Tag: Ted Roof

What can we expect from Seth Littrell’s offense in 2024?

Seth Littrell’s background could lend a few clues as to what OU’s offense might look like in 2024.

The Oklahoma Sooners begin the 2024 college football season in a matter of days. The Temple Owls will pay them a visit on Friday, August 30 at 6:00 p.m. to kick off the year.

It’s a season of change for OU in Year 3 under head coach [autotag]Brent Venables[/autotag]. The Sooners leave the [autotag]Big 12[/autotag] to join the [autotag]SEC[/autotag]. [autotag]Dillon Gabriel[/autotag], who started at quarterback for the last two seasons, transferred out of the program, leaving sophomore [autotag]Jackson Arnold[/autotag] in line to take over under center. [autotag]Drake Stoops[/autotag] won’t be on the team for the first time since 2018.

Venables is also breaking in new coordinators.

[autotag]Zac Alley[/autotag] takes over the defensive coordinator and linebacker coach role previously held by [autotag]Ted Roof[/autotag], who mutually parted ways with Oklahoma last winter.

Alley has been called a “clone of Venables” and allows the head coach to be a bit more of a CEO-type, not needing to focus on calling defensive plays nearly as much. Alley has gained Venables’ trust. Venables defensive acumen is the main reason he was hired as OU’s next head coach. Passing the defensive coordinator responsibilities over to Alley is a ringing endorsement of the young defensive mind. Experienced defensive assistant coaches and co-coordinators [autotag]Todd Bates[/autotag] and [autotag]Jay Valai[/autotag] will be able to help the younger Alley out as well.

[autotag]Doug Deakin[/autotag] replaces [autotag]Jay Nunez[/autotag] as the special teams analyst. Deakin will be charged with improving the Sooners in all facets of the special teams portion of the game, as it was a weakness in 2023 for Oklahoma. New NCAA rules removed limits to the number of coaches allowed to be on the field during practice and games. That should help the Sooners have a much better special teams unit. Oklahoma can’t afford to have special teams lose a game for them in the treacherous jungle of the SEC.

Oklahoma saw offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach [autotag]Jeff Lebby[/autotag] leave in late November to become the head coach at Mississippi State. Immediately, the search for his replacement started, and Venables landed on co-offensive coordinators already in the building for the role.

[autotag]Joe Jon Finley[/autotag] had been the tight ends coach at OU for the past three seasons. Finley is very close with Lebby, as the pair also worked together at Baylor (2015) and Ole Miss (2020) before spending the last two seasons together in Norman.

Some were surprised when Finley didn’t follow Lebby to Starkville, but the internal promotion for the former OU tight end (2004-2007) kept him at Oklahoma. Finley is also close with former Sooners quarterback and offensive coordinator [autotag]Josh Heupel[/autotag], as the pair coached together at Missouri for two years (2016-2017).

Finley will continue to coach tight ends while serving as OU’s co-offensive coordinator. However, he won’t be calling the plays.

That duty will fall to [autotag]Seth Littrell[/autotag], who will serve as Oklahoma’s new quarterbacks coach in addition to the co-offensive coordinator role. He’ll be the one talking to Arnold in the helmet communication system that comes new to college football in 2024.

So what will Oklahoma’s offense look like in 2024, as Littrell replaces Lebby with Finley more heavily involved in the offensive game plan than in the past?

Littrell is an experienced playcaller and offensive coordinator, something Lebby wasn’t when he returned to Norman two years ago. Just like Lebby and Finley, Littrell played for Oklahoma during the [autotag]Bob Stoops[/autotag] days. He won a national championship in 2000 as a fullback at OU, serving as a captain on the national title team. It’s the same national title team with Venables as a co-defensive coordinator in Year 2 under Stoops. His father, Jimmy, also played fullback at OU and won two national championships in 1974 and 1975.

The Muskogee, Oklahoma native, began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Kansas under former Oklahoma offensive coordinator Mark Mangino in 2002. After three years in Lawrence, he was hired to coach running backs at Texas Tech under Mike Leach, where he spent four seasons. In those seven years, Littrell learned under two of the best offensive minds in college football. He was tutored in the ways of the power running spread offense at KU under Mangino before learning the methods of the Air Raid under Leach in Lubbock.

Littrell coached in a variety of different roles on offense at Arizona during the final three years of Mike Stoops’ time as the head coach of the Wildcats from 2009 to 2011. In his first season in the desert, he learned under another Air Raid expert, Sonny Dykes, who is now the head coach at TCU.

