Big 12 preview: Can Oklahoma reclaim 'standard' before joining SEC?

Editor's note: This is part of a series previewing each of the opponents on BYU's inaugural Big 12 schedule, beginning with the Cougars' Sept. 23 road opener at Kansas and leading up to defending champion Kansas State before fall camp opens in August.

SALT LAKE CITY — Ever since Brent Venables took over Oklahoma as his first head coaching job, the former Clemson defensive coordinator preached the "standard" in Norman.

By his own admission, that standard was not upheld after last year's 6-7 season that included a 35-32 loss to Florida State in the Cheez-It Bowl.

Before OU can head off to the SEC, the final season of Big 12 competition will be vital for the Sooners to regain that standard.

"It goes without saying, we went 6-7 last year and fell well below our expectations and our standards at Oklahoma," Venables said. "But man, we learned and grew a lot as a football program. In five of the seven losses, it went down to the last minute, two minutes of the game in the fourth quarter with a chance to win.

"We've looked long and hard in the offseason, since January, of what we need to do to become a more efficient football team, and we've looked at every single part of our program, how we can improve and get better. Nothing ever stays the same."

On offense, the problem wasn't necessarily production, just finishing. The Sooners ranked 13th in total offense a year ago, but just 31st in scoring at 32.8 points per game. Defensively, they were even worse, ranking no better than 98th in every facet of defense with the No. 121 total defense in college football.

That's a long way to go up, but a climb Venables is hopeful to make after replacing 97 of the 123 players on Oklahoma's roster over the past two offseasons.

The Sooners return 14 starters, including quarterback Dillon Gabriel and six starters on offense. Replacing 1,000-yard receiver Marvin Mims won't be easy, but Gabriel, who threw for 3,163 yards and 25 touchdowns with six interceptions a year after transferring from UCF, makes it a little more manageable.

He'll add to the emergence of Jalil Farooq, a 6-foot-1, 205-pound receiver who totaled 535 yards and five touchdowns a year ago, as well as tight end Austin Stogner and an offensive line anchored by center Andrew Raym.

By the time Oklahoma rolls into Provo for BYU's Nov. 18 home finale — the Cougars' first-ever senior night as members of the Big 12 — the hope is Venables will have a much more complete team than one that won just one of its final five games in 2022.

"It's going to be a wonderful atmosphere. Late November, it'll probably be about 80 degrees in Provo," Venables said, tongue firmly in cheek. "No, it's going to be a wonderful atmosphere. Again, incredible fan base. There's not going to be an empty seat in the house.

"Hopefully we're playing our best football," he later added. "The teams I've taken the most pride in, the teams that have been most successful that I've been around are ones that improved as the season goes along. I am hopeful and have an expectation we'll be playing our best football at that time of the year."

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