“We’ve Got to Be a Whole Heck of a Lot Better” — Brent Venables’ Raw Warning Before Oklahoma’s Defining Year

Summary

---

Podcast Summary: On Texas Football

Episode: “We’ve Got to Be a Whole Heck of a Lot Better” — Brent Venables’ Raw Warning Before Oklahoma’s Defining Year

Date: July 20, 2026
Host: Bobby Burton
Guest: Brent Venables (Oklahoma Football Head Coach)

---

Main Theme & Purpose

This episode features Oklahoma Head Coach Brent Venables in a candid Q&A session about the Sooners’ state heading into a pivotal year. Venables lays out what went right—and what went wrong—last season, the steps the program is taking to level up, and gives insight into personnel, strategic adjustments, new coaching staff, and facing marquee matchups. The discussion is raw, football-heavy, and reveals both the challenges and optimism within the program as Oklahoma faces its defining year.

---

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Immediate Areas of Improvement: Turnover Margin & Run Game

[00:22–02:45]

• Venables doesn’t mince words about the necessity for growth:

  “We’re minus 5 in the turnover margin, 85th in the country. That puts a lot of stress and pressure on your football team, certainly when you’re giving it to the other team. Also our ability to take it back is incredibly important.” — Brent Venables [01:00]

• Improving rushing offense:
  • Goal to average closer to 175 rush yards per game, create more explosive plays, and lessen pressure on young O-line.
  • Offensive continuity: Only 3 returning starters last year versus 7–8 expected this season, bolstered by key transfers.
• Special teams exceeded expectations with kicker/punter and return specialists.
• Defensive focus: Improved third-down performance.
• Memorable moment:

  “If we hit the target on those two spaces…we’ll be a much better football team.” — Brent Venables [01:40]

2. Previewing Big Matchups: Michigan & Taylor’s Journey

[02:47–06:32]

• Facing Michigan at the Big House: Respect for tradition and the challenge, but a business mindset:

  “It’s not a nostalgic trip. This is a business trip.” — Brent Venables [03:25]

• Praise for Michigan’s roster, championship staff, and anticipation of new schemes.
• On defensive standout Taylor:
  • Recounts Taylor’s late scholarship offer, development, and perseverance.
  • Taylor’s leadership, example, and work ethic highlighted:

    “His ‘give a crap’ meter is incredibly high. When you care more, you do more. … Taylor’s done. He’s elevated our program, he’s elevated our defense.” — Brent Venables [05:58]

  • Taylor’s journey: From overlooked to All-SEC, foundation stone of team culture.
  • Notable anecdote:
    • Taylor requested incentives after proving himself—Venables had to deny him due to budget but lauded his focus regardless.

3. NFL Future: Our Mason Thomas

[06:32–07:36]

• Chiefs selecting Our Mason Thomas:

  “He’s incredibly explosive…not just a pass rusher. He’s a physical guy that plays much bigger than his stature.” — Brent Venables [06:48]

• Versatility, culture fit, character, and readiness for the NFL.
• Memorable quote:

  “He’s the only boy, he’s got four sisters and he’s a mama’s boy, but man, he is a savage.” — Brent Venables [07:26]

4. Reunion: Gentry Williams at Georgia

[07:40–08:28]

• Facing former player Gentry Williams at Georgia:

  “I’m not going to like it very much, but I love Gentry…Whatever role he ends up having at Georgia, he’s going to overdeliver, I can promise you.” — Brent Venables [07:51]

5. Texas A&M Threat Assessment

[08:31–09:29]

• Impressions of Texas A&M’s new offensive coordinator, Holman Wiggins, and Coach Elko:

  “He’s a winner…It’ll be a line of scrimmage type of game.” — Brent Venables [08:49]

• Physical, balanced offense; anticipation of a tough matchup.

6. Major Staff Additions: Jason Whitten & Others

[09:31–12:05]

• Brought in three high-level assistant coaches, highlighting Jason Whitten (future Hall of Famer, now tight ends coach).
  • Whitten’s traits: Instincts, anticipation, ability to teach and inspire, humility, and deep knowledge.
  • Growth in Whitten’s position group cited as “probably grown as fast as any room…since I’ve been coaching.”
  • Authentic praise:

    “I ain’t trying to be right, but I am. He’s a great one.” — Brent Venables [12:01]

• Also credited Dylan McCollough (RBs) and Lamar Morgan (corners) for impacts as coaches and mentors.

7. Playoff Expansion & Scheduling Philosophy

[12:05–14:37]

• On Camping World Stadium (Orlando) as a playoff host: Praises organization, efficiency, experience for families and players.
• Conference/playoff scheduling: Embraces the challenge and pressure.

