Brent Venables voluntarily makes major sacrifice to secure the future of the Oklahoma Sooners roster
Brent Venables kicked off the season with a major announcement that should help the Sooners in the future
As soon as Brent Venables was hired as head coach of the Oklahoma Sooners, it became abundantly clear that he completely understood the culture of the Oklahoma Sooners. He quickly became a fan favorite.
While the results haven’t been quite there so far for him, it’s abundantly clear that he still understands the culture of Oklahoma and has instilled that within the team. However, actions speak louder than words, and Venables just took a major action to secure the future of the Oklahoma Sooners.
Brent Venables Takes Major Pay Cut
According to a report from USA Today, Brent Venables took a $1 million pay cut. Venables was set to make $8.55M this year, and will instead make $7.55M.
This move was initiated by Venables as a give-back to contribute to Oklahoma’s revenue-sharing efforts. Venables made the decision to take a pay cut back in February.
In a statement released by Oklahoma Athletic Director Joe Castiglione, Castiglione praised Venables’ initiative and understanding.
“It really shows a lot of leadership on Brent’s part. He came forward with the idea, knowing there were needs for our program. He wanted to help. He recognized the need to retain players already on our roster and those we needed to recruit, and he wanted to help participate in the revenue-sharing formula going forward.”
Perhaps I’m reading too far into this, but I think this move speaks volumes about Venables’ job security. Why would he voluntarily give up pay if he thinks he’s going to be fired at the end of the season? If he made that kind of move without those kinds of assurances or without even thinking about it, he’s a much greater man than me.
Venables moving forward with this kind of move will pair well with Jim Nagy’s decision to want to be aggressive in the transfer portal. The Sooners spent a huge chunk of their revenue-sharing on simply retaining their roster this offseason, leaving them little wiggle room to be aggressive. With some fresh change in their pocket, the Sooners might be able to be more aggressive in their pursuit of talent.
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