Oklahoma Football: Brent Venables interview

well got out a a fall Camp um in a really good position uh so got a lot of work to do and Improvement to do but we're uh light years ahead of where we were when we ended the spring and um just how these guys were prepared for fall Camp um our ability to practice at a high uh energy and uh high intensity level for the duration fall Camp really pleased uh with that and um you know a lot of credit um sometimes it's given to people that really matter again coach Schmidt and his staff did a a wonderful job or our nutrition uh Brook Helms and their staff did a wonderful job Relentless me they show up an hour and a half before everybody gets here and stay an hour and a half later and uh our Sports Science and the analytics staff keeping track of everything and uh the constant es and flows and trying to help us Peak at the right time and protect us uh when needed as well and but uh uh the real credit goes to the players and all of their their hard work through the summer it's it's easy to see um the player run meetings and player run practices that they did in the summertime really uh showed up obviously when we ended the spring we had several more guys that um had either just gotten here 38 guys I think had just gotten here in January and they so they got a another summer and then fall camp and so you saw a vast amount of improvement uh confidence come from uh the additional meeting time and Reps and walkthroughs and all the strain from practice and then you uh you had you know roughly 15 guys um that showed up in uh June that are again have an opportunity to have a a major role here um you know moving forward and so to see that progress but the player run practices and the meetings that they they did really showed up so again uh that's really who deserves you know a tremendous amount of credit and um you know as we begin our our season um really excited about where we're at right now and wherever we're at again today it will be a uh the next Friday rather it be a starting point for us against Temple and uh but you really have seen exponential uh growth and uh improvement with uh guys on the offensive side where there was again a few more guys that either the first time here that we're counting on or again you look at a guy like a Jackson Arnold that's just a freshman coming off his freshman year and started one college game and so we m co you know that he just got here in January so um you you know all the different Transit tight end group again that has transformed a bunch of new guys really unfamiliar faces and that's really exciting to see that that group evolve and improve and uh or maybe it's Sam Franklin uh or uh you know Taylor Tatum guys that uh haven't been here long and uh see those guys along with again Gavin Sawchuk and Javonte Barnes and the things that they've been able to do are Xavier Robinson and Caleb Hicks you know again those are guys that enrolled in January and so to see where they're at today you I thought it was important for me to you know uh you know acknowledge that and I know that again there's still uh tremendous you know growth and Improvement but what I love about this group they knew every day we we showed up to this facility something on the line something's at stake and we've got a lot of talented guys as we know you talent and reputation don't win for you you know the work does uh but this is a a group of guys that were willing to work and put the time in and uh they wanted to be challenged and and so that's it makes it a lot of fun when you got get guys with a willingness to do the hard stuff uh you know relentlessly and as so feel uh great about the depth of our our leadership on this team I've been talking about that and we got just a tremendous amount of guys that really care and uh and there's been several guys that didn't get here until this last semester but they uh they're just natural leaders and they bring out the best in everybody and they have a professionalism about them uh that you know knows how to show up but now the next challenge after kind of get navigate the next week or so will be to doesn't matter what you do in practice is if you if you don't do it in a game and U that'll be the the next real litus test and uh but this week we we had a really light day yesterday vested practice and today we're in uppers just a 15 period practice and we'll amp it up to 17 periods tomorrow and then Thursday we'll do a mock game and uh and uh short brief walkthroughs on Friday morning and and then give them a rest of Friday and Saturday off and then Sun M day for us is like a you know a game week uh Monday so we'll get onto that schedule moving forward and working still on on oursel quite a bit uh a lot of good on good work still uh a little bit of individual and uh Team Scout work just things that we need to improve and get better you know thinking uh in game and long ball uh in in many ways with how we're still structured and a little bit of opponent prep but we'll really get into that uh tomorrow um into Temple and and but at the end of the day it's not really about there's a new DNA that you got to learn you know that's going to be a challenge of this team we're going to a new league you know the all the League members got to they got to learn about two teams we got to learn about you know you got 11 teams I'm not again not a soap box it's the reality you got you don't know the DNA uh of you know 11 of those teams so that's been a challenge it's been a you know a lot of fun to put in a lot of work to try to get ready but until you actually play people and and understand the league and how you play you know you you got to kind of go through that I know I talked about that several weeks ago but um that's what's sitting in front of um you know this team and uh uh you know uh love where we're um uh at in in the kicking game right now we still have a battle there uh with our place kickers that'll go through the end of this week and we'll make a decision and uh really feel like we we would need both guys potentially uh you know this season and Zach's got a really big leg uh and uh you know so he's really good at the kickoffs and and uh you know elzinga has done a great job uh as a punter um Ashton has done a really nice job had a great fall Camp uh as well Liam Evans has done some good things there again and I really like the the length and the speed the athleticism the explosiveness and the playmaking of our of our units that we have you know in special teams we we got again a nice blend of offense and defensive guys uh hungry group of guys that they recognize this is an opportunity for them to be be one of the 74 so we've challenged our guys not to to be comfortable uh you know thinking about our first you know three games at home but thinking about you know that 74 cuz that's how I look at it you know who's going to realistically be able to get on the bus you know game four and or game five and uh so that's like I said that's a a really exciting part about you know what's in in front of us right now some things that uh we've