In 2010, he was co-offensive coordinator with none other than current Oklahoma offensive line coach [autotag]Bill Bedenbaugh[/autotag], and the two have a strong relationship. When Bedenbaugh left to coach the o-line at West Virgnia, Littrell was the solo offensive coordinator for the first time in his career in 2011. However, Stoops was fired midway through the season and Littrell was left looking for a new home after the year.

Littrell landed at Indiana, where he was the offensive coordinator for Kevin Wilson, the current head coach at Tulsa who served as OU’s offensive coordinator from 2002-2010. During his time in Norman, Wilson had combined Air Raid concepts with his own spread run game tactics. Oklahoma’s 2008 offense, under Wilson, is still regarded as one of the best in college football history.

After Littrell spent two years under Wilson, he accepted the offensive coordinator job at North Carolina under Larry Fedora, who ran the spread offense. In two seasons coaching for the Tar Heels, Littrell impressed and began to get head coaching consideration.

In 2016, Littrell was hired as the head coach of the North Texas Mean Green. He gave UNT more success than they had seen in years, making two conference title games and twice winning nine games. He was fired following the 2022 regular season despite posting a 7-6 mark and losing the Conference USA title game. His offenses at UNT were a blend of the concepts he learned under Air Raid coaches such as Leach and Dykes and spread coaches like Mangino, Wilson, and Fedora.

Littrell’s offense helped quarterback Mason Fine throw for 12,000 yards over four seasons. He averaged 3,644 yards and 30 total touchdowns per year over his final three seasons with the Mean Green.

Last season, Littrell served as an offensive analyst for the Sooners under another spread disciple in Lebby, before being promoted, along with Finley, for the Alamo Bowl.

As a play caller, he can use his unique path back to Norman to dial up whatever is needed at the time. His time in Denton also gave him a footprint and connections in a massive recruiting area for the Sooners.

In the interest of continuity, the offense will still look at lot like it has the past two seasons. The Sooners ran a variety of the veer-and-shoot spread offense that focuses on wide splits for receivers and getting playmakers the ball in space.

It looks and functions differently than the [autotag]Lincoln Riley[/autotag] Air Raid offense that Sooner fans saw for seven seasons, but ultimately wants to accomplish a lot of the same things, namely lighting up the scoreboard.

The idea of the spread veer-and-shoot is to make defenses have to cover everything from sideline to sideline, opening up windows for the power running game while making the quarterback’s decision-making as easy as possible.

The primary reason to run the veer-and-shoot offense is that the tempo, aggressiveness, and wide splits help to raise the floor for your offense, regardless of talent level. Lebby learned the offense from pioneers like Wilson, Art Briles, Heupel and Lane Kiffin. Littrell learned under Lebby last season and will now be able to put his own personal spin on it.

Reportedly, more of a focus on the power running game and deep passing attack will be implemented this year, feeding off of this offensive core’s strengths. However, Littrell’s offenses at UNT threw more than they ran, so Arnold will still have plenty on his shoulders. Littrell’s relationship with Bedenbaugh should ensure the offensive line will be a big factor in what the Sooners want to do on offense. Their relationship should create more cohesion in the offensive philosophy.

Running the ball effectively will be critical in the SEC.

Continuity is a big reason why Littrell and Finley were promoted, but the offense won’t be exactly the same.

Littrell will be a different playcaller than Lebby was, just like Arnold is a different quarterback than Gabriel was. The key will be getting the two on the same page. Between the duo of Littrell and Finley (and passing game coordinator/wide receivers coach [autotag]Emmett Jones[/autotag]), the development of their young quarterback will be at the forefront of their minds. Arnold holds the keys to unlocking the offense and helping the Sooners become an elite college football team.

Furthermore, several assistant coaches from the Riley era still remain on offense: Finley, Bedenbaugh, and running backs coach [autotag]DeMarco Murray[/autotag]. Littrell’s background in the Air Raid may shine through a few times this season, but the offense may look similar to what we’ve seen the last couple of seasons schematically.

At the end of the day, Littrell’s experience as a playcaller trumps his inexperience as a quarterbacks coach. At times last season, particularly in losses against Kansas and Oklahoma State, Lebby caught a fair share of the blame for his playcalling in critical moments.

Littrell has been through that already. He’s a versatile, well-traveled coach who won’t be in over his head, regardless of the situation.