  “I like a challenge. … You can't get to four until you get to one.” — Brent Venables [13:26]

• Oklahoma defied “less than 2%” odds to run the table late last season, making the playoffs.
• On future playoff expansion:
  • Not worried, expects fan passion and quality will remain high regardless.

---

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Why Improvement Is Mandatory:

  “We’ve got to be a whole heck of a lot better.” — Brent Venables [Episode Title Theme]

• On Team Development:

  “You go back, we’ve really looked at the areas where we fell short … turnover margin, running the football … that’s a vision for what we want to be.” [01:15]

• On Taylor’s Influence:

  “His work wasn’t conditional on whether or not you gave him his playing time when he wanted it. He just put the work in…” [05:14]

• On Facing Former Star Gentry Williams:

  “Whatever role he ends up having at Georgia, he's going to overdeliver, I can promise you.” [08:21]

• On Staff Additions:

  “Jason has tremendous instincts just from a coaching standpoint, from an anticipation standpoint … been a wonderful teacher for the players.” [11:10]

• On Playoff Odds & Adversity:

  “You can’t get to four until you get to one. … I love the challenge of, you know, you’re back against the wall and you gotta, this is a game of doing, it’s a game of performance, it’s a game of, you know, earning your way.” [13:26]

---

Timestamps for Important Segments

• Team assessment and improvement priorities: [00:22–02:45]
• Michigan matchup & Taylor’s leadership journey: [02:47–06:32]
• Our Mason Thomas drafted by the Chiefs: [06:32–07:36]
• Facing Gentry Williams at Georgia: [07:40–08:28]
• Texas A&M — New challenges for Oklahoma: [08:31–09:29]
• Coaching staff additions, Jason Whitten highlights: [09:31–12:05]
• Conference scheduling, playoff expansion commentary: [12:05–14:37]

---

Tone & Style

Venables is direct, passionate, football-pragmatic, and highly complimentary of both former players and new staff. The episode is rich with inside stories of player development, coaching philosophy, and a no-nonsense approach to both success and failure. This is unfiltered, inside-the-locker-room content for serious Oklahoma – and college football – followers.

Transcript

[A]

We are happy to have Coach Venables join us. He would like to go straight to questions. We'll start on the left side, back row.

[B]

Hey, coach. Steve Moulton, 97.7 ESPN the Zone. Good to see you.

[C]

Good, Steve, you too.

[B]

Certainly coming off of a very positive year last year. But what's the biggest question you have about your team heading into fall camp?

[C]

Oh, hey, well, I know the areas that, you know, you know, we've really spent a lot of time, we look at every area, all the efficiency spaces, all the margins. You know, there's no area that shouldn't, the focus shouldn't be about getting better. How can we get better? And you know, you go back, we've really looked at the areas where we fell short in certainly in your 3 losses. Let's start. Turnover margin. We're minus 5 in the, in the turnover margin, you know, 85th in the country. That puts a lot of stress and pressure on your football team, certainly when you're giving it to the other team. Also our ability to take it back is incredibly important. It can change a game and did impact some games when we were able to do that. And so turnover margin, running the football of being, you know, closer to 175 yards a game than where we were, that's a vision for what we want to be and create more balance and create more explosive plays. As a byproduct of that, take pressure, you know, off of, you know, a bunch of young offensive linemen. A year ago, if we had the ability to, to run the ball and certainly take pressure off the quarterback as well. But those are really, if we hit the target on those two spaces and we have certainly lots of other efficiencies and spaces that we want to continue to build on and improve as well, we'll be a much better, you know, football team. And so that's kind of where our focus has been, you know, and I think returning, you know, we had nine first year starters on offense A year ago it looked like it from a lack of cohesion and chemistry and you know, rhythm that, you know, any great unit's going to have. And so this year I think we have seven or eight returning starters there with the addition of some of the most experienced players in college football, Trail Harris and Marion Harris, right tackle from Arkansas as well. And then returning, you know, a year ago we didn't know a whole lot about our kicking game and where we were going to be. And certainly we had the Lou Groza award winner and all, SEC punter and Grayson Miller as well is Satania. That really was outstanding in the return game. So taking care of the ball, running the football better, you know, being a little better on third downs, you know, with our defense and then, you know, doing a better job complimenting each other, just, you know, top to bottom, right side, second rule.

[D]

Hi, coach.

[A]

Good to see you.

[C]

Yes, sir, you too.

[D]

AP Stidham OF ap as we see it, Coach, what do you know about playing in the big house? And would you say a few comments about Taylor on your defense?

