OU football offensive coaching staff starting to mesh as Sooners show improvement
· Yahoo Sports
NORMAN — When Brent Venables hired 29-year-old Ben Arbuckle to coordinate Oklahoma's offense after the 2024 season, the Sooners kept most of their offensive staff intact.
Arbuckle brought John Kuceyeski with him but didn't have a prior relationship with most of his assistants. Any time there is a mix of coaches with different backgrounds from different trees, it can be a challenge.
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But both Arbuckle and Venables believe the staff has found a better rhythm of late.
"That’s one of the biggest things from a leadership standpoint that I have to tackle headfirst is getting everybody on the same page," Arbuckle said Tuesday. "But as far as having the guys that I get to work with in that room and the depth of knowledge and experience that’s in there, I mean, it’s huge."
Arbuckle has a slew of veteran assistants he can rely on such as offensive line coach Bill Bedenbaugh and assistant head coach for offense Kevin Wilson, a former head coach. OU also brought in newcomers Deland McCullough to coach the running backs and Jason Witten to coach the tight ends.
While the Sooners' offense has struggled for most of this season, they are starting to make incremental improvement.
"That’s always a challenge whenever you have new faces trying to get on the same page," Arbuckle said. " ... As you get into the season and you do start doing better at certain things, a little bit of a rhythm, a little bit of a cadence starts to show up. And we have to continue to build on that and understand that even though, yeah, it’s better, it ain’t good enough. We can always continue to be better, and that’s the challenges we go through each season."
Venables has liked what he's seen from his staff on that side of the ball.
He's watched as the offensive staff has continued to develop chemistry as they spend 10-12 hours a day at the facility together.
"They've done a nice job," Venables said. "They’ve just kept their head down and figuring things out, and managing some of the obstacles that they've had to go through, both in personnel and some tough moments, and then just making improvement, like they have here the last three weeks."
As Arbuckle continues to find his footing in his second season with the Sooners, he'll need to continue to lean on his assistants.
"I love the guys that I get to work with," Arbuckle said. "They’re really good football coaches. They’re really smart dudes. They’re really good dudes, and that makes coaching a lot more fun."
OU OL Caleb Nitta 'always prepared' for depth role
Caleb Nitta has been forced to enter games at a moment's notice and play two different spots on the interior of OU's offensive line the last two weeks.
Nitta, a transfer from Western Kentucky, was the third-highest graded Sooners offensive player from last weekend's Mississippi State game, according to Pro Football Focus. Nitta replaced the injured Jake Maikkula, OU's veteran starting center.
"He’s a tough guy," Venables said about Nitta. "He cares about his opportunity. He’s a guy that’s always prepared. He’s detailed, really smart, plays bigger than he is in stature. He’s really athletic. He runs really well. He’s got excellent feet, but he understands how to play the game. And through his limitations, he’s figured out what he’s good at and how he needs to play."
With Maikkula's status up in the air for this week's game against South Carolina, the Sooners might need Nitta to step up yet again.
"He shows up every day like he has been the starter," Venables said. "So transitioning, throwing him in there, that wasn’t this dramatic drop-off, probably, that you might have thought because of all the work and the preparation he’s done prior to having his opportunity.”
Peyton Bowen named Jim Thorpe Award semifinalist
Veteran safety Peyton Bowen was named one of 15 semifinalists for the Jim Thorpe Award on Tuesday.
Bowen has been one of OU's best players this season and has been responsible for some of its biggest plays. His clutch pick-six against Texas will go down in Red River Rivalry history and his fourth-quarter interception against the Bulldogs helped seal a victory.
Venables has coached a lot of elite safeties over the years. He said Tuesday that Bowen is near the top of the list.
"He's really grown and matured and his skillset is really special," Venables said. "He's great. He's got tremendous range, natural instincts when the ball's in the air. My favorite part of watching him is just how he's developed consistency-wise as a tackler. How he tracks the ball and closes space — very elite.
"And so God willing, he stays healthy, he's going to play the game a long time."
Colton Sulley covers the Oklahoma Sooners for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Colton? He can be reached at [email protected] or on X/Twitter at @colton_sulley. Support Colton's work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing adigital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OU football offensive coaching staff starting to mesh as Sooners show improvement