Oklahoma just made sure Brent Venables isn't going anywhere for a long time. The Sooners and their head coach have agreed to a new six-year contract that averages $10.5 million per year and runs through the 2031 season, according to ESPN's Pete Thamel.
The timing makes sense. Venables just led Oklahoma back to the College Football Playoff for the first time since 2019, and the new money reflects it — the deal adds two years onto his previous extension and bumps his annual salary by nearly $2 million. On3's Pete Nakos framed it just as simply: this keeps Venables in Norman through 2031.
Deal keeps Brent Venables in Norman through 2031.
It hasn't been a straight line to get here. Venables is 32-20 through four seasons at OU, with 10-win years in 2023 and 2025 sandwiched around 6-win seasons in 2022 and 2024 — the kind of inconsistency that usually gets a coach's seat warm, not extended. But last season changed the calculus. Oklahoma went 10-3, made the Playoff, and hosted its first-ever first-round home playoff game.
Thamel also pointed to what happened behind the scenes as a big reason for the payoff: Venables took over as OU's defensive play-caller in 2025 himself, and the results were immediate. The Sooners led the nation in tackles for loss (9.4) and sacks (3.5) per game, and finished top 10 nationally in both scoring defense (15.5 points allowed) and total defense (272.5 yards allowed).
Venables is 32-20 in his four seasons at OU, and includes a 6-2 record in SEC play last season. Venables took over as OU’s defensive play-caller in 2025 and led the nation in TFLs (9.4) and sacks (3.5) per game and finished Top 10 in scoring defense (15.5) and yards (272.5).
This is also OU's second Venables extension in as many years — his last deal came before the 2024 season, Oklahoma's first in the SEC, and paid him $8.6 million annually through 2029. New athletic director Roger Denny has reportedly made re-upping Venables one of his first big moves on the job, a signal that the school sees last year's Playoff berth as a floor, not a ceiling, in the SEC gauntlet.
The deal still needs sign-off from Oklahoma's Board of Regents, who meet next in mid-September, but that's a formality at this point. For Venables, it's a vote of confidence after a rocky middle stretch of his tenure. For Oklahoma, it's a bet that last season's defensive turnaround and Playoff trip are the new normal, not a one-off.