Oklahoma football coach Brent Venables he knows what it’s like to take over a program in the current era of college football.
Venables prepares to start his second season in Norman, Oklahoma after a disappointing 6-7 record his first year.
Oklahoma Sooners head coach Brent Venables coaches off the bench in the second half of the game against the Iowa State Cyclones at Jack Trice Stadium on October 29, 2022 in Ames, Iowa. The Oklahoma Sooners won 27- 13 on Iowa cyclones. (David Purdy/Getty Images)
Venables was hired in December 2021 after Lincoln Riley’s heading to USC, inheriting a roster that went 11-2 the year before.
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Despite the record, Venables said a “reset of the standard” was needed in a recent interview on “The REF 1400 Podcast.”
“Eighteen months ago when I got here, we weren’t going to class like we needed to,” Venables said. “We weren’t living right off the field like we needed to. So you talk about a change in culture and a reset of the standard and what are the expectations.”
Venables then took a dig at the Colorado head coach. Deion Sanders for how he’s reshuffled his roster as he prepares for his first season in Boulder, Colorado.
Colorado head coach Deion Sanders plays for fans in the first half of the team’s spring practice NCAA college football game on Saturday, April 22, 2023, in Boulder, Colorado. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
“I gave the guys 12 months grace. He wasn’t like Deion,” Venables said. “I gave the guys 12 months’ grace to figure it out. Here’s all three: go to class, live off the field and when you show up here, you do it with respect and appreciation for your opportunity. And if you go 0-for-3 during 12 months, you need a fresh start. So, we helped 21 guys, more or less, find a fresh start.”
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Sanders’ approach to rebuilding the roster has ruffled some feathers, with nearly 50 players leaving the team since his arrival in December and more than 70 total entering the transfer portal since August, ESPN reported in May.
has taken advantage of a NCAA rule which stipulates that first-year head coaches can cut players from a roster, although the university must honor players’ scholarships.
Oklahoma Sooners head coach Brent Venables greets the visitors before Bedlam against the Oklahoma State Cowboys at Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium on November 19, 2022 in Norman, Oklahoma. The Sooners won 28-13. (Brian Bahr/Getty Images)
Sanders’ approach drew criticism from Pitt head coach Pat Narduzzi, who said Sanders’ review looks bad on all college coaches.
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“This is not how it should be”, Narduzzi said 247Sports at the ACC spring meetings in May. “That’s not what the rule was intended to be. It wasn’t to check his roster. We’ll see how it works out, but that, to me, looks bad on college football coaches across the country. The reflection is on a man in this But when you look at it in general, those kids who have moms and dads and brothers and sisters and goals in life, I don’t know how many of those 70 who left really wanted to leave or kicked their butts to get them to leave. .”
Oklahoma is preparing for its final season in the Big 12 before leaving for the SEC in 2024.
