Oklahoma's Players Already Getting Acclimated to New Coaches
Oklahoma’s new coaching staff is already taking shape and getting to know the players.
Head coach Brent Venables has already announced that Cale Gundy, Bill Bedenbaugh, Joe Jon Finley and DeMarco Murray will be retained on staff, opening up plenty of other positions to be filled.
Jerry Schmidt returned to the program from Texas A&M to join Venables, and the defensive staff is starting to take shape.
Career journeyman Ted Roof has been named the defensive coordinator, and former Clemson defensive analyst Miguel Chavis is also relocating to Norman to become the defensive ends coach. Troy defensive coordinator Brandon Hall will also join the staff to coach the safeties, and on the other side of the ball, Ole Miss offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby will take the same position with the Sooners.
And while the new coaching staff won’t be directly involved in the Alamo Bowl preparations, they’ve already started to bond with the current players.
Defensive end Reggie Grimes said Chavis invited him and some of his fellow position mates to dinner upon his arrival in Norman, and he left a positive first impression.
“He seems like a great guy,” Grimes said during a Zoom press conference on Friday. “He’s a guy that I would love playing for. He said his main thing was making sure that we were good men, good people, good fathers, good sons, good business people who go about things as opposed to football first.
“I think that’s really important. I think that speaks to Coach Venables because that’s the hire that he made.”
Though the actual on-field coaching hasn’t started yet, the defensive acumen of the new staff has already raised the eyebrows of a few players as well.
Linebacker DaShaun White said he’s been happy with what Roof brings to the table both on the field and off it.
“I can sit here and tell you about me being really impressed by Roof’s football mind, because I really was,” White said. “But I think what stood out to me was him talking about his family and his aspirations outside of this game, things that he’s interested in and stuff like that. Just sort of getting a feel for who they both are as men is something that’s really important to me.”
The loss of Lincoln Riley sent a panic through Norman that the Sooners’ days of dominating offenses were leaving with the former head coach.
But the appointment of Lebby quickly shored up worries.
The past two years, the Ole Miss offense has actually ranked ahead of OU’s in total offense, something which has resonated with wide receiver Marvin Mims.
“Having Coach Lebby come, I think is a huge plus for this program,” Mims said. “Especially with his experience, his resume, the things he’s done at other colleges, that’s something that’s a huge positive. He’s also an alumni to this school, so that’s another a positive for us as a program. But I’ve talked to him a couple times, he’s a really cool guy, love his personality.”
The hard work has yet to begin, but the foundation is already being laid for the Sooners to turn the page headed into the 2022 season.
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