NORMAN — Nearly three years ago when OU football, along with its archrival Texas reached out to the Southeastern Conference about joining forces, the Sooners’ national reputation wasn’t in line with a traditionally tough, defensive SEC program.
OU is a national brand with perhaps more historic success than any program in the league outside of Alabama. But over the four seasons from 2017-20, the Sooners were 0-3 against SEC teams in the College Football Playoff and ranked Nos. 68, 101, 64 and 28 nationally, respectively, in team defense.
Ever since he was hired, four months after the bombshell news of conference realignment, head coach Brent Venables has worked tirelessly to transform the Sooners into a balanced football team more in line with the modern SEC. That work landed him a new six-year contract worth $51.6 million, which was approved by OU’s Board of Regents on June 21.
Mike Stoops — brother of hall of fame coach Bob Stoops and Kentucky’s inside linebackers coach — led those underperforming defenses for a year and a half under head coach Lincoln Riley. Mike Stoops has watched from afar as Venables, who he worked with across 11 seasons at Kansas State and OU, tries to flip the script ahead of the Sooners’ official entry into the juggernaut conference on July 1.
“Brent has really worked hard to change the culture,” Mike Stoops told The Oklahoman. “Whether it was me or (Alex Grinch, the Sooners’ defensive coordinator from 2019-21), or whoever. The defensive lapses or inability to consistently stop people became an Achilles heel and trying to change that mindset. I can see Brent doing that, you can just see it from afar.
“I know the kind of person he is and what he takes pride in. He obviously wants to have a tremendous balance in his team. And not having balance in our team, when I was there, made it tough.”
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Aside from Ted Roof, OU’s defensive coordinator the last two seasons, Stoops is the only person to call a defense alongside Venables. He is well acquainted with his work ethic and willingness to do whatever it takes to win.
But as Mike Stoops has found out the past few years working in the SEC, the slogan is true. It just means more.
The Sooners’ defense returns key pieces in safety Billy Bowman and linebacker Danny Stutsman, and arguably improved, adding significant depth through the transfer portal like highly coveted defensive lineman Damonic Williams from TCU. And yet when Circa Sports released its opening lines for six of the Sooners’ conference contests, they were only favored in their SEC opener against Tennessee on Sept. 21 at home.
Though OU won 10 games a season ago, quarterback Dillon Gabriel transferred to Oregon and Jackson Arnold has yet to start a regular-season game. The Sooners also have new coordinators on both sides of the ball and the SEC is expected to boast several preseason ranked teams as well as fight for at least four playoff spots in the expanded 12-team field.
“I’m wanting to see if we can compete with those guys,” hall of fame coach Barry Switzer told The Oklahoman. “Every team we play is going to be a competitor and one that can play with us.
“We’re going to find out, aren’t we?”
Switzer, whose name graces the Sooners’ practice facility they work out in every day, is the first to note he isn’t around the team and rarely visits or attends practices. However, he’s liked what he’s seen so far from Venables’ team’s competitiveness when he watches the games.
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Despite the upgrades in high school recruits and portal additions, some questions remain for the Sooners. They’ve seemingly built their defensive line to match up in the SEC, but had to retool their offensive line this offseason after four veterans tried their hands at the NFL, including first-round pick Tyler Guyton, and talented freshman Cayden Green shockingly transferred to Missouri.
Offensive line is one of the tougher positions for transfers to adapt to, and at OU, they’ll face one of the most physically demanding conferences in the trenches.
To better help manage the ever-changing landscape of college athletics, the Sooners have tabbed Curtis Lofton, a former OU linebacker and eight-year NFL veteran, as their general manager. Lofton will help with roster management and in both the transfer portal and NIL spaces.
“It’s not business as usual anymore,” Castiglione said on June 21, “and so with putting Curtis Lofton in the position of general manager to work side by side with Woody Glass in his administrative role, one being very focused on all the aspects of the talent and the roster build and how things are changing dynamically.
“Then, on the administrative side, that gives Coach Venables the right structure around him, along with his assistant coaching staff to be in the best position and to take on the world going forward.”
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One advantage is offensive coordinator Seth Littrell’s relationship with offensive line coach Bill Bedenbaugh dating back to their time working under Stoops at Arizona.
“I think (Littrell’s) ability to expand and take some from everybody, whether it’s Jeff Lebby or Mike Leach or Sonny Dykes, he’s created his niche and his system,” Mike Stoops said. “I think he’ll do a great job just because of all those things.
“I see (Littrell and Bedenbaugh’s relationship) being an extreme positive for Oklahoma, and (co-offensive coordinator Joe Jon Finley) as well. They all have great ties to Oklahoma and I know Seth has great respect for Bill and vice versa. So I think that’s a perfect match.”
How the SEC plays offense has evolved dramatically over the last five or so years. Stoops’ defenses at OU were defending high-flying offenses with elite quarterback and wide receiver play. Once a defensive-focused conference, Stoops has seen the SEC take after the Big 12 with its impressive balanced, offensive style.
“The quality of players week in and week out is what separates it,” Mike Stoops said of the SEC. “Those numbers are justified in just looking at the amount of players that come out of this league and go to the NFL.
“Trying to find that balance and find the players you need to defend these fields nowadays takes 11 tremendous players. You can see (Venables) trying to recruit to that from afar. That’s a hard thing to do but I think they’re obviously well on their way.”
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Back in Switzer’s day, the Big Eight ruled college football with powers like OU and Nebraska. Switzer could walk into SEC country and handpick any players he wanted.
While Venables can’t do that, he’s recruited to the level Stoops says is necessary to compete in the league. OU has signed three consecutive top 10 recruiting classes and is on its way to another with the 2025 class.
“Today, I couldn’t do that,” Switzer said. “But that’s the league. The Big 12 is a good conference, but it’s not the physical conference that the SEC is. Most physical conference in football.
“It’s all you get down south. All the way across that southern part of the United States, all schools are damn good, and they’ve got a lot of good players out there. They got a greater advantage than a lot of us.”
While Stoops’ Wildcats won’t face the Sooners in 2024, the former OU defensive coordinator is looking forward to when he looks to the opposing sideline and the Sooners have an SEC logo on their chests. He also believes when OU takes the field in the new conference, it’ll be more balanced and prepared than before.
For the 86-year-old Switzer, who will undoubtedly be in his suite at Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium for every game, the SEC and the competition that comes with it can’t come fast enough.
“I’m sitting back, let’s play and see what the hell happens,” Switzer said. “I mean, right, we’re underdogs in all these games.
“We’ll definitely find out soon.”