Oklahoma’s 17-10 loss to Michigan has already sparked plenty of noise, but Brent Venables isn’t treating it like a season-defining crisis.
The Sooners are 1-1 and, at this point in the schedule, they’re already staring at the kind of pressure they wanted to avoid. Still, Venables pointed back to last season as a reason the response matters more than the panic.
"Last year's team, we started figuring out how we needed to win," Venables said via Sooners Illustrated."That identity wasn't developed until 3/4 or so of the season."
That example carries weight, even if the situations don’t line up perfectly. A year ago, Oklahoma had already taken losses to Texas and Ole Miss and sat at 6-2 with a brutal stretch still ahead: road trips to Tennessee and Alabama, plus home dates with Missouri and LSU.
Plenty of people figured that group would stumble through the rest of the year. Instead, the Sooners put it together, survived that run and reached the College Football Playoff.
This season, the margin for error is thinner. Oklahoma doesn’t have the luxury of being 6-2, and the toughest part of the schedule is still coming. The Michigan defeat also put a spotlight on problems that need fixing right away, especially on offense.
Even so, Venables’ message is that September doesn’t have to define November. The version of Oklahoma that takes shape later in the year can look different from the one that showed up against Michigan.
The New Mexico Lobos now give the Sooners their first chance to prove that the loss can be a reset instead of the start of a slide. If Oklahoma cleans up the mistakes, sharpens its identity and keeps improving, last year’s turnaround may end up looking less like a nice memory and more like a roadmap.
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Oklahoma Faces A Big Depth Test Against New Mexico
The Sooners are heading into their meeting with New Mexico with some early-season depth already being put to the test. Starting left tackle Michael Fasusi and wide receiver Trell Harris are both unavailable, which pushes Ryan Fodje and freshman Noah Best into bigger roles up front and leaves Elijah Thomas with a chance to absorb more of the passing-game load.
On defense, linebacker Kip Lewis is also sidelined, so James Nesta is in line to start in his place. The good news for Oklahoma is that the backfield remains intact, with Jonathan Hatton Jr. and Tory Blaylock both healthy and available, giving the offense at least one experienced area to lean on while the Sooners sort through a few key absences. [Read more 🡒]
Brent Venables Just Turned Oklahoma's Offense Into A Bigger Problem
A win over New Mexico did little to quiet the noise around Oklahomas offense, and Brent Venables didnt try to soften it afterward. The Sooners coach was blunt in his criticism of offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle after a sluggish showing, saying the unit has to improve significantly as the season moves forward. For a program that expected more balance and a cleaner product on that side of the ball, the message landed as a public warning as much as a postgame assessment.
The frustration wasnt confined to Venables comments. During the game, fans were already chanting for Arbuckle to be fired, a sharp sign of how quickly patience is wearing thin. Venables declined to express confidence in Arbuckles current performance, leaving an already uneasy situation even more exposed as Oklahoma tries to steady an offense that has become its own problem. [Read more 🡒]
Oklahoma Has One Problem Brent Venables Cant Ignore
Oklahoma has spent enough time under Brent Venables proving it can lean on defense, but the broader picture still leaves little room for comfort. The Sooners have been sturdy on that side of the ball while the offense has lagged behind, and after the loss to Michigan, the imbalance is hard to ignore as the team heads into games against New Mexico and Georgia.
Venables has made it clear he wants complementary football, the kind where the offense can stay on the field, sustain drives and give the defense a little breathing room. That remains the next step for Oklahoma, because without a more reliable attack, the Sooners can keep hanging around, but they will keep asking too much of a defense that has already done its part. [Read more 🡒]