Brent Venables Stayed Cool Under Pressure in 2025 to Lead Oklahoma Back to the CFP

With Oklahoma’s 2025 season fully in the rearview, Sooners on SI is handing out position-by-position grades for every area of the team, concluding today with the coaching staff.

Brent Venables entered 2025 facing pressure, but Oklahoma closed the year in the College Football Playoff.

The OU head coach hired a new offensive coordinator, one who arrived in Norman at 29 years old with no prior SEC coaching experience, and the Sooners navigated a difficult schedule to finish 10-2 and ranked No. 8 in the final CFP rankings.

Though the final game of the year was a disappointment, as Oklahoma saw a 17-0 lead evaporate against Alabama, the season was unquestionably a success.

After Zac Alley’s departure in the wake of the 2024 Armed Forces Bowl, the Sooners flirted with former Oklahoma State defensive coordinator Jim Knowles.

Ultimately, Knowles went to Penn State, and Venables decided to officially take over defensive play-calling.

Venables cited his belief in himself as a decisive factor in that decision, and he proved to be correct.

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The 2025 Oklahoma defense was the best unit on that side of the ball in Norman since Venables was last the architect of the Sooners’ defense.

OU finished first in both sacks and tackles for loss per game, third in rushing defense, fourth in third down defense, seventh in total defense, tied for 10th in defensive touchdowns and 33rd in passing defense.

Oklahoma’s defense also finished ranked fifth in ESPN’s SP+, and the defense was deep at virtually every position as a result of development and a handful of key transfer portal additions over the past few years.

Venables’ unit was good enough to keep the Sooners winning in November even when the offense struggled.

Ben Arbuckle dealt with many challenges in his first year as OU offensive coordinator.

The Sooners rebuilt a majority of that side of the ball through the transfer portal, then receiver Javonnie Gibson, who had impressed throughout spring football, went down with a major leg injury.

Oklahoma did enough to beat Michigan, but quarterback John Mateer’s hand injury against Auburn changed the season.

The performance 17 days post-surgery was poor against Texas, and Mateer was asked to push the ball too far downfield with a recovering hand, and the Sooners were unable to capitalize on Xavier Robinson’s breakout performance against Ole Miss.

But the offense, paired with kicker Tate Sandell’s stellar night, was able to do enough to notch a win against Tennessee at Neyland Stadium, and crucially, OU took care of the football in its win over Alabama at Bryant-Denny Stadium.

The offense sputtered against both Missouri and LSU, but Mateer found Deion Burks and Isaiah Sategna enough to get to the CFP.

A bad decision, paired with poor special teams play, flipped the playoff rematch against the Crimson Tide, but the Sooners went from a program on the verge of major change to a team that is on fire in both transfer portal recruiting and in the 2027 recruiting class, thanks to the momentum seized on the field in 2025.

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Coaching Grade: A