[C]

Yeah. What I know, I've never been to Michigan and I know the challenge of it. I know they won the national championship just a few short years ago and they've recruited incredibly well. I know that that's one of the. I'm really looking forward to, you know, that trip. Just as a longtime loyalist and traditionalist to the game of football, the history of the tradition there takes a back seat, you know, to nobody. And so that part of it's cool. But it's not a nostalgic trip. This is a business trip. And you got a championship staff in Michigan and what coach has done there is, you know, again, second to none. And again they got a fantastic roster. We saw it up close and personal in Norman got tremendous challenge. They have some new coaches. So new what changes that? New schemes and some probably some surprises along the way as well. And. But something we're really looking forward to. And then Taylor wine, man, I can't say enough good things. What an amazing example of belief, of development, of toughness, of a guy having the ability to block out all the noise. A gratefulness for his opportunity. When we offered him, we had a guy d commit late in the recruiting process and we offered him his senior year while he's in the playoffs. So December of his senior year, we offer him a scholarship. He wanted to commit right on the spot. Over the phone, I was like, whoa, whoa, whoa. Let's like meet each other. Like, let's have one date. And so. But he, he knew he wanted to be a sooner and he's a developmental guy. He put the work in and going into last season, as I was talking earlier about, about Taylor and going into right after spring football, he comes to see me and Jim Nagy. He said, any chance I can. He's one of the lowest paid guys on the, on the roster. Okay. So in fairness to him, and he says, any chance I could get some incentives? I'm like, no, there's no chance you can get incentives. And we really didn't. We were out of money for that cycle and already hit our budget. And I love Taylor, and he lives in the building like, and has since he got there. And I think it's important to know the backstory of this guy and how hard he has worked for his opportunity, his readiness and preparedness for his opportunity when it came. You know, his work wasn't conditional on whether or not you gave him his playing time when he wanted it. He just put the work in and through a lot of hard moments along the way. Our Mason gets kicked out of the Temple game because of a targeting, and then he tears his quad a few weeks later in the Tennessee game. Next thing you know, this guy leaves our team, has seven sacks, 15 tackles for losses, all SEC and has continued to be exactly who he's been. He's. He's like a coach in the building every day. And this was prior to being really successful. He just has got a guy with gratitude, and I'm going to maximize the opportunity that I have. He knows that he's on a short shelf life and he's willing to put the work in every single day, but his give a crap meter is incredibly high. It's through the roof. And when you care more, you do more. When you care more, you elevate people. And that's what Taylor's done. He's elevated our program, he's elevated our defense. He has defended the standard in our building each and every day. And now his success kind of validates the work, okay, the sacrifice, the leadership, the belief, the patience, all those things that go in to becoming a really good player. It takes what it takes. And he's an epitome of that second row, left side.

[E]

You mentioned our Mason forums, Kansas City. So just kind of talk about, you know, chiefs take our Mason Thomas in the second round. What the Chiefs are getting in our Mason and what they can kind of look forward to coming up here.

[C]

That was a great pick.

[F]

He's going to.

[C]

He's going to fit in tremendously well with Spags defense. We're very similar in the multiplicity and the ways that you can use our Mason. He's a fantastic football player. He's incredibly explosive, one of the most explosive players that we've coached. He's got tremendous instincts at rushing the passer, but he's just. Overall, he's not just a pass rusher. He's a physical guy that plays much bigger than his stature, and he can play the run set, hard edges, but he does. He cares about his teammates. He's a selfless guy. He's Going to help build on the wonderful culture that Coach Reed and that staff has already established in Kansas City. But just a great. Going to be a great fit, great humility, great mama. He's. He's the only boy. He's got four sisters and he's a mama's boy, but man, he is a savage.

[A]

On game day, four throw on the aisle.

[G]

Yeah, Coach, y' all are going to see right here. You all are going to see Gentry Williams again when you go to Athens. Just what do you remember most about coaching him on and off the field?

[B]

Field.

[G]

And what's it going to be like to see him on the other side of the field there in September?

[C]

Yeah, well, I'm not going to like it very much, but I love Gentry. I love his family. I love everything that he contributed while he was at Oklahoma. A wonderful teammate, wonderful player, just a real dude. And Gentry is going to be one of those guys that whatever he decides to do football, when that ends, he's going to be incredibly successful because again, he has all the right stuff. He's got tremendous competitive character. He's a great human being off the field, cares about his teammates and whatever role he ends up having at Georgia, he's going to over deliver, I can promise you.

[A]

Fourth row, left side, Tyler Shaw with

[H]

KBTX and Brian College Station, Texas A and M, one of the teams coming into Norman this year. I don't know what you see from their offense and their new offensive coordinator, Holman Wiggins. Don't know how much you know, maybe with some of your battles with, you know, when he was in Alabama and you at Clemson, but just kind of what you see from him and. And what their offense.

