Expect a new approach to running the offense in Norman this year. On3’s J.D. PicKell has again come through for Oklahoma fans. This time comparing and contrasting Lincoln Riley’s Sooners and what he expects Brent Venables’ Sooners to look like.
PicKell expects the Sooners to commit to establishing the run under new offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby. Ole Miss averaged over 200 rushing yards per game last season while Oklahoma averaged about 180.
Eric Gray might be in for a big year, especially with Kennedy Brooks gone.
PicKell goes through what he expects to see in Norman on both offense and defense.
Oklahoma needs more consistency out of their running game for PicKell’s vision to come to fruition. If Eric Gray can get out of the backfield and into open space, good luck catching him.
After running the ball just eight times in Oklahoma’s final four games of the regular season, Gray is undoubtedley hungry to prove that he can be OU’s No. 1 running back. And given the sheer number of plays the Sooners will run on offense in 2022, there will be room at the table for several running backs to eat. Look for Marcus Major and Jovantae Barnes to get touches out of the OU backfield even if Eric Gray is the starter.
Expect an entirely different mindset. This is going to be a much more “in your face” kind of offense and it’s quite fitting for a Brent Venables coached football team.
As for the defense, whatever the equivelant of “pounding the rock” is on defense, expect that. A lot of that.
PicKell expects OU’s defense to be more aggressive. He cites Clemson’s and Oklahoma’s sack rates from last season, with OU 70th in the country and Clemson inside the top 20. That’s a massive gap.
Any Sooners fan should already be excited for the first season of the Brent Venables era. This is going to be fun.
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