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Brent Venables' Contract Extension Approved by Oklahoma Board of Regents

Venables' new deal extends his contract through the 2031 season.
Ryan Aber|
Oklahoma coach Brent Venables talks to an official during the Sooners' game against UTEP.
Oklahoma coach Brent Venables talks to an official during the Sooners' game against UTEP. | Carson Field / Sooners On SI

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Oklahoma Sooners

Brent Venables' contract extension was approved by the University of Oklahoma Board of Regents on Tuesday during its meeting at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center in Oklahoma City.

The deal, which was initially announced Aug. 20, will pay Venables an average of $10.5 million per season.

After the meeting, OU athletic director Roger Denny declined to specify whether there was a buyout in Venables' new deal.

Venables' previous deal was fully guaranteed.

The contract extension is the first significant contract extension for Denny since he replaced Joe Castiglione in the athletic director role.

The Sooners are 33-21 in four-plus seasons under Venables, making the College Football Playoff last season.

Oklahoma is 1-1 this season, and is coming off a 17-10 loss at Michigan last weekend.

Shortly after the new deal was announced, in a meeting with a handful of local reporters, Denny said he was confident Venables could lead the football program through any rocky times, affirming his belief in supporting his coaches vs. having a quick trigger in moving on from a coach.

Venables also received an extension after the Sooners went 10-3 in 2023 before the Sooners regressed to 6-7 the next season in their first season in the SEC.

His initial six-year deal had an average annual value of $7.25 million.

Venables' Sooners host New Mexico at 6:30 p.m. Saturday at Gaylord Family — Oklahoma Memorial Stadium.

Venables' extension wasn't the only football-related item on the agenda.

The regents also approved funding of a combined $3.5 million related to the design and contstruction of the Gaylord Family — Oklahoma Memorial Stadium Experience Center.

The center will serve as a dedicated sales and marketing venue to showcase upcoming stadium renovations and other future athletics initiatives.

The approximately 7,000 square-foot facility, which is scheduled to be completed in December, will be located on the first floor of Five Partners Place southeast of the stadium.

The regents also approved the naming the new performance center at Kimrey Family Stadium. The3 new addition to the baseball stadium will be named the "Toby Keith Family Performance Center."

The project is part of a $49 million renovation of the stadium.

The next renovation phase of the stadium, which includes the performance center, is scheduled to begin in the fall.

The facility is expected to be completed in spring 2028.

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Ryan Aber
RYAN ABER

Ryan Aber has been covering Oklahoma football for more than a decade continuously and since 1999 overall. Ryan was the OU beat writer for The Oklahoman from 2013-2025, covering the transition from Bob Stoops to Lincoln Riley to Brent Venables. He covered OU men's basketball's run to the Final Four in 2016 and numerous national championships for the Sooners' women's gymnastics and softball programs. Prior to taking on the Sooners beat, Ryan covered high schools, the Oklahoma City RedHawks and Oklahoma City Barons for the newspaper from 2006-13. He spent two seasons covering Arkansas football for the Morning News of Northwest Arkansas before returning to his hometown of Oklahoma City. Ryan also worked at the Southwest Times Record in Fort Smith, Arkansas, and the Muskogee Phoenix. At the Phoenix, he covered OU's national championship run in 2000. Ryan is a graduate of Putnam City North High School in Oklahoma City and Northeastern State University in Tahlequah.

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