been able to get accomplished we still have you know a few guys that are nicked up and have some bumps and bruises but I don't expect anybody to to be out you know long term I feel like everybody has a chance to be available for the first game he have you been able to work through the injuries up front in the offensive line to get you know the chemistry and all of that you that you would like yeah I mean has it been perfect no uh but you know I'm sure that um if you look back at most camps that's usually uh the case and um but I do like where we're at and um uh there has been a chance to you know to work together in lots of different types of the settings but um I I I feel like we're in a really good position there right now who do you like on returns you mentioned special te yeah no I like Jalil I like pyton I like Billy um I like uh Brenan Thompson and Sam Franklin and uh like Gavin Sauk Javonte Barnes those are all guys that have worked some of the Returns on the offensive line Brent how have you seen Bill Bill's done this for so many years how have you seen him attack that position group and and work those guys through and how have you put your input on that group well again just again developing people you know good people usually you know guys that are accountable you I again I my challenge to the guys and part of our op you know our responsibility as coaches is we have really talented guys and some more so than others but when you have talented guys that their their talent you know aligns with their accountability uh and then they're availability then you have a chance to be a really good player and so uh we've got really good guys we we do have guys that started you know a lot of games up front we have a few young guys as well that i' again love the uh their willingness to strain and improve and get better and Bill um understands you know the things that you know he needs to focus on to help you know put a group together or you know again I'm talking not just five I'm talking you know eight to you know 11 12 guys and um so whether that's the development piece the drill work you know the walkthroughs the film study all that stuff matters and finding you know the best combination of guys and then all the wh ifs you know when it comes to keeping guys healthy uh knowing what that'll look like and uh and again you know developing the toughness and the focus of what we got to accomplish understanding defense you know understanding situations what again we're trying to accomplish in different situations again and but I've tried to in every area try to give the offensive players um you know a perspective of what the defense is thinking and if that's a again situational or that's fronts uh if that's techniques that's pressures that's coverage all of those things special teams do you have an do you have a an idea of a five that you'd like to have or is that a fluid situation even going few best five yeah Brent on special teams uh how much has it changed this month in your what you've been used to as a coach having an analyst that can coach special teams that can actually coach the guys is going to do it on game day as well I I think it's changed that part has changed a lot so you and the depth of your support staff their ability to coach and we've got guys that have either been coaches before that you know weren't able to or they're former players um that can really bring a lot to to individualize you know be more specific you know fundamentally technique get a little bit more um on the field eyes and correction and coaching and so but you know where everybody's got the same rules so everybody should benefit from that and um I think when you talk about a coordinator somebody that um is you know an expertise and he has a vision for exactly what it wants to look like when he can be a part of that development you know on the field as well as you know off the field I it uh has gives you a chance to really you know make some improvement you know in the areas that you need to but that's been a lot of fun you know Doug for Doug's incredibly passionate high energy a really smart great teacher um inspires and motivates as good as any coach i' as I've been around the players have tremendous respect for him uh and he's just a really effective Communicator so I I expect us to improve uh from where we were BR did you come out of Camp still believing that you have the quality depth that you hope to have on defense yeah and again um you know what I think we have more guys that last year we had more competitive depth I do think that we have a handful of guys uh from front end to back end uh that can play at a even higher level than what we did a year ago um you know not necessarily 10 guys but we have a handful of guys you know to I think that we're we're better and again several of our backups a year ago were either freshman or or or sophomore so going into their second or their third year is a big deal you know from a making a next jump um you know with their ability to play consistently you know at you know at a winning level so and again I we should be better on defense why well you bring back guys that doesn't make you better you know uh you know like I said we have a chance to uh to be uh really good in particular at some positions and you know we've got a lot of work to do to be um a a really good defense we got a lot of work to do to be you you know a dominant defense we we weren't an elite defense last year we did some Elite things you know we had some things that we did really well but you know that's not how you define a a defense you know to me that's not that's not the end game that you're looking for and you want to you know develop a defense that um every single week you you know you're the defense is doing everything that they need to do to have give us a chance to win and uh that means getting uh you know the critical stop you know that means being prepared for uh the situational piece of it it means you know being physical and not letting people consistently you know make plays on you in the Run game or the pass game and so we got a lot of work to do you know and we'll develop that identity through the course of the season I love the group of guys that we have they've been hungry they've been committed um they've been willing to do the work now I think it has a chance to be an intelligent defense but until you go do it you know and again you you earn that through the season and this will be this might be the um one of the toughest you know challenges Oklahoma you know and Oklahoma defense has has seen uh as as a program I don't know you know I don't know what all the other ones are but uh the challenge is going to be real for for this group of guys and will they have the willingness to show up every single week start over put the work in and do what it takes you know do what the game requires you to do to be prepared to play at a really high level each and every week what about the defensive line in particular uh how do you feel about the the depth that you built there and how that talk I think it has a