Oklahoma has a good enough defense this year to keep them in games, especially early on, but the offense can’t lag too far behind. Littrell needs to find his sweet spot as a play caller in the spread veer-and-shoot before Tennessee (and veer-and-shoot expert Heupel) comes to town in late September.

Regardless of what Oklahoma’s offense looks like, it’ll be imperative that the Sooners are firing on all cylinder when the Volunteers come to town in week four.

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How Zac Alley can unlock the Oklahoma Sooners defense

The Sooners hired Alley from Jacksonville State.

Oklahoma Sooners third-year head coach [autotag]Brent Venables[/autotag] is replacing coordinators for every single unit in 2024. It’s a unique place to be, but OU fans are optimistic about the new hires.

On offense, [autotag]Jeff Lebby[/autotag] had been the offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach for the past two seasons. When he took the head coaching job at Mississippi State in November, Venables chose to promote from within to replace Lebby, elevating offensive analyst [autotag]Seth Littrell[/autotag] and tight ends coach [autotag]Joe Jon Finley[/autotag] to co-offensive coordinators. Littrell will serve as the quarterbacks coach and primary play caller, while Finley will have more input than before and will continue to coach tight ends. Wide receivers coach/passing game coordinator [autotag]Emmett Jones[/autotag] will also factor into the game planning throughout the week. He’s been nothing but stellar since showing up in Norman.

Former special teams analyst [autotag]Jay Nunez[/autotag] left to take a job at Alabama this offseason, leading to the hiring of [autotag]Doug Deakin[/autotag], formerly at San Diego State. Special teams play was a weak spot a season ago for the Sooners, and it must be better in the unforgiving SEC.

Former defensive coordinator/linebackers coach [autotag]Ted Roof[/autotag] and the Sooners mutually parted ways this winter, and Venables hired [autotag]Zac Alley[/autotag] to replace him. Defensive tackles coach [autotag]Todd Bates[/autotag] and cornerbacks coach [autotag]Jay Valai[/autotag] will serve as co-defensive coordinators under Alley, two veterans who can help the younger coordinator.

While all of these moves have to work out for the Sooners to have success, Alley’s role is an interesting one as he arrives in Norman.

He spent eight years (2011-2018) as a student assistant and graduate assistant at Clemson, spending the final seven years under Venables, who was the defensive coordinator for the Tigers. A month after he was signed to be the nickel backs coach at Charlotte, he instead ended up coaching linebackers at Boise State, where he spent two seasons. Former Louisiana-Monroe head coach Terry Bowden hired Alley as his defensive coordinator, at the recommendation of Venables in 2021. After just one year at ULM, Jacksonville State head coach Rich Rodriguez tabbed Alley for the same role. He spent two seasons at JSU, helping the Gamecocks make the move from FCS to FBS in 2023.

Now, Alley steps into a much larger role; defensive coordinator at Oklahoma. His style is extremely similar to Venables’ himself, having spent seven of his 13 seasons in coaching under his leadership. He’s been called a clone of Venables, as his mannerisms and attitude closely reflect those of OU’s head coach. The team posted a recent video on social media that features Alley, and it’s tough to differentiate his voice from Venables’

Make no mistake about it: the Sooners will be running Brent Venables’ schemes, concepts, and formations on defense for as long as he’s in Norman. Venables was hired in December of 2021, in part because of his defensive acumen, in addition to his previous ties to the program. It’s his defense, but having someone he fully trusts as the defensive coordinator and play caller unlocks what Oklahoma can be as a team.

Alley’s presence and Venables’ comfort level allows the head coach to focus on every aspect of the game instead of having to be so hands-on with the defensive playcalling. It’s an area that improved last year for the Sooners, but still has room to improve.

Venables will likely never be a true “CEO-type” head coach. He’s got too much enthusiasm, energy, and knowledge to sit back and watch the defense. It’s something that he shouldn’t change, as players, recruits, parents, fans, and fellow coaches love that about him. However, there is still room for improvement for Venables when it comes to managing the game within the game. Understandable for someone who has only been a head coach for 26 games in his career.

Oklahoma went 0-5 in one-score games in 2022, improving to 3-2 in that stat in 2023. There will likely be more one-score games as the Sooners make the move to the [autotag]SEC[/autotag]. Though it’s clearly somewhere OU has gotten better, there were two costly losses in that department last year. Losses against Kansas and Oklahoma State came right down to the wire, and mistakes on offense, defense, and special teams cost the Sooners a trip to the [autotag]Big 12[/autotag] Championship game and maybe more.

