Ben Arbuckle may be the man steering Oklahoma’s offense, but Kevin Wilson is still one of the sharpest voices in the room.
That matters in Norman, where the pressure on the Sooners’ offensive play-caller is always loud and immediate. With Brent Venables firmly in charge of a defense that has the program in strong shape on that side of the ball, Arbuckle is the one expected to get the offense moving in the right direction. He’s only 30, and the job comes with all the weight that number suggests.
Wilson, though, gives Oklahoma a seasoned counterbalance. Now in his second stint with the Sooners, the assistant head coach for offense has been back in Norman since last season after a 15-year absence. He was Oklahoma’s offensive play-caller from 2006 to 2010, and this offseason he picked up a promotion while keeping a similar role in the building.
He’s not trying to take over anything. Wilson said he functions as a “sounding board” for Arbuckle and the other offensive coaches, stepping in when he thinks it helps and staying out of the way when it doesn’t.
“I’m just kind of like the conscience, if that makes sense,” Wilson said. “I’m not really pushing an agenda.”
That setup makes sense because the two coaches come from different branches of the offensive tree. Arbuckle is tied to the Air Raid line, with Zach Kittley as his mentor. Kittley came up under Kliff Kingsbury, and Kingsbury was the first starting quarterback of Mike Leach’s head-coaching run, learning under the man who helped create the Air Raid with Hal Mumme.
Wilson’s background is the other side of the conversation. His roots are in the power spread, with Randy Walker as his mentor.
Walker was mentored by Dick Crum, who was mentored by Bill Mallory. Wilson has become one of the most recognizable names in that system through his stops at Miami (Ohio), Northwestern, Oklahoma and Ohio State.
At OU, that blend is nothing new for him. Wilson was hired in 2002 to help marry the Air Raid and the power spread, and the 2008 Sooners showed how well that could work.
That team’s up-tempo, no-huddle offense led the nation in scoring. He also brought back lessons from the Urban Meyer-Ryan Day version of the power spread after his time with the Buckeyes.
“I was a part of that here when I showed up following Coach Leach and Coach (Mark) Mangino,” Wilson said. “I saw some things in protection or things in run game that were maybe a little bit different, and how to blend that with what was that offense.”
Wilson’s view of Arbuckle was glowing when he spoke at OU’s local media day last week. He pointed to the young coordinator’s feel for game flow and planning, and he made it clear he respects where Arbuckle comes from and how he coaches.
“Very, very smart,” Wilson said. “I think he's very good on gameday, just the flow of games ...
I think he's got a good feel of game-planning. He kind of comes out of a little bit of the Leach-Kingsbury-Kittley tree of how he grew.”
Wilson didn’t stop there. He also praised Arbuckle’s ability to adapt and his approach to building an offense around the roster and the schedule Oklahoma is about to face.
“He's got great intelligence, great passion, great work ethic, really good knowledge,” Wilson said. “I think he’s a fantastic young coach off to a great start, but I think he has a willingness to learn and grow, and most importantly, try to fit what’s best for our players and what’s best for Coach Venables’ team within the vibe of playing an SEC schedule.”
So while Arbuckle is the one making the calls on offense, Wilson remains an important voice behind the scenes. He’s the veteran presence, the longtime play-caller, and by his own description, the “conscience” helping guide a coordinator who is 34 years younger as Oklahoma tries to get back to the top on offense.
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