Brent Venables will be Oklahoma’s head football coach at least beyond 2026. That’s basically a guarantee.
With the Sooners alternating wins and losses on their way to a 5-4 record during a disappointing season that started with College Football Playoff aspirations, some have wondered if this could be Venables’ final month leading the Sooners if things get even worse.
Most of us already knew the answer to that question because of the premature two-year contract extension Venables signed just before the season kicked off, but just in case, Oklahoma Board of Regents chair Rick Nagel made it crystal clear during Wednesday’s meeting, according to The Oklahoman’s Joe Mussatto.
“The board doesn’t typically comment much on what’s going on in the athletic department. That’s maybe a smart thing,” Nagel said, unprompted. “But I want to say this … our head coach, Brent Venables, is not on the hot seat. There is no hot seat. We just extended his contract.”
"There is no hot seat," Nagel continued. "We just extended his contract."
— Joe Mussatto (@joe_mussatto) November 11, 2026
Brent Venables' OU job isn't on the line, no matter how bad things get in 2026
First off, any time an athletic director, or in this case a board of regents chair, shares public reassurance about a coach’s job security, that usually means that coach should actually be either on the hot seat or fired, depending on the situation.
OU is experiencing that right now with the men’s basketball program, as it’s already obvious that Porter Moser should have been replaced after last season, but Oklahoma AD Roger Denny instead released a statement about why Moser would be given another year.
Now, the football program is also stuck with a coach, whether OU administration or fans like it or not. The fan base is rather split on whether Venables is the man for the job or not, but there should be no argument that OU handcuffed itself, no matter how bad this season went. Without the new extension, there would at least be options.
OU tacked on two years to Venables’ contract in August, extending him through 2031. The extension also came with a raise, bumping his salary to about $10.5 million. Most of his staff also earned raises over the offseason after a 10-3 season and CFP berth, as did general manager Jim Nagy.
How OU really shot itself in the foot was that the extension inflated Venables’ buyout for this year to $51.67 million. That number was conveniently released just days after the Sooners upset No. 1 Texas in the Red River Rivalry. Everyone should have known then that Venables was going to be around for a bit longer.
The board of regents also believed that was pretty obvious.
“It’s been interesting to us as the board that that renewal of that contract alone wasn’t a signal that he’s here for a long time, right? So we just want — we felt like today it made sense to go ahead and just make that crystal clear to the public that we’ve got the right guy, and we are excited about where the program is heading,” Nagel told media after Wednesday’s meeting.
OU Board of Regents chair Rick Nagel on why he felt the need to say unprompted that Brent Venables is not on the hot seat:
— George Stoia III (@GeorgeStoia) November 11, 2026
“It’s been interesting to us as the board that that renewal of that contract alone wasn’t a signal that he’s here for a long time, right? So we just…
Rewarding a coach after leading a team to the CFP is fine, but maybe not after posting a losing record in two of four years at the helm. Now, Venables is fighting to avoid a third losing season, and if the Sooners do end up with that embarrassing conclusion again, Venables would become the first coach in OU history to survive three losing seasons.
The only thing OU saved itself from was another program poaching Venables away, but that’s like the U.S. military spending millions to brace for an alien invasion. There is no foreseeable threat. No one else wants a coach who loses just as much as he wins, and no one definitely wants to pay that much for him.
Some fans will rejoice at this confirmation of Venables’ return, but just remember: when the Sooners are 6-7 and playing in the Armed Forces Bowl again, there is no escape.
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