Oklahoma Sooners HC Brent Venables immediately shuts down what fans are already calling for after a narrow win over New Mexico
The Oklahoma Sooners could make a big change on offense soon, but as far as Brent Venables is concerned, Ben Arbuckle is the offensive coordinator for now.
The Oklahoma Sooners escaped Week 3 with a 14-6 win over the New Mexico Lobos. But nothing about the victory felt like a reason to celebrate. OU’s offense was dreadful for the second consecutive week. Fans inside the stadium made their frustrations heard with chants to fire offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle.
After the game, Sooners head coach Brent Venables addressed his coordinator’s status with a response that said a lot without saying much.
According to George Stoia of Soonerscoop.com, Venables was asked about his confidence in Arbuckle moving forward as the offensive coordinator. His answer was pointed.
“I’m not going to talk about confidence. He’s our offensive coordinator. We have to be better,” Venables said.
What Venables’ response tells us
The phrasing matters here. Venables saying “he’s our offensive coordinator” signals that Arbuckle is not going anywhere right now. He is the guy, and the staff is moving forward with him. But in the same breath, Venables refusing to discuss confidence is telling. He did not defend the offensive performance. He did not pump up his coordinator. Venables simply acknowledged the reality that things need to improve.
This is now two straight weeks of offensive futility for Oklahoma. The Sooners ran the ball 32 times for 61 yards against New Mexico, an unacceptable number for a program of this caliber. Through the air, OU managed 238 yards and threw two interceptions. The defense is the sole reason this game was a win and not an embarrassment.
The offense is trending in the wrong direction
This is the second year in a row where the Oklahoma offense has been a problem, and somehow it looks worse now than it did a season ago. Quarterback John Mateer has not been great, and while you can talk about replacing him all you want, that does not fix the deeper issues. The offensive line is still not performing well. The running game is nonexistent. Those problems eventually fall on the offensive coordinator.
What makes this harder to stomach is Oklahoma’s offseason investment. The Sooners added two tight ends they didn’t have last year. They upgraded the receiver room. The pieces were supposed to be better this year. And yet the offense scored 14 points at home against a New Mexico team that, while solid and potentially a conference champion in its own league, should not be holding Oklahoma to that kind of output.
Looking ahead to a brutal test at Georgia
The timing of this offensive collapse could not be worse. Oklahoma travels to Georgia next week, where the Sooners will likely face a significantly more talented defense than New Mexico threw at them. If the offense couldn’t move the ball against the Lobos, it is fair to wonder what Week 4 in Athens will look like.
For context, when Seth Littrell was the offensive coordinator a few years ago, and the offense was struggling, Oklahoma didn’t make a change through Week 3. Venables does not appear ready to go down that path with Arbuckle just yet. But if the Sooners keep putting up stinker after stinker, scoring 14 points against New Mexico at home is simply unacceptable, and that conversation will only get louder if this trajectory doesn’t reverse. Venables knows that. His answer made it clear he isn’t ready to make a move, but it also made it clear he isn’t thrilled with what he is watching.
