The Oklahoma Sooners‘ HC Brent Venables tried patching their offensive identity in 2025, but the ground game flatlined. Producing a meager 118.5 rushing yards per game dragged them to the bottom of the SEC, forcing the offense to lean on the passing game.
And then there was John Mateer holding the matches. 14 touchdowns to 11 interceptions and a 62% completion rate were textbook signs of a quarterback who just couldn’t find his comeback after suffering his thumb injury.
Which meant by the time Venables took the podium at SEC Media Days, the quarterback situation was the main topic that required answers.
The Sooners’ head coach came prepared.
Brent Venables Details John Mateer’s Improvement
GettyOU Head coach Brent Venables on improved quarterback play and offensive line.
“We’re going to be a lot better around our quarterback and again, have a lot of experience coming this year,” Venables said.
Four games into the season, Mateer messed up his thumb, completely robbing him of the grip strength required to drive the ball downfield.
Mateer returned for the final eight games after a mid-season surgery, but his performance undoubtedly took a hit. He threw as many touchdowns as interceptions, eight, in the final eight games, and managed just 241 yards and three scores on the ground.
“He had a hard time just squeezing a ball,” Venables added about Mateer’s recovery this offseason. “One of the things you’ve got to be able to do.
Mateer spent the offseason correcting his throwing motion, which was more side-arm than over the top, which caused several tipped passes last season.
OU legend Sam Bradford also reportedly helped Mateer smooth out his mechanics this offseason so he doesn’t have to rely entirely on raw hand-grip to zip the ball into tight SEC windows.
Still, it takes eleven to break an offense. Lost in the quarterback noise was a massive upgrade along the offensive line.
Venables on O-Line Improvements
GettyOU Head coach Brent Venables on improved quarterback play and offensive line.
The Sooners made it to the Playoffs only because of their elite defense. The reason they couldn’t advance much was their offense. The running attack was a disaster, averaging only 188.5 yards per game to rank 113th, among the worst in the nation.
Even the wide receiver room couldn’t separate to save their lives. Venables isn’t risking that gamble this year.
“We’ve gotta be a heck of a lot better. It puts tremendous pressure on every part of your team when you can’t run the football.”
The OU head coach is focusing on uplifting the middle-tier players on the roster. Not the Top 20%, not the bottom 20%. Everyone in the middle.
Besides competitive depth in certain positions, Venables mentioned this particular middle-class is “where there can be a potential separation.”
“The challenge for this year’s team is who fast can we raise that level up. We have been very intentional about developing and forcing them to grow. And it’s about how fast we can do that.”
It started showing last season, and Venables wants the momentum to go on.
“I felt like last year we had a really good middle half of our roster, and we’ll see how fast we can take that middle half of the roster and elevate it (this season).”
Just on the offensive side, Venables believes there are at least “9 offensive linemen who could play ‘winning football’ right now.”
A Playoff-level defense, an improved offense, and stable quarterback play. It’s clear that Oklahoma is hunting for another postseason berth.
Brent Venables Explains How Oklahoma Rebuilt Offense Around John Mateer