Oklahoma Expected to Fire TE Coach Joe Jon Finley, per Report

Oklahoma coach Brent Venables is expected to fire tight ends coach Joe Jon Finley following a five-year run with his alma mater.

That's according to a report Thursday by SoonerScoop's George Stoia.

Finley, who played tight end for the Sooners from 2004 until 2007, spent five seasons in the NFL before getting into coaching. He spent time as a graduate assistant with OU from 2011-2012 and as an assistant coach at Los Fresnos High School in Texas. He caught on as a tight end coach under former Sooner quarterback and offensive coordinator Josh Heupel (then the Tigers' play caller) at Missouri in 2016.

After stops at Texas A&M and Ole Miss, former head coach Lincoln Riley hired Finley as tight ends coach.

Following Riley's departure, Venables retained Finley after accepting the head coaching position at the end of the 2021 season. Venables also chose to retain Finley following a disastrous 2024 season which saw Finley step in as interim offensive coordinator following Seth Littrell's dismissal.

Finley's career at OU comes to an end following a lackluster run of tight end play.

Oklahoma Sooners, Joe Jon Finley — Oklahoma tight ends coach Joe Jon Finley | Ryan Chapman / Sooners on SI

After inheriting talented tight end Brayden Willis when he arrived, Finley never established a steady pipeline of physical, in-line pass catchers. The Sooners leaned on a familiar face in 2023 with Austin Stogner, only to get less-than-modest returns. In 2024, tight end Bauer Sharp embodied the offense’s struggles, offering a volatile impact that never seemed to justify his usage.

The tight end output in 2025 saw a surprise bright spot with Jaren Kanak's move to the position from linebacker. Kanak, who showcased positive abilities as a pass catcher, earned third-team All-SEC honors with 44 catches for 533 yards — the best numbers at the position since Willis in 2022.

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Kanak offered a lone bright spot, but the rest of the recruited tight ends and transfer portal arrivals stagnated under Finley and were unable to develop or provide consistent impact on the field..

Kaden Helms — who reportedly will be heading to the transfer portal following a five catches, 35-yards and one touchdown season in nine appearances — was never able to become the player his 4-star recruiting ranking suggested. Other tight ends in 2025 like Carson Kent or Kade McIntyre never improved or barely saw the field as the season progressed. Kent also has announced he will enter the portal.

Currently, only McIntyre, John Locke Jr. — a 2025 transfer from Louisiana Tech — and sophomore Trynae Washington, a Carl Albert High product, remain in the Sooners' tight end room.

This season's transfer portal window begins on Jan. 2, running until Jan. 16. This is the first year that there will be only one transfer portal window.