Brent Venables took the reins as Oklahoma’s head coach in 2022, bringing with him a wealth of experience. In his two seasons at the helm, the Sooners have posted a 16-10 record, a solid but not spectacular performance. The Sooners HC has faced his share of challenges and triumphs, but he’s managed to keep his head on straight, thanks in large part to his family. Married to Julie since 1997, Venables and his wife have raised a beautiful family who are his pride and joy. In fact, when Venables joined the Sooners, his son faced a tough decision: stay at Clemson and follow in his father’s footsteps, or take a different path. It was a life-changing choice for his son, and it speaks to the kind of family the HC has built.

Tyler Venables, Brent’s son, is a rising safety who was raised primarily in South Carolina’s Upstate before spending two years growing up with his father. “I had two full years of playing for my dad. It’s probably time for me to take a stand and stand on my own two feet now,” Tyler stated. In addition, he said, “It was always my dream growing up as a kid—why wouldn’t you want to play for your dad at the collegiate level?” Hence, following his father’s footsteps, he plays safety for Oklahoma at the moment.

However, Tyler is one of Brent’s four children. Brent is also the father of three other children; two daughters, Addie and Laney, and one son, Jake.

Jake Venables was a Clemson Tigers player, much like Tyler. In his final four years at Clemson, he recorded 89 total tackles, 4.0 sacks, two interceptions, and one forced fumble. He attended the school from 2018 to 21. Brent’s girls play competitive sports, much like his sons. Laney Venables helped Norman’s Community Christian defeat Roland 45–37 in the Class 3A girls’ state basketball championship quarterfinals. Presently, she plays for the Royals’ basketball team. 

It seems that the coach instilled in his kids a deep love for sports. However, how is he standing with the Sooners this season?

Brent Venables’ stand this year

To put it mildly, Oklahoma’s adjustment to the SEC has not been the best under Brent this year. The Sooners were 4-2 going into Week 8, still working out a lot of kinks in their approach as they go. Despite starting the season strong with wins against Temple, Tulane, and Houston, OU faced a setback when they lost their SEC opener to Tennessee and were convincingly defeated by Texas in the Red River game.

Oklahoma has the lowest rushing offense in the SEC with 732 rushing yards and 3.4 yards per attempt through six games. But Oklahoma’s head coach didn’t hold his player accountable for such a terrible showing. “That’s not their [players’] fault. We’ve got to make better decisions. And they’re easy decisions. They’re not complicated, “said Brent. However, Oklahoma supporters blamed Venables’ inept coaching for the Sooners’ subpar play. 

The situation was exacerbated by the Sooners’ defeat at home versus South Carolina on Saturday; they fell 21-0 at the half and lost 32-3. Despite not having won a bowl game at Oklahoma, Brent is likely not in hot water just yet because he is in the third and most crucial year of his contract. As per the source, to exit Venables’ contract, Sooners would have to pay $44.8 million by Dec 2024. So, in this position, Oklahoma probably has no choice but to hope and trust that Venables can solve this on his own.