Brent Venables Has High Praise for Oklahoma's New Visionary Thad Turnipseed
After the dust settled, Oklahoma’s offseason featured the addition of many high profile names in the football world.
In addition to new head coach Brent Venables, the Sooners rounded out the coaching staff with ex-Clemson defensive line guru Todd Bates and former Alabama cornerbacks coach Jay Valai. Outside of the staff, OU brought in instant on-field impact, too, with players like Dillon Gabriel.
One of the most important additions to the Sooners’ program as a whole, though, was someone that does his work behind the scenes.
Thad Turnipseed made the move to Norman, where he'll work as the Executive Director of Football Administration, after successfully helping create two dynasties in the modern college football era at Alabama and Clemson. Venables spoke very highly of Turnipseed at Thursday’s Sooner Caravan in Oklahoma City, noting how important it is to have him on board.
“He’s a critical part,” said Venables. “He’s got vision. He’s four, five and six steps ahead with everything. He anticipates both programmatically, facility, structurally, and he knows how to get it done both on the coaching side of it and how a football home — how it all works organically. He knows what that all looks like in the weeds.”
Turnipseed was a huge part in upgrading the facilities and overseeing the football program at each of his previous stops. At Clemson he was the mastermind behind a $55 million football complex, helping Dabo Swinney and the Tigers win two national championships.
With the Crimson Tide, Turnipseed oversaw over $200 million worth of projects, including stadium and facility renovations. He worked hand in hand with Nick Saban, who saw his talent early on and understood how crucial someone like Turnipseed was to growing a dynasty.
Because Venables has someone like Turnipseed on his team, he can focus on the football side of things. It makes the transition that much easier for a first-time head coach.
“He’s got a great skill set,” Venables said. “One that helps me stay in my lane, helps me think about the right things and anticipate the right things, and make decisions in a timely fashion.
“Building the program the right way, helping us on the transition — we’re in the middle of that transition and it’s going really, really well. But he knows the things to avoid, the things to look out for and the things we absolutely have to have to be successful on the field, off the field.”
While there have been renovation plans in place for some time, OU recently released the agenda for the May Board of Regents meeting, detailing a $300 million upgrade to the “Stadium Master Plan.” While it’s almost certain the OU brass would’ve continued to upgrade the stadium either way, it’s clear that Turnipseed’s presence is being felt early on in Norman.
“He’s been a part of building a couple of other programs and doing it the right way," Venables said. “He has that very unique background in construction and administration and the coaching side of it as well. He has a great deal of wisdom that I tap into every day."
