Taylor Wein, Oklahoma Defense Understand ‘Weaknesses’ and Are Ready to Fix Them

NORMAN — When a defense that last season ranked in the top 3 per ESPN's SP+ metric says that it spent all offseason focusing on its flaws, it's okay to have some lofty goals.

That's exactly what Taylor Wein suggested on Tuesday following Oklahoma's Fall Camp practice. One of the captains of the 2026 squad didn't shy away from some of the fatal flaws in last year's defense.

"We fell short in many categories," Wein said. "One of those being the turnover margin. We didn’t get our first turnover last year until Week 5, and you can’t do that in a successful defense.

"Also, closing out games in the fourth quarter. Our three losses last year, we failed to close out in the fourth quarter," he added.

If you haven't noticed already, Wein sounds just like someone who is coached by Brent Venables — who a few weeks ago said "Respectfully, we're not a great defense yet." Considering the defense was praised for largely guiding the team to the College Football Playoff a year ago, the self-criticism may seem a tad misplaced.

But to Wein, it's necessary.

"We came together and we've understood our weaknesses," Wein said. "You find weaknesses and you've got to figure out how to fix that and you've got to watch tape with critical eyes and get better. This unit has done a good job doing that."

How do they expect to avoid waiting five weeks for their first turnover? Wein said the team’s “practice habit” comes from punching at the ball whenever possible and running tip drills every day. It is all part of the pursuit of becoming a successful defense — something Wein said they were not last year because they did not force enough turnovers.

"We still have a lot of improvements that need to happen before next Friday. But we understand our weaknesses and we know we've got to get better. So we should keep attacking that and keep going," Wein said.

One of the defense's new goals is to counter one of the flaws Wein brought up. In OU's three losses against Texas, Ole Miss and Alabama, the Sooners were outscored 26-0. While the offense will need to do their share of lifting in the final quarter, Wein expects even more from his side of the ball.

"As a defense, we’ve got to not allow points in the fourth quarter and respond. We’ve got to punch first, punch back and punch last," he said.

When Venables hears that quote, he may smile.

Sign up to our free newsletter and follow us on Facebook and X for the latest news.

Add us as a preferred source on Google