Although it seemed like a mutual decision after a turbulent 2024 season, Oklahoma football coach Brent Venables just admitted that the Sooners actually wanted to keep quarterback Jackson Arnold in Norman before he transferred to Auburn this offseason.
Venables said on Wednesday at SEC Media Days that OU tried to retain Arnold, but he also understood why Arnold wanted to go somewhere else.
"I hate that what happened," Venables said. "We wanted to keep him. We tried to keep him. But I think he just needed a fresh start. I don't want to speak for him. But he was wonderful. Never once was I disappointed in him. He handled one of the toughest moments of his athletic life in an amazing first-class way.
"I know this, without reservation, he's gonna play this game a long time at a really high level. Unfortunately for him, everything around him wasn't helping him be successful. He had no chance in some ways under the circumstances and dealt a really bad hand."
Venables admitted the Sooners didn't want Arnold to transfer to Auburn
After Arnold struggled last season and the Sooners presumably had transfer John Mateer on the way, it was easy to assume the Sooners just let Arnold walk, but that apparently wasn't the case.
Sooner Nation had high hopes for Arnold when he signed with OU as a five-star recruit in the 2023 class. Based on 247Sports ratings, Arnold was the ninth-best recruit OU had signed since 2000. After Dillion Gabriel transferred, it was then presumed Arnold was the quarterback of the present and future in Norman.
Arnold began 2024 as QB1 before getting benched for Michael Hawkins Jr. four games into the season. He eventually won the job back and started nine games as a sophomore. Arnold finished his first season as a starter with 1,421 passing yards and 12 touchdowns compared to three interceptions while completing 62.2% of his passes. He also added 444 rushing yards and another three scores.
Although it was fair to be disappointed with Arnold, he was also inserted into a terrible situation. The offensive line gave up 50 sacks, which was the most in the SEC. There were multiple injuries at receiver, leaving the Sooners without their five best receivers most of the season. Then, to top it off and fully count the season as a wash, offensive coordinator Seth Littrell was fired after six games.
Hawkins stuck around and will likely back up Mateer, who transferred from Washington State as the No. 1 prospect in the Transfer Portal. Arnold, though, headed to Auburn, where he'll take over as the Tigers' QB1 and even represented them this week at SEC Media Days, where his new coach, Hugh Freeze, in an interview blamed Arnold's situation at OU for his struggles.
Venables, too, during his first press conference at SEC Media Days, made it a point that he's on the same page as Freeze and still expects a lot from Arnold.
"I'm gonna take this moment just to say what type of a future I believe that Jackson Arnold and Mike Hawkins, both of those guys (will have)," Venables said during his media days presser when asked about that receiver situation. "Both of those guys were put in a really tough spot as first-year players. The supporting cast -- they can't play quarterback by themselves, and put them in a really tough position based on what happened and both of them are gonna be incredibly successful in the future."
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