SoonerScoop video: Welcome back, OU spring football
OU winter sports have been delivering, with both basketball teams leaving no doubt for the NCAA Tournament. They’re in. OU softball is on its way to perhaps another run.
But March also means it’s time for OU football once again. Spring football begins for head coach Brent Venables and Team 130 on Monday.
Venables had a 42-minute press conference Wednesday to discuss a variety of OU topics. And SoonerScoop’s Eddie Radosevich and George Stoia are here to break it all down.
Breakdown
“I’m really excited about this group of guys that we’ve been around for almost eight weeks, through our mat drills, winter conditioning, weight room, film room, little bit of walkthrough,” said Venables on Wednesday afternoon. “It’s been a really competitive group of guys. That’s probably the word we use most in our staff room. What our eyes tell us, a really driven and focused group of guys with our returning players along with 35 newcomers, both high school and transfer. It’s been a lot of fun watching these guys come together and develop their chemistry, their relationships, their trust, their understanding of all of our processes and what we do what we do, which is a critical part during this time of year – developing trust and respect and getting to know one another.
“So far, just from the 10,000-foot lens, that’s what I’ve seen from this group of guys as a whole. I really like where our leadership has been up to this point in time. We’ll see if the investment and commitment is there as we develop our team, Team 130. Ultimately that will be the test of what we’re going to be, what our commitment is. It’s been eight weeks and we have a long way to go between now and the beginning of our season. I really like where we are at in a lot of places.
“We’re anxious and excited to watch our guys get out on the field, our coaches and players together to start to do spring ball. This is the time of year where we reinforce all of our processes and how we practice, how we compete and how we play, how we run on and off the field, all the little things – doing the little things right.
“It’s also an opportunity for us to look at how we evolve in all three phases of the game. What we’re going to do and what we’re going to tinker with and have an opportunity to try some new things. But most importantly, we’re going to establish our standard of expectations. How we practice, how we compete, how we play the game, how we meet, all those types of things.”
