Brent Venables, Oklahoma still trying to learn how to handle failure

Oklahoma got the Brent Venables era off to a hot start to the season, starting off 3-0 and making easy work of their non-conference competition. Since that undefeated start, the Sooners have turned completely in the opposite direction, losing three straight games all to conference opponents. Morale was high for the Sooners at the start of the season, but Venables explained how the their squad needs to learn how to deal with adversity moving forward as they now sit at 3-3.

“Well I think handling failure is knowing that, again, not everything’s gonna go well or gonna go perfect and it doesn’t have to, and so having the poise and the maturity to know in those moments man, don’t flinch,” Venables said.

The Sooners outscored opponents 127-30 in their first three games, but have been outscored 145-58 in their last three. The level of competition, a multitude of injuries, and other factors have an impact on Oklahoma’s night and day performance so far this season, but Venables believes ultimately their in game crisis management needs to be improved.

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“Play the next play, play the next series, get the adjustments, get the corrections, and then take it to the field the next series,” Venables said. “As opposed to so much stress where it’s catastrophic if things don’t go well.”

Unfortunately for the Sooners, the rest of their conference schedule doesn’t get any easier, as they still have to face two more of the conference’s five ranked teams including their next matchup with No. 19 Kansas, No. 8 Oklahoma State later in the season, as well as defending conference champion Baylor.

“So right now we’re just not playing with the efficiency that we need to, that goes on both sides of the ball, so that we can help and compliment one another,” Venables said.

Last week’s 49-0 loss to Texas was a prime example of just that, as neither side of the ball could get anything done for the Sooners as they failed to move the ball and stop the Longhorns.

Losing is not the norm in Norman, as the Sooner’s three losses through six weeks of the season are already the most they’ve had in a year since 2014. They surely have a lot to figure out, and hopefully for Venables and Oklahoma, they can figure it out sooner than later.