Oklahoma OC Ben Arbuckle Welcomes Kevin Wilson's Experience to Help Jumpstart Ground Game

NORMAN — Brent Venables laid down a challenge to his offensive coaching staff.

The OU coach wants his staff to instill a “kick-ass” mentality into the team to help the running game come alive in 2026.

Offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle is on board with that plan.

“We have to have that every single time we hand that ball off,” Arbuckle said on Monday.

As he would in any offseason, Arbuckle has spent a lot of time looking back on the 2025 season to identify all of the areas for growth.

Plenty of factors could help the Sooners take a step forward on the ground next year. General manager Jim Nagy signed a new tight end room to help the offensive line out, complete with new tight ends coach, Jason Witten.

New running backs coach Deland McCullough has a stellar track record of player development, and the offensive line should be another year older and another year stronger.

But there’s a member of the staff who was with Arbuckle last year who has plenty of expertise on how to construct a physical rushing attack — assistant Kevin Wilson.

Wilson previously served as the Sooners’ offensive coordinator, and he worked with McCullough when he was in charge at Indiana.

Following his stint with Tulsa, he rejoined Oklahoma’s staff, and Wilson is a sounding board for Arbuckle and all of the offensive assistants.

“As far as his football knowledge and what he brings to that, it's constant, 'Hey, let's look at a way to do this.' Or if we're doing something, he's great about challenging to make something better,” Arbuckle said. “If there's one thing I've learned about Kevin, whatever we do, he finds ways to help make it better. He does it in the right ways. He also holds people accountable.”

The Sooners averaged 3.5 yards per carry last year, a mark that Venables labeled as “pathetic,” and building an efficient rushing attack is seen as a way to take pressure off quarterback John Mateer.

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Improved health across the board, from Mateer himself to running backs Xavier Robinson and Tory Blaylock, is part of the hope for a better showing in 2026.

But Arbuckle isn’t just relying on better injury luck; he’s pushing the entire offense to make the most of every rep in spring practice.

“It’s been really, really fun watching these offensive linemen that we all here knew as young guys last year really grow into that role of, ‘OK, I have 13 games under my belt; I’ve played in this league, I’ve played big-time college football. This isn’t new to me anymore,’” Arbuckle said. “They’re able to go out, and they’re able to attack it, so that’s been really fun. They’ve been able to lead, and just doing some different things schematically and technique-wise to really help our guys out and put them in a better position.

“But all of that is no substitute for the mentality you have to have when you’re handing the ball off and running it, and Coach Venables said it best: It’s a kick-ass mentality.”