Despite a second 6-7 season in three years under head coach Brent Venables, the Oklahoma Sooners and their fans are still holding onto some hope that the 2025 season will be different. The second season in the SEC is a crucial one for OU, as they look to bounce back from their worst season since 1998.
With the college football offseason now in full swing, On3 Sports staff writer Ari Wasserman took the time to rank the top 25 head coaches in college football for the 2025 season. Among them were some of the biggest names, such as Kirby Smart (No. 1), Ryan Day (No. 2), Dabo Swinney (No. 6) and Bill Belichick (No. 21). Rivals like Steve Sarkisian (No. 4), Josh Heupel (No. 10) and Lincoln Riley (No. 22) also made the rankings. But Venables was also included on the list, ranking 23rd, one spot below his predecessor, Riley. Venables is seventh out of seven SEC coaches included, behind names like Kalen DeBoer (No. 9), Brian Kelly (No. 16), and Lane Kiffin (No. 17).
There is no question Venables is one of the most impressive defensive minds in college football. You could make the case he’s every bit as responsible for Clemson’s peak success as Swinney, who found his way into the top-10 on this list. But Venables’ run as a head coach hasn’t gone smoothly, bottoming out last year when the Sooners were decimated by injury. Venables returns next year in a must-win scenario and brought in quarterback transfer John Mateer from Washington State. Oklahoma should be better than it is and there is a good chance the Sooners break out next season. – Wasserman, On3
Venables is just 22-17 over three full seasons at OU, an awful mark by the program’s standards. He’s delivered the two worst seasons record-wise since the John Blake days and is 0-3 in bowl games. Oklahoma hasn’t made the playoff or a New Year’s Six bowl game in Venables’ tenure.
He’s in a must-win situation entering 2025, and he and his staff are hoping the additions they’ve made to the team via recruiting and the transfer portal can put them over the hump and into the win column a bit more next season.
This post was originally published on this site be sure to check out more of their content.
