EXCLUSIVE: Brent Venables talks OU depth, Arbuckle’s offense, and why the Sooner defense could be even better in 2025

In an exclusive 1-on-1, Oklahoma head coach Brent Venables shares why OU’s depth in the trenches, Seth Arbuckle’s new offense, and offseason development could make the Sooners stronger on both sides of the ball in 2025.

Tuesday, August 19th 2025, 11:22 pm

By: Toby Rowland

NORMAN, Okla. -

Takeaways from my exclusive 1-on-1 interview with OU Head Coach Brent Venables during First and Football

DEPTH IN FALL CAMP

Venables has been excited about the competition and depth he’s seen across his entire team in fall camp. Most notably, OU looks to have a solid two-deep on both the offensive and defensive lines. The importance of depth and talent in the trenches is magnified in the SEC.

ARBUCKLE HOLDING OFFENSE TO HIGH STANDARD

The Head Coach has been impressed with his new Offensive Coordinator. Arbuckle has been relentless in the installation of his new scheme. The fact that quarterback John Mateer also comes from Washington State and is already familiar with Arbuckle’s offense has been a tremendous help.

VENABLES FEELS OU COULD BE BETTER THIS YEAR ON DEFENSE

Despite the losses of some key pieces on defense like Danny Stutsman and Billy Bowman, Venables feels his defense has a chance to be better in 2025. He credits most of that optimism on the improvement and development players have made in the offseason at all three levels of the defense. Of note, Venables feels that an improved offense will help his defense as much as anything. The ability to possess the ball longer, create better field position and most importantly…score. Having a lead in the second half more often will force opposing offenses to be less conservative and allow the Sooner defense to be more aggressive.