CFB insider reveals that other GMs around the sport think the Oklahoma Sooners have the model that everyone wants
The Oklahoma Sooners have the right model in place with Brent Venables and Jim Nagy.
The Oklahoma Sooners are earning recognition as the gold standard in college football’s new era of roster building. NFL draft expert and college football insider Todd McShay believes Oklahoma’s front office structure is the blueprint every program should follow. This is especially true if it means getting closer to a National Championship.
The Sooners’ decision to bring in Jim Nagy as general manager has transformed their recruiting, NIL management, and overall organizational efficiency in ways that have the rest of the sport paying attention. McShay described what he’s seeing from Norman.
“I can tell you now because I’m dealing with a lot of these GMs in college, that front office for the Oklahoma Sooners is the model that everyone’s chasing right now,” McShay said.
Jim Nagy changed the game for OU
Oklahoma was one of the first programs to make a move like this, hiring a general manager with deep NFL roots. Nagy spent years as a scout and served as president of the Reese’s Senior Bowl before joining the Sooners. His eye for talent and his understanding of how professional front offices operate gave Oklahoma an immediate edge.
Since Nagy came on board, the results speak for themselves. The Sooners’ recruiting classes have been elite. They hold a top-3 class in the 2027 cycle and finished the 2026 class strong, particularly down the stretch when Nagy’s influence took full effect. Oklahoma has already secured its quarterback for 2028 in Trey Tagliaferri, and predictions point toward additional four-star and possibly five-star commitments in the near future.
Nagy’s ability to manage the new NIL landscape has been a critical piece of the puzzle. College football looks nothing like it did even five years ago, and having someone who understands positional value, salary cap dynamics, and professional-level talent evaluation gives the Sooners a structural advantage most programs still lack.
McShay also compared what Oklahoma is doing to another high-profile experiment in college football.
“They understand the salary cap. Everything that was pitched from Mike Lombardi and Bill Belichick at North Carolina, about the 33rd NFL team, is exactly what’s going on in Norman,” McShay said.
Venables and Nagy’s partnership is the engine
The relationship between coach Brent Venables and Nagy is what makes the whole model function. Venables has spoken about how the dynamic between them works.
“I think it’s gone really well. My job is to always look at things from a holistic standpoint. how we can get better, how we can be more efficient, and we’ve tried to do that each and every offseason. They want to win. We’ve blended our culture. They’ve brought— they’ve bought into how we do what we do. There’s a bottom line expectation, and that’s no surprise,” Venables said.
That clarity of roles is what separates Oklahoma from other programs. McShay drove that point home.
“Salary cap, positional value, recruiting the right players, time spent. This is the thing that gets lost. Everyone in that organization is doing the job they are best suited to do, effectively and efficiently, without having to worry about all the other nonsense that can come with coaching college football these days. That is why it is the model,” McShay said.
Nagy handling recruiting logistics, NIL finances, and talent evaluation frees Venables to do what he does best: coach football. Venables still recruits and keeps his finger on the pulse of roster building. But Nagy’s presence allows him to spend more time on actual coaching.
That division of labor is what gives the Sooners their best chance to compete at the highest level, and it’s why programs across the country are trying to replicate what Oklahoma has built in Norman.
