As Big 12 Defensive Lines Improve, Oklahoma Looks to Keep Up

OU lost pieces along its defensive line, but Brent Venables is confident his unit will be up to speed sooner rather than later.

ARLINGTON, TX — The face of the Big 12 looks different in 2022.

Once a conference synonymous with elite quarterback play, the Big 12 now leads with its defensive line play.

Baylor’s Siaki Ika, Iowa State’s Will McDonald IV, Kansas State’s Felix Anudike-Uzomah, Oklahoma State’s Collin Oliver and West Virginia’s Dante Stills were voted to the All-Big 12 Preseason team at one of the most highly contested position groups.

Cowboy defensive linemen Brock Martin, Tyler Lacy and Trace Ford all were left off the list, and Oklahoma’s Jalen Redmond joined the OSU trio as just a few of the talented players left off the preseason all-conference team.

The depth along the defensive line has improved over the past few years in the Big 12, as evidenced by the depth at the position league-wide.

Over the past few seasons, Baylor head coach Dave Aranda has sensed the change, as defenses have moved toward a more physical style of play.

As Brent Venables takes over in Norman, he’ll have plenty of turnover along his defensive line as the Sooners look to reclaim their spot back atop the Big 12.

Nik Bonitto, Perrion Winfrey and Isaiah Thomas all departed to the NFL, leaving Redmond as the most experienced member of OU’s defensive line.

Oklahoma brought in transfers in Jeffery Johnson and Jonah Laulu, while Venables and Co. will need players like Reggie Grimes, Ethan Downs, Jordan Kelley and Isaiah Coe to step up and take on bigger roles in 2022.

In his previous stop at Clemson, Venables’ defensive lines were among the most productive in the country. And while Todd Bates made the jump to Norman alongside Venables, OU’s new head coach still recognizes the process the entire defense will have to undergo this year.

“I think it's important that as we get into our inaugural season that we'll create a baseline and then we'll build from there,” Venables said at Big 12 Media Days at AT&T Stadium last week. “It's not going to be what I just left at Clemson, but it wasn't that way when we got there in 2012, either, and you develop that through a lot of work, a lot of players believing in what you're doing. Certainly staff chemistry and cohesion is an incredible part of that.

“It's really, once you start playing games, figuring out what your strengths and weaknesses are and then playing to those strengths, protecting your weaknesses and then developing and improving in those areas of weakness,” he said.

The new standards are being set inside Oklahoma’s facilities, and Downs said he believes his defensive end room in particular is ready to take off this season.

“Really deep,” he said. “Jonah Laulu from Hawaii came in, and he's ready to compete and play. Then there’s Reggie (Grimes) and Marcus Stripling. He’s had the best summer he's ever had. He's reaching a scary good element in his game. He’s fast, he's strong, and now he's confident and consistent.

“Brynden Walker had back injuries; he’s getting healthy again, getting back on the field. Clayton Smith is getting more confident in the playbook, too. He's gonna get playing time as well. And our freshmen are super talented as well. The opportunities at the defensive end position and the depth right now is huge. Even our second string, third string, everybody can play right now.”

All of the work on the edge of Oklahoma’s defense will be made easier if Redmond can stay on the field all year.

A productive player when he’s on the field, Redmond has 10 career sacks for the Sooners, though he’s only played 24 games since 2018.

Despite all the turnover, Venables is confident his defense will be up to speed in a conference with much improved units on that side of the ball.

“I have a very clear vision for what it looks like,” Venables said. “We've worked really hard and diligently the last several months to show our players, coach them, teach them, allow them to see it on videotape of what it looks like. A picture is worth a thousand words, and so really, how long that process will take, it'll never happen fast enough. I can assure you.

“… It's a process. You have to go through it. What I've learned I've learned from other people, from a scheme standpoint, and so it's not like you have these magical schemes. But we all share in both the success and the failure. We've all been diligently putting calluses on those hands and working hard to develop an identity, and again, that'll continue to be established.”

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