Paul Finebaum raves over Brent Venables, Oklahoma after win against Texas

The Red River Showdown was a star-studded affair. Nonetheless, Brent Venables and Co. stole the show. During an appearance on “The Matt Barries Show,” Paul Finebaum praised the Sooners’ performance in Oklahoma’s 34-30 win over No. 3 Texas on Saturday.

“I cannot be more impressed with Brent Venables because I really had my doubts, and you couldn’t help and have your doubts,” Finebaum said. “I had Oklahoma fans and friends keep telling me, ‘You’re wrong. They’re great.’ I said, ‘Calm down. You’ve beaten nobody.’ But, on the biggest stage that they’ll play on until they play again against Texas, that was just amazing.”

Amazing doesn’t begin to describe it. In the win, Oklahoma rattled off 486 total yards of offense while committing just four penalties. Meanwhile, Texas felt the pressure of the moment, committing nine penalties and three turnovers.

The stunning victory was a far cry from what Sooners fans saw last year in the annual matchup. In 2022, Texas bludgeoned Oklahoma 49-0, welcoming Venables to the rivalry game. Obviously, the 52-year-old coach didn’t let the blowout loss stop his program from progressing.

“[The win] just reinforces how well Venables has progressed as a head coach,” Finebaum said. “Dillon Gabriel, it was just pure magic at times to watch it… That’s one of the big wins I’ve seen in a long time and it meant so much because there had been there been a degree of apprehension from Oklahoma people about coming into the SEC.”

There won’t be any apprehension any longer. The Sooners have the talent to compete with the top talent in the nation. In the win, quarterback Dillon Gabriel was fantastic, boasting 285 passing yards and a touchdown.

Oklahoma turns heads in the SEC

Finebaum believes the win is a wonderful introduction for Oklahoma to SEC fans.

“Texas was the big bad and they felt like they were just kind of following their big brother and but there’s no there’s no longer any apprehension,” Finebaum said. “SEC fans are already claiming them now for this year. They’re trying to get credit for Oklahoma and Texas.”

SEC junkies weren’t the only ones who noticed Oklahoma’s impressive outing. The Sooners rose seven spots this week in the AP Top 25 Poll to reach No. 5 in the country. Venables enjoyed every moment of the program-defining win.

“I don’t know how long I’ve coached in the big scheme, but been in a whole bunch of really, really big games, and this one doesn’t take a backseat to any one of them,” Venables said after the win. “National championships, conference championships—just all of the scenarios, moments, big plays, both sides of the ball.”