[C]

Yeah, he's a winner, I'd say that. And he knows how to win. Coach Elko's not going to hire any duds and so he'll do a great job. Colin did a wonderful job of establishing who they want to be. Identity wise and tough and physical, create explosive plays in both the run and the pass game, the plus one run game. I think they understand what playing complimentary football looks like and going to be a great, great challenge. I know they lost a lot of guys up front, but they also signed a bunch of real dudes as well. And so it'd be a line of scrimmage type of game without question knowing who Coach Elko is and you know, what has been established there in College station.

[A]

Right side, fifth row. Hey, coach.

[F]

Xavier McKnight with WWSB right here.

[A]

Hey. Hey.

[F]

So you made a big addition to your coaching staff in the off season, bringing in Jason Whitten, can you talk a little about what the process was like to get him here and what's it been like since he's been here, being able to bring in a guy who is a future hall of Famer and has so much knowledge that he's bringing to the game.

[C]

Well, before I get to coach Whitten, we also hired two other fantastic coaches. And Dylan McCollough, our running backs coach, is an absolute stud as a, as a coach and a mentor member of our team. And then Lamar Morgan, our corners coach, who we hired from the University of Michigan. Same thing, just an amazing mentor. Coach, teacher, husband, father, those types of things, all three of them have made us better. But Jason, the thing that stands out to me is his passion and his humility. It resonates. He's not only this hall of Fame type player and not, not every hall of Famer is this amazing coach and mentor, as we know, but man, he's got it in every way. He's got instincts for the game. He's an incredible communicator. He knows how to inspire and challenge his guys. He knows what the players should ask before the player ask it. He has a rhythm to how he coaches and teaches so that he can have the answer ready for the player and anticipate for the player. I think the best, I think the best coaches, if they do something well, they anticipate what's around the corner. Maybe it's a play caller on game day. Okay, here comes the max blitz. You know, this is that time. You know they're getting ready to blitz us or this is when they're going to drop coverage or this is when they're going to go to a three man front end. Jason has tremendous instincts just from a coaching standpoint, from an anticipation standpoint. So why is that important? Because he's been a wonderful teacher for the players and that room has probably grown as fast as any room has grown since I've been coaching in that amount of time. And so he's been fantastic and he's just a great dude to do life with. He's in the locker room and that doesn't get you in the locker room just being a good guy. But he knows how to be a good teammate. He knows when to affirm, he knows when to ask the right question, he knows when to insert himself respectfully. And because you don't want a room with a bunch of yes guys that doesn't do anything for anybody. And, but this is A, this is a dude of dudes is what I would say. I'm not trying to gas him, but he is what he is. I ain't trying to be right, but I am. He's, he's a great one.

[A]

We only have time for two questions to go on the left side, back row, then pass it forward one row. Hey there, Brent.

[I]

Michael Epps here locally with Spectrum Sports360. Little different pace question for you if you don't mind. We're looking at the possibility of Camping World Stadium in Orlando, maybe hosting like a big primetime week zero, week one game. Obviously you coached the bowl game there and just wanted to ask you what that experience was like there in that city, in that venue for college football and maybe the potential of it hosting a big time neutral cycle.

[C]

Yeah, been there in the playoffs and had a bowl game there as well. Wonderful venue, fantastic. Our families loved it, our players loved it, was incredibly efficient. The stadium was packed and just a beautiful game day field. And everybody in the organization that hosted both of those times that we were there was first class, left side Michael Cobble, WBZ TV in Baton Rouge. Just curious, your experiences with the playoff scenario as it unfolds now and has it affected your feelings towards a nine game conference schedule? Listen, I, I like a challenge. You know, we've got tremendous challenges, league top to bottom. We know that. I don't, I don't need to stand out in front and be, you know, a sovereign for, for, you know, the league. It speaks for itself. You know, we are a great example of, look, man, just focus and control what you can control. You know, last year we needed, I think going into November, I think the ESPN statistic, we know it not really right. But at the end of the day, I think there was a less than 2% chance that Oklahoma is going to go 4 0, Tennessee at Tennessee at Alabama and then with Missouri and LSU to finish things up. But if we went 40 on the same graphic, it said we had a 98.9% chance of going to the playoffs. So, you know, you, you can't get to four until you get to one. And I love the challenge of, you know, you're back against the wall and you gotta, this is a game of doing, it's a game of performance, it's a game of, you know, earning your way. And certainly our guys did. That was our experience a year ago. And so I'm all for that. You know, I don't think that whether you expand it, keep it where it is, it's still going to be awesome. You know, people are going to. They're going to buy the tickets. The passion, the enthusiasm for the game of football has never been greater, and it won't be diminished whatsoever, no matter what happens with the playoff system.

[A]

Coach, great job. Thank you very much. Wish we had more time for it.

[C]

All right, good to see everybody. Y' all have a great day.