Oklahoma head coach Brent Venables met with reporters on national signing day Wednesday to discuss the Sooners’ 2022 signing class.
Venables and crew inked 13 recruits on Wednesday and OU’s 2022 class is ranked No. 10 nationally, according to 247Sports. The Sooners’ class is also considered the second-best in the Big 12.
Here’s the best of what Venables had to say:
Opening statement
“It's funny, it's good to be off the road and finally take a deep breath. We've covered a lot of miles here over the last seven days in the recruiting trail, and (we’re) just really excited about the 13 guys that were announced today that signed, and we are waiting on a few other young men to announce here in the next 24 hours or so. I feel terrific about the group of young people that we're bringing in and their families. I think that they represent the values that we also value.
“We covered six states with this class of 13… seven on offense and six on defense… just a group that again covers every level at every position, outside of the specialty position. We've had three new additional commitments since we started the week initially recruiting and just feel terrific about again as much as anything else the type of people that they are. They fit, again, our philosophy and, again, our locker room. The things that we value, they value as well.”
On building relationships with recruits in a short time
“Recruiting always has been and always will be about building relationships and trust, understanding of who each other are. What I think is a testament to keeping the vast majority of the class together since the day I hit the ground running, there were a few decommitments prior to ever even getting a chance to get in front of them.
"But, the young people (assistant coaches) got a chance to get in front of, what I think was very evident right away for me was how good of a job the staff had done at creating loyalty, deep seeded relationships that kind of get you through a time like this. And I think that was a testament to them and their efforts, the type of people that we recruited initially in the first place, and that gave us a chance. Their willingness to sit in front of me and to hear my vision of the program and how they fit in whether or not it would be a great relationship moving forward.
“So, it's not an easy process as you can imagine. You get a lot of arms crossed when you walk in right away, and they've heard it all. They want you to be about it. And so you just try to be as transparent, honest, upfront and authentic on the front end. As I’ve said before, there'll be no ‘de-recruiting.’ People that use that term ‘de-recruiting,’ it just really means that you're not really being genuine and honest upfront in the recruiting process.
"We've got a tremendous product to sell. It's exciting for me, it's easy. I am passionate about Oklahoma football, the tradition, the excellence. I understand deeply what that looks like. And so I think that comes across in the living room in front of these prospects and their families.”
On handling recruiting while transitioning from Clemson to OU
“After I’d initially been contacted, I did hit the road recruiting with every intention of being the defensive coordinator at Clemson, but trying to be upfront and honest in regards to my interests and some of the communication that had taken place. I think that's just the way you do things, just try to be upfront and honest.
"To me, Clemson's an easy sell. That's what I tried to do. There's so many reasons, we don't have time in this press conference to talk about what makes that place so great. Taking me out of the equation is what I'm talking about and what makes it so great. And so that was easy for me. Again, every bit is invested there at the time in Clemson University and Coach (Dabo) Swinney, how good he's been to me and our family, so I felt it was the very least that I could do to try to continue to help Clemson through that time.
“And again, the speculation, it's important for me to get in front of them and continue in support of again, both their opportunity there and their future. So what was it like? For me, there were a few decommitments, that was hurtful for me. I know, one, the need that they have for those young guys. Clemson doesn't just keep recruiting when they get a commitment.
"Some places just keep recruiting if they can get a better guy. They'll address it down the road, they might have to tell a guy ‘Hey, we don't have a spot for you, and guys are left without scholarships, and that's not how Coach Swinney handles his business. Being upfront and honest and doing things the right way, sometimes that can hurt you in this game, but overall, it'll serve you well.
“But again, that's really kind of how it went down over the last week there with them, and I've even spoken to a few guys after they’d decommitted just to say ‘You need to rethink this,’ and just try to help them, and just to hopefully be another source that could bring a lot of clarity in a very difficult process for both the prospects and for the universities. I'm not trying to continue to ‘recruit’ guys.
"My relationship with Coach Swinney goes so much further than the football field. He’s family to me. The rest of the staff, they’re family to me, and so again, I've got incredible respect and appreciation and thankfulness, and again, just trying to do things the right way. In this profession, (with) the pressure to win and to get players, I think people lose their way. And for me, that's always been an easy philosophy and value system to have, is just to do what's right, and so I've tried to do that.”
On four-star linebacker Kobie McKinzie, who recommitted to OU from Texas
“First of all, Kobie is just an incredibly bright young guy, just a lot of life to Him, huge personality. He's a relationship driven young guy, got a wonderful family, just a terrific story, and he's had as much loyalty to this program, he had been committed for close to two years. And as I told each and every prospect that I sat in front of, “I don't blame you (for wanting to say) ‘let me reevaluate the situation.’ There's a lot of emotions that happen. We talked a week ago about how a 17 year old thinks sometimes compared to how a 25, 30, 40 year old person thinks, and so sometimes those young people can let the emotions get to them.
