"Its better than any national championship": Brent Venables raves about prominence of Texas

The Red River Rivalry is among the biggest games played out every year. Each season, the Oklahoma Sooners and the Texas Longhorns face off at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, Texas. The latter leads the all-time series, but Oklahoma has won five of the last seven games, excluding 2024.

Meanwhile, Oklahoma coach Brent Venables, who took over in December 2021, has only beaten Texas once (in 2023) in three tries.

At the SEC Media Days on Wednesday, he discussed the prominence of the rivalry.

"We have to play better and coach better,” Venables said. “It's better than any National Championship environment I've ever been in. There's not a heartbeat in that Cotton Bowl that doesn't have a little hate in the heart."

The two teams will meet again on Oct. 11.

Brent Venables on running back transfer Jadyn Ott

Oklahoma knows it will need all the help it can get to take down Texas this upcoming season, and one of the biggest pieces to help with that is running back transfer Jadyn Ott from California.

At the SEC Media Days on Wednesday, Brent Venables praised the newcomer.

“He’s a home-run hitter,” Venables said. “Great, natural runner. He’s got great instincts, runs well behind his pads. His yards after contact are eye-popping. He makes plays, as opposed to ‘take what they give you.’”

Last season, Oklahoma’s running game posted the team’s worst numbers since 1998. The Sooners are bringing back Jovantae Barnes, Xavier Robinson and Taylor Tatum, while Ott is expected to be at the forefront.

In 2023, Ott had 1,315 yards and 12 touchdowns for the California Golden Bears. But in 2024, an ankle injury slowed him down, finishing with 385 yards and four touchdowns.

The Sooners are also hoping that Ott and new quarterback John Mateer can help bring more big plays to the offense.

“We need to,” Brent Venables said. “... We haven’t been as explosive as needed to create those big plays. Obviously, if you can have real threats carrying the football, as well as the ability to push the ball down the field effectively and explosively, that gives you the kind of balance that makes it tough on a coordinator.

“That’s when you can really get clicking and going on offense. I would expect that to be a byproduct as we get into the season.”

Oklahoma will open its 2025 season at home against Illinois State on Aug. 30.

About the author

Garima's inclination for sports began with Pitthu/Seven Stones, then cricket, when she was named the team captain in high school, and slowly built up to badminton, tennis, swimming, baseball, and, most recently, F1. There is no end to her love for Serena Williams, who she admires for her incredible impact not only on the game but on women around the world.

Apart from sports, she loves good storytelling in any form, be it a good fiction book, film, or even a vlog. Photography, going on drives, eating good food, and exercising are the things that keep her sound.

Currently studying the Japanese language, she aims to become fluent by the end of 2026.

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Edited by Alvin Amansec