Why Georgia Coach Kirby Smart Has 'the Utmost Respect' for Oklahoma's Brent Venables

ATHENS, GA — Kirby Smart has traveled the same path as Brent Venables.

From widely respected collegiate defender to hyperactive, grinding assistant coach to successful head coach at a major college football powerhouse, both Smart and Venables have walked in each others’ shoes.

On Saturday at Sanford Stadium, they’ll match wits for the fourth time in their history when unranked Oklahoma visits No. 2 Georgia.

“A lot of respect for Coach Venables and the job he's done everywhere he's been,” Smart said Monday at his weekly press conference. “I have known him for a long time and have the utmost respect for him as a coach and a man and a person. We go way back.”

Smart’s Bulldogs have faced off with Venables three times in the past — but all when Venables was defensive coordinator at Clemson. Smart is 2-1 head to head with Venables.

“He's probably been one of the premier defensive coaches in all of college football for a long time,” Smart said.

Smart explained that Venables’ defenses are always prepared, always well coached, and always solid at the basics.

"Very fundamentally sound, aggressive, attacking,” Smart said. “They lead the country, or tops in the country every year in tackles for a loss and sacks. I don't think people give their coaches and their kids enough credit for how they play.

“They get off blocks. They strike you. They play with unbelievable pad level, and really an intensity that's unmatched in terms of the way they play. You see it on tape. He's always been that way. He did it at Clemson, and he's just a great defensive coach."

Georgia is a two-touchdown favorite, according to Bet MGM*. The Bulldogs are 3-0 after routing Tennessee State (63-3), Western Kentucky (70-20) and Arkansas last week in Fayetteville (45-17).

Oklahoma comes in 2-1 after a blowout in the opener against UTEP (51-0), a tight loss at Michigan (17-10) and a tense win at home against New Mexico (14-6).

It’s the first regular-season meeting ever between the Sooners and Bulldogs. Their only previous meeting was an all-time classic in the 2017-18 Rose Bowl — a College Football Playoff semifinal — that Georgia won 54-48 in double overtime.

Smart said he didn’t remember much about that game other than “it got us to the national championship,” which they lost in a dramatic showdown with Alabama.

“Man, that's a long time ago,” he said. “ … It was an iconic game because of what it meant and what it led to and where it was played. Some great players in the game. You look back at Baker (Mayfield), who's a good friend of mine now, and then Nick (Chubb) and Sony (Michel) being a part of it. So it was a great game.”

That game featured one of the best offenses in Oklahoma history, as well as one of the Sooners' all-time worst defenses. Venables has been rebuilding, restocking and restoring the Sooner defense ever since he arrived at the end of the 2021 season. Now it's the OU offense that's struggling.

Smart used that turnaround to expound on what makes Venables so good at coaching defense.

“Technique and fundamentals,” he said. “They have a great scheme. They have an awesome scheme. They've got an answer for everything you do. But that ain't what does it for them. They strike people. They get off blocks. They attack the ball. They play downhill. They don't play passive. They have technique and fundamentals.

“You can see when people go to block them, they can strike and get off the block. That's what football is. Defensive football is, are you hard to block? When you turn on the tape, they've got a bunch of hard-to-block guys. When you're hard to block, you're good. Then you put some size and talent with it, and then you get what you've got in Oklahoma, which, you can ask anybody in our conference. They're year-in, year-out, one of the best defenses.”

Smart, who played safety at Georgia, was asked about the similar career paths each man has walked, but said he doesn’t know enough about the Oklahoma program to make an accurate comparison with Venables, a former Kansas State linebacker.

“I know he's a defensive-minded guy,” Smart said. ”I know he's built on physical toughness and the way you play the game.”

* Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.
* If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1-800-GAMBLER.

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