![]() Venables and his coaches know you can’t bring out the best from everyone in the building without forging strong bonds, and they’re doing that. They’re laying a foundation and have to be highly demanding this offseason to set the right standards for intensity and excellence. Everybody’s got to defend it and embrace and nurture it and have a very clear vision for what the purpose and mission of the program is.” It’s gotta be a lifestyle, not just me up in the front preaching. I’ve got to do a great job of rehearsing my beliefs and holding people accountable, articulating the values of this program and getting people to buy into those things on a daily basis. We’ve got to develop a mindset with everybody of what good to great looks like. ![]() “So it’s recognizing what has been good but then pointing out where we can be better and more efficient culturally, philosophically, really working hard on leadership development. “They’d be looking at me with crooked eyes if I come in here and act like everything that’s been going on has not been good,” he said. 10 finish in the AP poll.įor Venables and this program, the mission going forward is taking Oklahoma from good to great. A bitterly disappointing year for the Sooners ended 11-2 with a No. First-time head coaches tend to show up at the end of losing seasons. Venables understands he took over under truly unique circumstances. Then suddenly, a mere 16 hours after a dramatic loss at Oklahoma State knocked them out of the Big 12 title game, Lincoln Riley was gone.Īmong the fan base, there has been a lot of revisionist history about the Riley era - some of it fair, some of it false, most of it petty - and what he did and did not achieve during his 55-10 run as head coach. A midseason switch from Spencer Rattler to Caleb Williams provided a real spark, but the fireworks their freshman quarterback provided couldn’t totally cover up their flaws. They survived close calls over and over against Tulane, Nebraska, West Virginia, Kansas State, Texas and even Kansas before they eventually came up short against Baylor. 2 squad had a hard time playing up to great expectations in 2021. These Oklahoma players he’s inherited? They’ve gone through some stuff. That’s what the growth process is all about.” You have to get in the mud and get your hands dirty and you gotta get scarred up. You have to have a good perspective on where you’re at and where you want to go and what it takes. I try to self-talk and show some patience, but I just have an aggressive mindset. We’re not where we want to be, but I do think from a realistic standpoint, and anybody that knows me, I’m not patient. “It’s been a lot of fun to build the team,” Venables said. No, it’s about reminding himself to have a little patience and grace. He’s not saying these things to start building excuses for this season. Venables estimated there are at least 50 players in his program who have never put on a Sooner uniform in a real game. The program’s quarterback signees from 2018 through 2021 are now playing at SMU, South Carolina, TCU and USC. Oklahoma lost nearly 400 career starts off last year’s squad, including 68 percent on offense and 60 percent on defense. I think production-wise, probably 70 percent of our production is gone. ![]() The man could not be more fired up about where these Sooners are heading.īut where are they today? Venables couldn’t help but chuckle a little when the discussion turned to his 2022 squad and the starting point of a bold new era for this program. Venables is bringing big ideas to this job, a carefully considered and exhaustively detailed philosophy accrued from winners like Bill Snyder, Bob Stoops and Dabo Swinney and close to 30 years in coaching. What he’s aiming for is something with deep roots, sustainability, longevity. Chasing the achievement of a great team is, in his view, too singularly focused. The new head coach of Oklahoma has said that plenty this offseason. Brent Venables is building a program, not just a team.
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