ARLINGTON, TX — “Last year doesn’t mean anything,” Oklahoma Sooners Head Coach Brent Venables said. It is just one year removed from one of the worst seasons in recent memory and Oklahoma’s head coach says everyone in Norman has a short memory. On Day 2 at the Big 12 Media Days on Thursday, July 13, the coach was adamant about the Sooners' upcoming resurgence in 2023.
Oklahoma finished last season with a 6-7 overall record in 2022. Not only did the Sooners lose to its rivals, the Texas Longhorns, 49-0 in the Red River Shootout, but overall, Oklahoma had a disappointing year in Brent Venable's first year at the helm.
“We grew and learned a lot as a football program [in 2022],” Venables said. “Five out of seven of those losses go down to the last minute in the 4th quarter with a chance to win. We’ve looked long and hard in the offseason at what we need to do to become a more efficient football team. We’ve looked at every single part of our program. We’ve spent a lot of the offseason practicing, film review, coaching, and all the things you do in a season where we can get better.”
Watch Venables below:
The Sooners need to be better moving forward. Perennial national title contenders under Ex-Sooners’ coach Lincoln Riley, this Oklahoma squad has a ways to go before they return to form. More importantly, Oklahoma moves to the SEC after the 2023 Football season. They do not have time to waste.
“Last year doesn’t mean anything,” Venables said of last season’s matchup against the TCU Horned Frogs. “What [matters] happens this year, that’s literally how you coach, how you prepare, and Coach [Dykes] did an amazing job. What an incredible season they had a year ago.” To this year’s matchup, “What I expect from Oklahoma this year is an incredibly passionate fanbase…this will be an incredible opportunity. Hopefully, we are playing for something on the line.”
Oklahoma Head Coach Brent Venables
(Credit: Big 12 Conference Liz Parke)
OU has the talent to bounce back. Despite losing seven games last year, Venables is correct. Five out of seven losses were extremely close games. Expect the Sooners to be better than they were a season ago. How much better, we will have to see, but here is a reason to support the coach's optimism: Oklahoma was picked to finish 3rd in the Big 12 Preseason Poll but could easily win a few tough games to find themselves in the conversation for another Big 12 championship.
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