Oklahoma Sooners a reflection of head coach Brent Venables
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The Oklahoma Sooners have solidified their foundation in 2025. Following a pair of 6-7 seasons in Brent Venables’ first three years at the helm, the question of his ability as a head coach is being answered in 2025 after road wins over Tennessee and Alabama.
The Sooners are 8-2 on the season and 4-2 in SEC play and they’ve gotten there with Venables’ defensive calling card.
Oklahoma is 10th in the SEC in scoring at 28.3 points per game and 13th in the SEC in total yards per game. The Sooners have been able to overcome those numbers because of a defense that ranks first in the SEC in points allowed per game and second in total yards per game. They’re just 0.9 yards per game behind Oklahoma’s Week 13 opponent, Missouri, for first in the SEC.
This is what Venables was brought here to do. To reestablish Oklahoma’s defensive identity. A defensive identity that was lost during the Lincoln Riley era. Sure, Riley’s teams were good enough to make the College Football Playoff, a drought Venables hopes to end this season, but their defense held those teams back.
Venables now has the Sooners in the top 10 with two weeks to go, controlling their own College Football Playoff destiny. Wins over Missouri and LSU will cement the Sooners’ status as an at-large bid with an opportunity to host a first-round playoff game.
It took a few years to get the defense humming. Still, Oklahoma provided evidence of the growth last year when they allowed just over 20 points per game and gave a listless Sooners offense opportunities to win games they had no business being in. But in 2025, the Sooners’ defense has taken their game to another level.
On Saturday night, they closed out the Crimson Tide by keeping Alabama off the scoreboard on their final four drives, which included two punts, a fumble, and a turnover on downs.
Oklahoma now reflects its head coach. They have a defense that can help them contend for national titles. They have a culture established that fights from whistle to whistle. They bring an intensity every week that gives them the opportunity to win every game with their “Hard to Kill” mantra reflected in their never-say-die attitude.
Alabama got into scoring range and came away without points on two occasions in the first half. That’s because the Sooners’ defense battles on every play and every drive. Even when backed into a corner, they keep swinging like they did on Eli Bowen’s interception returned for a touchdown and Taylor Wein’s blocked field goal to end the first half.
It’s that attitude and intensity that helped Oklahoma earn critical road wins over Tennessee and Alabama and has the Sooners in the thick of the College Football Playoff race.
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This article originally appeared on Sooners Wire: Oklahoma Sooners reflect Brent Venables intensity and resilience
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