“What I appreciate about Kobie was his willingness to continue to be open, to (say) ‘alright, let me hear you out.’ And he's done his homework. He's done more homework than most prospects just in regards to knowing your background. … He would jump on YouTube, he's watching everything from press conferences to schemes to knowing former players at multiple institutions. So, he really did a nice job with his homework, but he still had his guard up.
"So, we got him on campus this last weekend and really tried to bridge that gap from a relationship standpoint and what his opportunities here would be. I could, again, appreciate that he was just open to it, and we watched a bunch of football together and talked about life and what he wanted to achieve with his life, and just all the normal things that you do when you're trying to develop relationships and the trust that goes along with that.
“And, I’d say more than anything else, Coach (Bob) Stoops and Coach (Cale) Gundy and the rest of the staff, and our players, current players here at Oklahoma, were the driving force behind ultimately him, to me, making the decision that this is where he wanted to spend his collegiate career. Without that foundation, that level of comfort, level of trust, this wouldn't happen, it wouldn't materialize. So, I’m just really thankful for him. If you're going to build a great defense, it starts up the middle… his presence, his size, his strength, his power, his physicality gives us a chance for exactly that.”
On weekend visit from QB Nick Evers, WR Jayden Gibson, DT Alton Tarber
“We had a wonderful weekend. Obviously, we got on Nick and Jayden and Alton a little bit later, and things happened quickly, really fast, as we know in this profession. Certainly the recruiting world, things can flip in a minute, and I thought Jeff Lebby and offensive coaches did a wonderful job of already having previous relationships. There was a level of comfort and trust through those relationships with Jayden and Nick both… they have a deep friendship between Jayden and Nick so they were able to really kind of help each other through that process, but their families are just amazing.
“They're looking for a place that certainly has had a great level of success and consistency, (and) everything that we do here from an educational standpoint to support our players. They just really value the same things that we do, and so I think they immediately saw that, and again, I thought our staff just did an amazing job, our recruiting staff and all of our coaches that were here, at just being who we are, and it really being an easy fit for both sides.
“(Tarber) was somebody that we had known previously, really weren't in the middle of recruiting him but we had a relationship with, recruited Deerfield Beach and their school for a very, very long time. … His mother is just, she's just amazing. The things that she's had to overcome, them as a family lost his father and a grandparent recently and things that they've had to go through, a great story. But (he’s) just a tremendous young man of simplicity, of physical toughness on the field and about all the right things from a work ethic, an academic standpoint.
“So, those are three good ones that we just started a relationship with Oklahoma, and so again, fortunately, they were looking for the right things and things aligned for all of us.”
On effects of the first signing period with NIL
“(Name, image and likeness rules) probably played a small, rather than big, part. It's something that we are out in front of, that we'd like to address (with what) we're doing from an educational standpoint and facilitating that process. … It is something that I think you have to have a plan for, and we certainly do. But typically, with the right guys, it's not one of the first, second or third things that's discussed. And if that's one of the first or second things, I think you have to be cautious moving forward.
"I think that there's nothing wrong with making a low short term cash. I think that there's a lot of good in that. But, I do think that you have to look at the long term investment opportunities and investment on return from an education and a development standpoint. It's really going to have more generational change than a little short term money, but there's nothing wrong with those opportunities. It's the landscape that we have, and one that we need to promote and (that) needs to be an advantage for us.”
On approach to the late signing period in February
“I'm really excited about what's ahead of us in the next two months. One, what I know, is this is a developmental game and some of the best players in high school maybe weren't some of the top guys as sophomores and juniors. … That's one reason why I'm excited, because they're there. Some of them we've already identified. You know, we'll have a few guys that we feel like have in this class (that) in the next 24 hours, we'll be announcing, so we can't talk about them right now, but we've got tremendous numbers to continue to build our roster and meet our needs.
"There's a number of positions on the team that, through attrition and some of the things that have taken place, need to be addressed sooner rather than later. So, we are certainly looking at transfer options. We've spoken to a few already and are trying to vet those guys. And the biggest thing is trying to bring value to our locker room and meet (our) needs that we have from a functional standpoint, where maybe experience lacks or playmaking lacks.
"But, it's very important that we do a great job of vetting the type of people that we're bringing into that locker room, because we’re trying to build a culture and protect the culture. (To) continue to enhance the culture, it starts with making good decisions with those people.”
On QB Nick Evers
“I leaned on from, ‘Who is this guy? Why is he the guy?’ That was important to me, making sure that we find the right kind of guy that had maybe some maturity to him. That has a really good support system that is going to help him navigate through his journey. That had some level headedness, knowing that what you are as a freshman is going to look a lot different than what you're gonna look like in three or four years.
"There's a natural maturation that’s going to take place, whether it be knowledge, maturity, decision making, physicality, skill — all those things are developed. And so, finding the right guy that fit there (was key), not just a talented player that could come in and help us be a quality player at that position.
“I thought that (offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby) and the staff did a great job at identifying not only a very talented one, but a great one when it comes to the total package. … He's connected from coast to coast, kids love him, (he’s) easy to follow and is just a great athlete. He's just scratching the surface. He's got length, he's got speed. He's got arm talent. Very accurate player and everything's still sitting in front of him.”
