The Oklahoma Sooners were outplayed, outcoached, and outclassed in Saturday's embarrassing home loss against the South Carolina Gamecocks. The 42-25 loss in Norman dropped OU to 4-4 overall and 2-3 in the SEC in the 2026 season.
The loss ensured that Oklahoma won't be playing for anything of significance for the rest of the year, and a disappointed fanbase is understandably doubting the entire operation inside the Switzer Center. It's been three subpar seasons in five years. The offense needs a total makeover, and Venables got the ball rolling when he fired offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle Monday morning.
Head coach Brent Venables is responsible for everything in the program, and the Sooners have played well below the standard in Norman for most
of his time at the helm. The defense has developed under Venables. But as head coach, he is responsible for the offense. Despite the struggles and the changes on the offensive side of the ball, Venables' job is safe, despite what has happened this season.
Right before the season began, Venables was given a contract extension. The extension was for two years. Venables is coaching on a six-year deal that keeps him at OU until the end of the 2031 season. His annual compensation is $10 million in 2026, and it will increase by $200,000 each year through the final year of the deal, when he'll earn $11 million in 2031.
The buyout in his contract jumped up to nearly $52 million dollars if he were fired this season. It'll drop by $10 million each year of the new deal. That large buyout, coupled with the optics of firing a coach right after giving him an extension, means that Venables is safe this season. Yes, he made the College Football Playoff in 2025, which was likely the driving force behind the extension.
OU extended second-year general manager Jim Nagy this offseason as well. So the head coach-GM pairing you see right now is what you'll see again moving forward, at least in the near future.
Venables is the Oklahoma Sooners head coach for at least another year or two. It'd be hard to imagine he doesn't clean house with his entire offensive coaching staff, led by the hiring of a new offensive coordinator this offseason. However, unless he makes major systemic changes to help his offense succeed, his days may also be numbered in Norman.
So, no, Oklahoma isn't firing Brent Venables during or after the 2026 season. But Venables has to find more year-to-year consistency moving forward to stay off the hot seat.
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This article originally appeared on Sooners Wire: What Brent Venables' contract means for his future at Oklahoma