Though Venables should still have the final say on a crucial defensive moment, having someone who sees the game the same way and has a similar thought process about defense will be very beneficial throughout the season.

In fact, looking at the championship-winning coaches in recent years in college football, they’ve had a similar model to what Oklahoma has now, delegating play-calling duties in their area of expertise to focus on being a head coach.

Former Alabama head coach Nick Saban is one of the best defensive minds the sport has ever seen. Yet, he always had a defensive coordinator calling the plays, and he trusted his assistant coach. One of them, Georgia‘s Kirby Smart, has the same model, leading to two out of the last three national titles landing in Athens.

In fact, the last head coach to call plays in his area of expertise and win the title was Jimbo Fisher, who won it all at Florida State in 2013, a decade ago. Fisher eventually landed at Texas A&M, flaming out late last season. It wasn’t until 2023 that he ceded offensive play-calling duties for the first time, but it wasn’t enough to save his job.

What those coaches have achieved in recent years is what Brent Venables hopes to bring back to Oklahoma. His former boss [autotag]Bob Stoops[/autotag] followed this model as well, and became a legend in Norman, trusting in his defensive coordinator(s). Hiring Zac Alley to be his defensive coordinator and fully trusting him to call the plays so that Venables can oversee everything that’s going on during the game could unlock the Sooners’ defense and maybe the entire program as a whole.

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How did EA Sports rate Oklahoma’s defense in ‘College Football 25?’

When “College Football 25” drops, the Oklahoma Sooners will open with one of the best defenses in the country.

EA Sports is releasing “College Football 25” on July 19, and fans are excited for the return of the college football video game series.

On Thursday, EA released its defensive ratings for the 25 best defenses in the game, and Oklahoma is just outside the top 10.

“College Football 25” has OU as the No. 12 defense ahead of the launch of the highly anticipated video game. It’s the No. 4 best defense in the [autotag]SEC[/autotag]. This comes following the mutual parting of ways between the program and former defensive coordinator [autotag]Ted Roof[/autotag] and the hiring of his replacement, [autotag]Zac Alley[/autotag].

On the field, the Sooners have plenty of experienced talent returning on the defensive side of the ball. The secondary is led by [autotag]Billy Bowman[/autotag] at safety and [autotag]Woodi Washington[/autotag] at cornerback, but features plenty of young talent as well.

[autotag]Gentry Williams[/autotag] and [autotag]Kani Walker[/autotag] will battle for the spot opposite of Washington. [autotag]Robert Spears-Jennings[/autotag] and [autotag]Peyton Bowen[/autotag] will see an increase in snaps this year with the departures of [autotag]Key Lawrence[/autotag] and [autotag]Reggie Pearson[/autotag].

The defensive line sees some change but still has [autotag]Ethan Downs[/autotag] leading the way up front. [autotag]Da’Jon Terry[/autotag] and [autotag]Trace Ford[/autotag] are veterans who will aid in the development of younger players like [autotag]Damonic Williams[/autotag], [autotag]R Mason Thomas[/autotag], [autotag]Jayden Jackson[/autotag], [autotag]Adepoju Adebawroe[/autotag] and [autotag]David Stone[/autotag]. The defensive line is in a solid place moving forward even after losing [autotag]Jordan Kelley[/autotag], [autotag]Isaiah Coe[/autotag], [autotag]Jonah Laulu[/autotag] and [autotag]Rondell Bothroyd[/autotag]. The Sooners also saw [autotag]Jermayne Lole[/autotag] flip his commitment from OU to Texas in the spring portal window.

The strength of the defense is the talent and depth at linebacker. At the inside spots, [autotag]Danny Stutsman[/autotag] returns as the heart and soul of the unit. [autotag]Jaren Kanak[/autotag], [autotag]Kobie McKinzie[/autotag], [autotag]Kip Lewis[/autotag] and [autotag]Lewis Carter[/autotag] will all see plenty of snaps alongside Stutsman. The loss of [autotag]Justin Harrington[/autotag] at the cheetah position stings, but [autotag]Kendel Dolby[/autotag], [autotag]Dasan McCullough[/autotag] and [autotag]Samuel Omosigho[/autotag] provide Alley will plenty of options at that spot.

