Oklahoma has found identity under Brent Venables after Lincoln Riley exit

Less than two years after Lincoln Riley left Oklahoma to become the head coach at USC, Sooners fans have gotten the vindication they wanted. Riley abruptly departed following the conclusion of the 2021 season, giving little warning and leaving many OU faithful feeling jilted by the decision.

The year that followed only added insult to injury, as the Sooners finished 6-7 for their first losing record since 1998 in the inaugural season of Brent Venables. Fast forward to now, however, and things have changed dramatically.

OU is coming off of a 34-30 victory against rival Texas on Saturday, getting its revenge after suffering a 49-0 loss to the Longhorns last season. The victory was made even sweeter by the fact that Riley and the Trojans struggled in Week 6, eking out a 43-41 victory against Arizona.

On Sunday, Oklahoma passed USC in the AP poll, rising to No. 5 as the Trojans fell to No. 10. SoonerScoop‘s George Stoia III joined On3‘s Andy Staples on Sunday to discuss the win and how OU has found an identity this season for the first time since Riley left.

“I think they feel vindicated,” Stoia explained. “Last year was so tough on them. You think back to the national media and the national narrative, ‘Was Brent Venables a bad hire?’ I think there was a lot of fans wondering that, too. There wasn’t an identity for this football team.

“When you hire a guy like Brent Venables, you’re supposed to be built on defense and they weren’t a year ago. They were really bad on defense. In fact, they were worse in a lot of areas than they were under Alex Grinch and Lincoln Riley. So I think vindication is what they feel right now and they have an identity.”

After ranking 122nd in the country in total defense last season, Venables went to the transfer portal and brought in some highly touted freshman. The results have been night and day, as the Sooners rank 11th in points allowed per game (14.0) this season and 52nd in total defense.

It’s been a welcome sight to see after Oklahoma struggled on defense not just last season, but also under Lincoln Riley for five seasons. Now we’re seeing the same thing play out with Riley and Grinch at USC, while OU is returning to the identity that Venables helped create as a defensive coordinator under Bob Stoops.

That played out in Saturday’s win against the Longhorns, as the Sooners forced three turnovers, came away with five sacks and also had a goal line stand to start the fourth quarter.

“Oklahoma for a long time has been built on great defense,” Stoia continued. “Going back to the 70s with the Selmon brothers, the 80s with the Boz. The early 2000s with Rocky Calmus and Teddy Lehman, the great linebackers that played for Brent Venables before he left for Clemson.

“So to have that identity back where you can have a goal line stand, and there’s a lot of people who feel like they can make those plays, is something that Oklahoma hasn’t seen in over a decade. I think that’s where Oklahoma fans feel really good about this thing moving forward is, ‘We’re built on a great defense.'”

It’s not just the defense that has impressed, though. OU’s offense ranks fourth in the country in points per game (45.2), while quarterback Dillon Gabriel leads the Big 12 with 1,878 yards, 16 touchdowns and two interceptions.

Gabriel led the Sooners on a game-winning drive with one minute remaining, completing 5-of-6 pass attempts, including the go-ahead touchdown to Nic Anderson. That kind of balance is what makes them dangerous, and is something USC doesn’t have due to its defensive woes.

“They’re scoring,” Stoia said. “Is this as good as the Lincoln Riley offense is? No. But it’s still a top 10 offense in the country. They can put up a lot of points and I think people are feeling really good about the direction and the buy-in of the program and the way this thing is being built.”