a head coach at the highest level of this sport.
After a 6-7 season in 2022, Venables got on track with a 10-3 season in 2023. But regressing back to a 6-7 record in 2024 has fans and analysts alike wondering if Venables has what it takes to lead the Sooners. He's made some massive changes to the program this offseason to try and set himself up as best as he possibly can for Year 4 overall and Year 2 in the SEC.
Will Backus, who covers college football for CBS Sports, believes that Venables is on a shortlist of Power Four head coaches who have a chance to improve their stock the most this year. Backus cites the new offensive battery of Ben Arbuckle and John Mateer as the primary reasons why.
Venables' Sooners did not take the SEC transition well. Sure, they pulled off a gigantic upset against Alabama, but they were outscored by an average of 15 points in their other four games against ranked conference opponents and then capped the whole campaign with a loss against Navy in the Armed Forces Bowl. So, in an effort to ensure Oklahoma doesn't fall too far behind, Venables made sweeping changes in the offseason. He'll handle defensive play-calling duties while handing the offensive coordinator role to Ben Arbuckle, who engineered some of the nation's most effective passing offenses at Western Kentucky and Washington State. Arbuckle's Wazzu QB, John Mateer, followed him to Norman. Oklahoma also signed five wide receiver transfers to bolster a position decimated by injuries and portal departures. As long as the offensive line takes a big leap, the rest of Oklahoma's offense should follow, and that would mean improvement for the Sooners. - Backus, CBS Sports
The offensive coordinator-quarterback relationship is becoming increasingly important in the transfer portal-NIL era of college football. The Sooners look like they'll have one of the nation's best in 2025 after having one of the nation's worst in 2024. Venables and Sooner Nation hope that an improved offensive output can lead to more victories this fall in Norman.
Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Aaron on X @Aaron_Gelvin.
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They'll host Indiana, which is coming off its best season in program history last year, but Penn State doesn't have to play Michigan or Illinois. Perhaps the selection committee will dock PSU in the end for not having a strong non-conference schedule – Nevada, Florida International and Villanova are the first three opponents, – but Franklin should have a strong enough team that realistically should win the conference for that not to matter in the long run. Laken Litman covers college football, college basketball and soccer for FOX Sports. She previously wrote for Sports Illustrated, USA Today and The Indianapolis Star. She is the author of "Strong Like a Woman," published in spring 2022 to mark the 50th anniversary of Title IX. Follow her at @LakenLitman. RJ Young is a national college football writer and analyst for FOX Sports and the host of the podcast "The Number One College Football Show." Follow him at @RJ_Young. Michael Cohen covers college football and basketball for FOX Sports with an emphasis on the Big Ten. Follow him at @Michael_Cohen13. Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account, and follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily!
USA Today
2 hours ago
- USA Today
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