Brent Venables downplays loss of multiple Oklahoma players in Texas loss

After getting off to a hot 3-0 start to the season, the Oklahoma Sooners cooled off significantly losing their last three games in a row capped off by a demoralizing 49-0 defeat to rival Texas in the Red River Showdown this weekend. The Sooners were missing a handful of their starters to injury, including starting quarterback Dillon Gabriel, but head coach Brent Venables does not believe that was the reason they fell to the Longhorns.

“We had some guys that did not participate today and I don’t think that had anything to do with the outcome of the game,” Venables said. “We are good enough on both sides of the ball to be a lot more competitive and have a chance to win the game than what we displayed.”

Despite what Venables believes, the loss of Gabriel was a big one for the Sooners, as he threw for 1,215 yards, 11 touchdowns, and zero interceptions on the season and was replaced by backup Davis Beville whose first career collegiate start was Saturday in one of college football’s biggest and most storied rivalry games.

CLICK HERE to subscribe for FREE to the On3 YouTube channel

The Sooners were also missing some key defensive pieces, including safety Billy Bowman and linebacker Shane Whitter, who was ruled out a few days prior to the game with a season-ending injury that leaves Oklahoma with just four healthy scholarship linebackers left on their roster. But despite these losses, Venables still took a majority of the responsibility for his team’s most recent performance.

“From coaching and getting them ready, that responsibility starts with me, and I obviously did a very poor job of that. I lose a game 49 to nothing and have all of this great coaching and scheming and everything else without the accountability beginning and ending with me,” Venables said.

Venables’ calling card in his career has been his defense, but in Oklahoma’s last three games they have given up 48.3 points per game, and now ranks at the very bottom of the Big 12 in yards allowed per game at 450.

The Sooners’ offense obviously has their own problems to figure out as well, with Saturday’s loss being the first time they’ve been shut out since 1998.

“So obviously I have not done a great job, I think our players have been incredibly invested through the first half of the season and frustrated for them not to see the results that they’re all fighting for every single day,” Venables said. “Some ways it would look like maybe a tired football team, and there’s probably several reasons why right now we’re having to play near perfect football and we’re just not able to do that right now.”