The offseason is a time for some of the best quotes and trash-talking between teams. This past offseason was no different.
ESPN looked at some of the best from coaches, players, former players, commissioners and so much more. Two Oklahoma quotes made the list. One from [autotag]Brent Venables[/autotag] during [autotag]Big 12 media days[/autotag] and the other from [autotag]Kyler Murray [/autotag]during the unveiling of his [autotag]Heisman Trophy[/autotag] statue at the [autotag]Oklahoma Sooners[/autotag] spring game.
Let’s start with Venables’ quote. “A year ago, I challenged the guys,” Venables said. “I wasn’t like Deion (Sanders) who gave guys a bunch of pink slips.”
This comment regarded the 21 players who left this year instead of before the 2022 season. Sanders has been in the news because he revamped his team before the Colorado Buffaloes ever played a game.
This really got talked about for no reason, in my opinion. This was more of a tongue-in-cheek response by Venables. It also highlights there are two different ways to approach it. It was easier for Sanders to overhaul the roster before his first season because the Buffaloes were so bad the year before.
Venables was coming to a team that went 11-2. Yes, it lost a ton of players after that season, but he understandably gave the players the benefit of the doubt to let them prove themselves. A 6-7 season proved a lot of people had to go.
Now let’s take a look at Murray’s quote. “I had a rocky start to my college career,” Murray said. “I chose the wrong school.” This is just funny. Murray is obviously referencing spending a season playing for the Texas A&M Aggies.
But what he said is true. It wasn’t the right school for him, clearly. The move he made to Norman ended up being great for his career. The move to play for the Sooners and Lincoln Riley helped him win a Heisman and go No. 1 overall in the 2019 NFL draft.
He said this in front of thousands of fans at the spring game, so there’s no question he was playing to the crowd a little bit.
The offseason is always going to provide some memorable quotes as coaches are put in front of the mic on numerous occasions with the media. It’s all fun and games. But now we are six days away from strapping it up and settling it on the field.
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