Can Brent Venables fix 'pathetic' OU football run game? Here's how to do it
Oklahoma Sooners coach Brent Venables called last season's run game 'pathetic' and is implementing changes to fix it.
It’s no secret Oklahoma struggled running the football in 2025. Sooners coach Brent Venables has made his feelings about last season’s rushing attack well known, even recently calling it “pathetic. ” In the minutes following OU’s loss to Alabama in the College Football Playoff , he immediately noted that running the football needed to be a bigger emphasis next season.
Venables isn’t holding any punches: the Sooners need to be better on the ground, it’s that simple. He’s made it one of OU’s most important initiatives this offseason. “Hope is not a good strategy,” Venables said.
“Just bringing in new coaches isn’t the only thing. Just being a year older isn’t the only thing. It’s the fundamentals, it’s the scheme.
To me, it all starts with attitude and mindset. You’ve got to have a kick-ass mindset if you want to kick ass, and so it starts with that. ” The Sooners haven’t seen a running back rush for 800 yards since Eric Gray recorded 1,366 yards during Venables’ first season in Norman.