Brent Venables stresses importance of having veteran defenders back in 2024

During Monday morning’s Andy Staples show on the On3 YouTube channel, he sat down with Oklahoma head coach Brent Venables to discuss the value of experience the Sooners have in their veteran returners.

Staples listed off some big name OU defenders who are returning, such as star linebacker Danny Stutsman, asking if the Oklahoma head coach likes where his defense sits with having those veteran leaders this coming season.

With an incredibly snazzy shoe collection in the backdrop, Venables explained why having the Stutsmans of the world is such a game-changer in the modern era.

“Yeah, I think it’s important, you know, as you try to build a stable program that has, you know, continuity and stability. Those are things, to me, that have been apart of championship locker rooms,” he shared, noting that those traits often equal consistency, which is a hallmark of those championship teams.

“What we’re trying to build here during a very unstable time in college football, you know, having several players that this is going to be the third year in our system — it’s great. Third, fourth year players are going to play more confident, aggressive and physical way, and more consistent.”

“If you’re a great player or you’re a great unit or you’re a great team, you know, consistency is a word that people are going to use to describe you. And I told the coaches that when you’re looking at recruits, I think that’s an important piece, you know, who are the guys that are really consistent?”

For Venables, there’s trouble with those less-consistent players, guys who he says may bring it at an A+ level some days, but on others give more of a C or D effort. He’d rather have the consistent B and B+ dudes.

“Guys that play in an uneven or they compete or they show up in an uneven way, then you’re going to have uneven results,” he added. “So, that’s what we all want, and having a lot of experience back lends credibility to believe that you’re gonna have that.”

Many college football teams have experienced guys with COVID years and the transfer portal. But for many teams, those guys are imports, and you’re seeing less and less grass roots seniors across the country. For Oklahoma, that continuity among the best players and leaders of the defense could be a major advantage in year one of SEC play.