Brent Venables praises fan support in Oklahoma spring game

After an up-and-down first season under new coach Brent Venables, Oklahoma fans still poured in to support the team in the annual spring game on Saturday.

An estimated 54,409 fans were on hand to watch as Venables and his staff continue trying to build the Sooners into a legitimate contender, first in the Big 12 and then shortly transitioning to the SEC. It’s no small task.

But if the spring game or fan support was any indication, Oklahoma looks the part of an SEC team.

“I thought everything, the environment, the production, if you will, was great,” Venables said. “Fans were fantastic. For us it’s the only opportunity we get before we play in an actual game to get in a gameday type environment and see how the guys handle emotion or whether a guy will become paralyzed through those moments.”

Oklahoma has work to do on the field.

The Sooners lost seven games in the first season under Venables, but the program seemed to steady itself after a shaky stretch with three straight losses in the middle of the 2022 campaign threatened to derail things. Texas trounced Oklahoma 49-0 during that stretch.

Somehow, the Sooners found a way to claw their way back to respectability.

The final four losses of the season for Oklahoma were by a field goal. All winnable games, including the Texas Tech one that went to overtime.

Turning those types of games into wins will be a key task for Venables at Oklahoma if he hopes to survive long-term. For now, he’s still got plenty of Oklahoma fan support as he attempts to turn this thing around.

Venables praised the fans again for their hand in getting the program back up to snuff.

“It’s great. I’ve said this many times, and of course it’s well-known, the support that we get at the University of Oklahoma is second to none,” Venables said. “We don’t take a backseat to anybody when it comes to support, fan engagement, the passion, the love for the Sooners and the former players. That’s just not normal.”