Clemson Coach Dabo Swinney Defends Oklahoma's Brent Venables: 'He'll Get it Right'

The Sooners' coach said last week that he and Swinney watched their Clemson Tigers bounce back from a 4-3 start to have another successful season just last year.

After three straight losses and three devastating defensive performances, some are questioning Brent Venables’ credentials as head coach at Oklahoma.

Someone who’s not questioning Venables — his old boss.

Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney said this week that he had no doubt Venables would get things turned around in Norman.

“He’ll be fine,” Swinney said. “It’s not his first rodeo. I know it’s his first opportunity to be in the skillet, but he’ll be all right. He’ll get it right. He hasn’t forgotten how to coach. Just a tough stretch they’re in right now.”

Venables said said after his first win (over UTEP) that he’d communicated earlier that week with his old Clemson boss. Swinney said this week he’d recently visited with Venables.

"He is so awesome man," Venables said in September. "He's so positive and so happy. He just is a breath of fresh air for me." 

OU is last in the Big 12 Conference in rushing defense at 310 yards per game allowed in losses to the Wildcats, TCU (55-21) and Texas (49-0). Meanwhile the OU offense has collapsed under the weight of inconsistent quarterback play.

“Obviously,” Venables said Saturday in Dallas, “I’ve not done a great job.

“I don’t think there’s any one particular thing. We’ve got a lot to work to do.”

The Sooners (3-3) host No. 18-ranked Kansas (5-1) this week in an 11 a.m. kickoff at Owen Field.

Last week, Venables expressed why he thinks Oklahoma can turn things around and how he and Swinney worked together recently to do exactly that at Clemson.

“A year ago, I was on a Clemson team that was 4-3, and everyone wanted to burn everything down,” Venables said. “We've got the worst players and coaches in America, in the history of the game. And that's having been to six straight playoffs, and four of the last six national championships and six straight conference titles.

“But that team made a decision to get better and not allow themselves to be influenced by the outside noise; only be influenced by a straining to do everything you can to improve every day. One practice, one meeting at a time. That's literally how you do it. And not allow seeds of doubt or seeds of division come into the locker room.

“And that team went on to win their 10th game. I think that's 13 straight years they've won 10-plus games, one of only two teams to currently have done that. So that's the kind of mental toughness that you've got to have. Circle the wagons, get back in the fight, however you want to say it. And that's really your only choice.

“It's got a chance to be a great story.”