Coming off of a 10-win season and a College Football Playoff appearance, Oklahoma Sooners Football head coach Brent Venables was ranked by On3 as the 9th-best coach in the SEC
On3’s Chris Low put out his rankings of the best coaches in the SEC, and he slotted Brent Venables in at No. 9.
Here’s the full quote: "9. Brent Venables: Anybody you ask in college football would tell you that Venables is one of the best defensive minds in the game, and his defenses are a pain to play against, going back to his days as Clemson’s defensive coordinator. In four years as Oklahoma’s head coach, it’s been a little bit of a seesaw for Venables – two losing seasons and two 10-win seasons. The Sooners made the playoff a year ago after bouncing back from an injury-marred 2024 season. Venables has made some key staff additions the last two years and will continue to call his own plays on defense. Oklahoma won six of seven Big 12 titles before Venables arrived in 2022, so he walked into a really good situation. This may be his best team in 2026, but the schedule is again brutal. The Sooners are still looking for their first postseason win under Venables, who was 5-2 against ranked opponents a year ago."
I think 9th is a little low, but I get it.
Venables is clearly one of the best defensive minds in the sport. That part is undeniable. His defenses have consistently been tough to score on, and last year they were elite.
But when you look at the full body of work over four years, it has been up and down with two 10-win seasons mixed with two 6-7 seasons. That inconsistency is probably what’s keeping him out of the top 5 or 6 right now.
That said, I do think the guy the Sooners have now is a much better coach than the one they hired in 2022.
He’s learned to delegate. Ben Arbuckle is running the offense, Jim Nagy is handling the roster and recruiting at a high level, and Venables gets to focus on what he does best, calling the defense. That’s been a big step forward for him.
The biggest knocks on Venables right now are fair. He’s still looking for that first postseason win. His record against rivals isn’t great (1-1 vs Oklahoma State, 1-3 vs Texas, 1-1 vs Missouri, 1-0 vs Nebraska). At Oklahoma, you have to win those games more often than not. That’s non-negotiable if you want to be considered one of the truly elite coaches in the conference.
Still, last year was a really good step in the right direction. Making the playoff in a murderer's row of a schedule showed real progress. With 14 starters back and what should be one of the best defenses in the country again, 2026 feels like it could be the year he takes that next jump.
Chris Low is right that this might be Venables’ best team yet.
The schedule is brutal again, but that’s the SEC. If he can win more of those rivalry games, compete for the SEC title, and make a deep playoff run, his stock is going to skyrocket.
Right now, he’s a good coach with the potential to be great. He’s not there yet, but the foundation is solid and the trajectory is pointing up.
I’d probably have him around 6th or 7th personally, ahead of Eli Drinkwitz and Josh Heupel, but 9th isn’t disrespectful. It’s just a reminder that at Oklahoma, results matter more than potential.
The expectations are high for a reason.
Venables has the respect of his peers for what he does defensively. Now he needs to stack winning seasons and beat the big boys more consistently.
If he does that, he won’t be sitting at No. 9 for long.