chance to be better you know than what it was how much I don't know you know we lost uh Jonah played pretty decent last year um Isaiah coob played pretty um good last year you know Lacy would have been a starter you know we we have one guy uh inside that's ever started a college game inside for us at Oklahoma uh on our roster and uh our Mason you know was was uh banged up uh a year ago and he he's one of the contenders to be you know the starter on the other side of Ethan and um so uh do you always want more absolutely um but I've been pleased with the progress um I've been pleased with the Improvement I'm looking forward to uh the challenge of the season and all the schemes that we're going to see that's going to you know uh really you know Force us to you know earn it and uh decide on you know how we want you know or what we want everybody to write about us sorry y fine recent years you've had great quarterback play at overall but a lot of those guys even if they were maybe a first year starter they were third year in college fourth year in college you're obviously getting ready to De a first year starter in his second year there some challenges that inherently come with that well sure um again you you know there's going to be some at time that and any anybody this goes to anybody that um has started one game and and now they're the starter so you got one game under your belt um there's going to be some moments where it looks like that you know uh I think we'd be negligent if we if I didn't say that or naive uh if we didn't believe that and uh you know and those lows can't be you know disastrous and uh but everybody else plays a a part into that as well and what we ask people to do is important you know that we find out what they can do which you know we've been working on for the last several months and and then you know lean on that and uh but again I I bet on people Jackson's incredibly talented I love uh the Improvement even you know Mike Hawkins where where he's at right now he has really flashed and then he's had some moments it looks like a guy that just got out of high school too and um Jackson has made uh you know Improvement in every area uh since you know his first college start which again he threw it for 350 yards and we had over 500 yards offense and we have a chance to go up you know 34 to 13 and uh makes a great play catches it a guy catches it underneath and starts running they Pop the ball out they run it back and uh we have a chance to to win 11 games what's the you know the narrative you know if we if we're able to overcome some adversity uh which we nearly did which is it almost would have been the unthinkable uh to win a game and turn the ball over against a top 15 team that had won six in a row that had been beaten three ranked teams out of those six uh straight wins one of the hottest teams in college football that didn't lose everybody and lose anybody in the portal and uh and so you know I understand the narrative you know but I live in reality and uh and the reality is again we didn't win the game uh but at the same time you know we had a you know a coordinator left or a start quarterback left left several starters left and um and that affect that affects you to some degree you know and you got a couple weeks to get ready so that's our perspective and so my excitement comes from what I've seen uh not only there in that moment um but even obviously since then and uh and so again I'm I'm excited watch these guys go out and play you know coaches everybody get off the field and you know get in the game week and put together a really good game plan and watch these guys you know take it to the field and go execute and and there's going to be several things that go our way and there's going to be several things that don't and you guys get it right about all of it and we got to you know identify the things we got to get better at and uh by the end of the year you know we should be a really improved football team that's that's the goal that's the vision and uh if we're doing things the right way if things go our way you know and uh you know that means keeping guys healthy all those types of things uh you know and our guys stay hungry and committed and driven and we got to motivate them and hold them accountable to do that you know I'm I I love you know where you know I think Jackson can take this football team which is a bigger deal for you right now you've been going at this for a while I'll help him here Mike for a minutes do you are you at the point you want to see these guys in live action or but you still got some stuff you need to work on yeah it's both you know and it's always that way you know I would take one more walk through you know uh like last National Championship ship game I'd love to get one more walk through you know if you look back at it you know I we'd love to work that one scheme one more time you always feel that way and but at the same time you can have a lot of confidence and like these guys are ready to play and uh but you know are we ready I mean again it we're we're not the game week yet so I would say no you know but um we're getting closer and closer and uh and again we're the season will present all kinds of different challenges along the way and it's really not about who we play it's about our standards our preparation our mindset our physicality our effort uh our our willingness to stay humble and hungry and driven and committed and uh you know as a football team you know regardless of what the scoreboard says um you know this is a you know be a a season of improving you know from week one you know all the way through week 12 call Andre doing he's doing good yeah he look great today is going to give rid of the brace I don't know uh he won't be uh required uh to either wear it or get rid of it that'll be up to him and uh but we're obviously trying to be you know careful uh with him but you know he's we're he doesn't have any limits you know right now danan back at practice Des desan back at practice yet how's that helmet communication working you it's good yeah it's good no yeah it's interesting interesting I got ways to I can hear everybody at wants offense and Def when you're going against each other game day of course it's not that way and uh but it's been really good um you know can there be some advantages probably so but if there's advantages for the offense the defense will catch up quickly whenever you know that is um that'll that'll all work itself out but um that's good to be able to have some last few you know words from the communication standpoint but at the same time man you got to let the guys go play too and don't want to paralyze them you know because you had to get one last thing in what about with a Young quarterback you think that's helpful yeah yeah probably so you know if he has a you know a bad play I'm sure there's an opportunity for the uh the head coach or the uh coordinator to be able to say a few encouraging words or be a a level of support or um you know tell them the truth and sometimes Truth Hurts uh so absolutely thank you