The Oklahoma Sooners lost to the Texas Longhorns, 23-6, in Week 7 in the Red River Rivalry.
Quarterback John Mateer returned after having surgery, but he struggled, throwing three interceptions without a touchdown in the loss.
Oklahoma was up to No. 6 in the polls before losing to Texas and now falling to No. 14. On Tuesday, head coach Brent Venables had an interesting comment regarding close games in the SEC Conference.
“This isn’t the old Big 12 days where Oklahoma destroys everybody every single week except one game of the year,” Venables said, via George Stoia of On3.
Venables’ comments come after the Sooners’ second straight loss to the Longhorns in the Red River Rivalry.
However, the Big 12 Conference did not take kindly to those remarks by Venables.
“Coach Venables lost eight Conference games in his two seasons in the Big 12,” the official account responded on X.
Big 12 Fires Savage Shot At Oklahoma Coach
It was an unexpected response from the Big 12 Conference account.
Oklahoma is only in its second year in the SEC after leaving the Big 12 Conference. He is in his fourth year in Norman after replacing Lincoln Riley following his departure to USC.
In Venables’ two seasons in the Big 12, Oklahoma went 16-10 overall with a 10-8 mark and a 3-6 record in 2022.
On the other hand, Stoia responded to the Big 12’s post with a statement about the Oklahoma program.
“OU won 14 Big 12 championships in the Big 12’s 29 years of existence. What Brent Venables said was not inaccurate,” Stoia wrote on X.
Now, Venables wasn’t the Oklahoma head coach for the Big 12 titles, but the Sooners have had a lot of success during their time in the conference.
Brent Venables Describes Tough SEC Play
Getty ImagesBrent Venables
While Venables didn’t hide his feelings about the SEC, it has been an adjustment for the program.
In 2024, Oklahoma went 6-7 overall with a 2-6 record in SEC play. This year, Oklahoma is 5-1 overall with a 1-1 record in SEC play, although it’s still early.
During his press conference on Tuesday, he spoke about the toughness in SEC play.
“I’m not saying that in any other way other than every week there’s big, long, fast explosive dudes, great staffs. Really good quarterback play, tremendous lines of scrimmage, things of that nature,” Venables said after the viral comments.
Oklahoma’s losses in 2024 came against talented teams: Tennessee, Ole Miss, Alabama, LSU, South Carolina and Texas.
The two wins came against Auburn and Alabama, and this year, Oklahoma has a brutal stretch coming up. In Week 8, Oklahoma faces South Carolina before five straight games against ranked opponents:
- Week 9 vs. No. 5 Ole Miss
- Week 10 at No. 11 Tennessee
- Week 12 at No. 6 Alabama
- Week 13 vs. No. 16 Missouri
- Week 14 vs. No. 10 LSU
That is a gauntlet stretch, and one that will make or break Oklahoma’s season and any potential path to an SEC title and College Football Playoff spot.
Still, while Oklahoma as a program had much success in the Big 12 days, Venables didn’t have that same success, and these comments might be circulating for some time.
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