Brent Venables reflects on Jackson Arnold departure, highlights growth

Norman will be the site of a homecoming of sorts on Saturday when former Sooners quarterback Jackson Arnold leads No. 22 Auburn into Saturday’s SEC opener at No. 11 Oklahoma (2:30 pm CT, ABC). Arnold transferred to The Plains this past offseason following a rollercoaster two seasons with the Sooners in which he started 10 games at quarterback.

Jackson was infamously benched after starting Oklahoma’s first four games of 2024 in favor of dual-threat freshman Michael Hawkins Jr., who coincidentally made his first career start against Auburn in a 27-21 victory on the road. Hawkins, who is now backing up former Washington State transfer QB John Mateer, would start in ranked home losses to Texas and South Carolina before Arnold replaced him as Oklahoma’s starting quarterback the following week on the road at Ole Miss. Jackson finished out the rest of the 2024 season as the Sooners’ QB1 before announcing his intention to transfer Dec. 4, signing with Auburn 10 days later.

On Tuesday, Oklahoma head coach Brent Venables declined to discuss his final conversations with Arnold, a former Five-Star Plus+ recruit in the 2023 cycle according to Rivals Industry Ranking, but did acknowledge the circumstances around their divorce were more a result of college football’s transfer-happy environment than anything either experienced in 2024.

“I’ll just keep that between he and I. Obviously things worked out well for him and us both. But those are things that are never easy,” Venables said during Tuesday’s press conference in Norman. “That’s just the environment that we’re in and I’m really happy for him that he’s having great success (at Auburn).”

When asked a follow-up about what he’s seen from Arnold on film this season, Venables made it clear any difference in his play is the result of a more conducive situation around him at Auburn.

“I think he’s the same guy, I think he’s got a healthy football team around him and he’s having great success running, throwing, being really efficient,” Venables said of Arnold. “He’s taking care of the ball. And the people around him are good. You can’t play quarterback by yourself, right? So I think their offense and defense compliment one another, and he’s really done a great job.”

Through three games, Arnold ranks 10th in the SEC with 693 yards of total offense and eight combined touchdowns, while Mateer — his Sooners replacement — ranks second in the league with 1,105 yards of total offense and nine combined touchdowns. Arnold has thrown for 501 yards and four touchdowns on 69.6-percent (48-of-69) passing while adding 192 rushing yards and four scores on the ground.