Veteran leaders on both sides of the ball weighed in on OU head coach Venables’ contract extension after practice Friday, including redshirt senior quarterback John Mateer and fifth-year linebacker Owen Heinecke.
Venables signed a new six-year contract Thursday afternoon, keeping him with the Sooners through the 2031 season, as first reported by ESPN’s Pete Thamel. Venables will earn $10.5 million annually under the new deal.
“I'm super happy for him,” Mateer said. “He's a great human. …He brings great people around here. … One mission, we all do it together because of him.”
Heinecke, who will be back for one final season in a Sooner jersey, was proud of his head coach’s extension as well.
“We love Coach V,” Heinecke said. “To see him be able to reap the rewards of his work is something that we're all excited for and something that is definitely well deserved and really well earned.
OU athletic director Roger Denny explained to local media Thursday that the contract extension relates to his desire to establish continuity in a world of change.
Denny spoke to the media following the extension about all things OU, including his view on continuity within sports.
“What our student athletes need is stability,” Denny said. “When we have coaches and staff that have demonstrated the ability to excel at the level that we expect them to excel, we're going to invest in them.”
Denny, who was hired from the University of Illinois following the retirement of long-time athletic director Joe Castiglione, was eager to get the extension done.
“I wish we would have had it done several months ago,” Denny said. “We've seen what our team is capable of under Brent’s leadership, and that's what we're investing in.”
Venables enters his fifth season at the helm with a 32-20 overall record, two 10-win seasons and a College Football Playoff appearance a season ago. Though his first season in the Southeastern Conference didn’t go as planned, ending with a 6-7 record, his calling card has taken shape. The Sooners’ defense has improved in each of Venables’ first four seasons, transforming what was once one of the program’s biggest weaknesses into a nationally recognized unit.
Venables was appreciative of the lucrative extension which landed him just outside the top-10 paid head coaches in college football, according to On3.
“Incredibly thankful and grateful for the contract extension and all the people that are responsible,” Venables said on Friday. “It's been something that's been discussed since December, and here we are in August.”
Although the Sooners dropped their playoff game against Alabama, Denny’s faith in Venables never wavered, as he wanted to get the extension done before the 2026 season started.
“I don't need to see this season to know what we've got,” Denny said. “I hope the season goes spectacularly well and we're playing in Las Vegas in January, but if we're not, that's not going to change the way I feel about (Venables)."
With the extension finalized and the season approaching, Venables believes the commitment provides something increasingly valuable in college football: stability.
“The (most) successful programs, both short and long term, have tremendous alignment, belief and great vision,” Venables said. “In this day and age of disruption and a lack of continuity, stability is a fantastic thing, and I'm thankful to have that serving us.”
Joshua McDaniel contributed to the reporting of this story.
This story was edited by Joshua McDaniel.
