Even in His New Role, the Legend of 'Coach Smitty' Will Endure at Oklahoma

NORMAN — Among the many agenda items surrounding the latest University of Oklahoma Board of Regents meeting on Friday, multiple eras began and ended.

Perhaps lost in the shuffle of the power transition at athletic director, Jerry Schmidt has officially stepped away from his duties as the director of Oklahoma's strength and conditioning program to become a professional consultant — basically Brent Venables' chief of staff, replacing Woody Glass, who resigned on Dec. 2.

The move became official Friday, when the regents approved Schmidt's new role and salary, along with James Dobson's ascension to the role Schmidt held for over 20 seasons in two stints.

Following the regents meeting, soon-to-be former athletic director Joe Castiglione had an opportunity to share some remarks for the first time since Roger Denny's appointment as the new athletic director earlier this week. Castiglione wished OU's new AD well and shared that he would always be around to provide help when called upon.

Jerry Schmidt, Oklahoma Sooner — Sep 17, 2022; Lincoln, Nebraska, USA; Oklahoma Sooners strength coach Jerry Schmidt yells to players during warmups before the game against the Nebraska Cornhuskers at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Dylan Widger-Imagn Images | Dylan Widger-Imagn Images

Afterwards, Castiglione met with the media and provided some insight into Schmidt's move.

"Jerry is moving on to a different part of his life that this role gives him an opportunity to work with Brent Venables and a staff that he hired and has developed," Castiglione said.

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Castiglione spoke highly of Schmidt's successor in Dobson, who will be paid $700,000 in his new role, and that he has "a great deal of expertise and experience to take on this role."

"I think it just, again, when you have succession of leadership, you want it to be as seamless as possible," Castiglione added. "Most importantly because of the people that are impacted by the decisions that leaders make. I think that was perhaps part of the thought process behind keeping Jerry staying in for a period of time to be that liaison to make sure it's a good transition."

After working at Notre Dame (twice), Oklahoma State and Florida, Schmidt famously came to Oklahoma as Bob Stoops' very first hire in December 1998 following Stoops' brief tenure as Steve Spurrier's defensive coordinator with the Gators. Schmidt held the position in Norman until he left for Texas A&M in 2018 after Lincoln Riley's first year as Stoops' successor. Schmidt returned in 2022 when Venables replaced Riley.

Generations of OU football players now come to every conversation armed with both horror stories and tales of triumph related to "Coach "Smitty's" infamous pre-dawn workouts in the winter weight room grinds and the scorching hot sandpits and stadium steps of summer. Those who needed an additional layer of disciplinary action found themselves on Schmidt's torturous stair climbers in preseason camp. They will all tell you they "hated" him (especially him calling everyone "Big Dog") but in the end came to love and appreciate his no-nonsense approach to toughness, discipline and attention to detail.

It was Schmidt that Stoops — nearly every one of those players — credit with building so many Sooners into champions.

"Obviously, there's a bit of an iconic aura around him and his ability to connect with players and try to bring the best out of them and keep them prepared (and) healthy for a long season of competition," Castiglione said. "And although going through the process may be difficult and you've heard many players talk about their thoughts about it going through, but looking back, you know, how much it benefited them."