The Sooners open with an 88 overall defense in “College Football 25,” tied with Texas, Penn State, Utah, Florida State and Iowa.

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Co-defensive coordinator Todd Bates, Oklahoma working on new contract per report

Oklahoma defensive tackles coach and Co-DC Todd Bates is set to receive a raise and new three year deal per report.

It’s been one heck of a start to 2024 for co-defensive coordinator and defensive tackles coach Todd Bates.

He received a pay bump earlier this offseason and appears headed for another raise according to Matt Zenitz of 247Sports.

According to Zenitz, Bates is set to push his salary up to $900,000 per year as he finalizes a three-year contract extension with the Sooners. The extension rewards Bates for his contributions and comes on the heels of an offseason, where, according to the report, Bates was being pursued by other programs this offseason. Instead, the well-respected defensive line coach will stay in Norman to continue the work of rebuilding the Sooners defensive line.

Bates has been a monumental add for his development of the Oklahoma defensive line in larger part because of his prowess on the recruiting trail.

Bates was the primary recruiter for the Sooners in their pursuit of five-star defensive tackle David Stone. Stone was the first five-star defensive tackle the Sooners have landed in over a decade. He has also helped transform the Oklahoma defensive line that led the NCAA in tackles for loss or for no gain last season.

For Bates, his journey is just getting started. He has yet to see a complete cycle of his recruits manifest on the field. He’s revitalized the interior defensive line at Oklahoma.

Still, this year represents a significant step in competition as his unproven unit will have their first season in the SEC. They will be face some of the best offensive linemen in the country on a weekly basis.

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Former Clemson coach lands defensive coordinator position at UCF

A former Clemson defensive analyst has taken a job as the defensive coordinator at UCF.

Another former Clemson coach has landed a new job in college football.

Former Clemson defensive analyst Ted Roof has been named the new defensive coordinator for UCF football. Roof lands with a good program coming off a solid first year in the Big 12.

Roof spent the last two seasons as the defensive coordinator for Brent Venables and the Oklahoma Sooners. The Sooners and Roof parted ways in early January, with UCF taking advantage of the opportunity to land a veteran defensive coach.

Prior to his time at Oklahoma, Roof was on Clemson’s staff in 2021 as a defensive analyst. Former Clemson coaches continue to land jobs across the country.

Sooners promote Jay Valai to assistant head coach for defense

The Oklahoma Sooners announed on Saturday the promotion of Jay Valai to assistant head coach for defense.

After every season, there’s bound to be some coaching turnover. The Oklahoma Sooners have experienced it at each of their coordinator positions. [autotag]Seth Littrell[/autotag] takes over for [autotag]Jeff Lebby[/autotag] as offensive coordinator and OU announced on Saturday that [autotag]Zac Alley[/autotag] will take over for [autotag]Ted Roof[/autotag] as defensive coordinator.

Though the Sooners will have new coordinators on both sides of the ball heading into the SEC, they’ll keep the rest of their staff intact. In order to make sure they have as much continuity as possible, Brent Venables announced the promotion of [autotag]Jay Valai[/autotag] to assistant head coach for the defense.

“I’m incredibly excited about this defensive staff,” said Venables in an official release from the University of Oklahoma. “The leadership in the room with Coach Valai, Coach Alley, Coach (Todd) Bates, Coach (Miguel) Chavis and Coach (Brandon) Hall is exceptionally strong.”

Valai has served as Oklahoma’s co-defensive coordinator, defensive pass game coordinator, and cornerbacks and nickelbacks coach since joining Venables staff in January of 2022.

Valai has spent time coaching at the collegiate and NFL level and has shown his chops on the recruiting trail over the last two cycles, adding a number of blue-chip prospects from the high school ranks and impact transfers as well.

In promoting Valai, the Sooners assure their defensive staff remains intact as they welcome Alley and Oklahoma’s recruiting shouldn’t miss a beat.

The Sooners defense made significant improvements in 2023 to help Oklahoma earn their first 10-win season of the Brent Venables era. If they can take another step in 2024, it could have the Sooners contending for a spot in the College Football Playoff.

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How did USA TODAY Sports grade the Sooners 2023 season?

The letter grade for the Oklahoma Sooners’ 2023 campaign is in. How did they grade out in Year 2 under Brent Venables?

The 2023 campaign was a year of redemption for the Oklahoma Sooners. After a 6-7 season in 2022, the Sooners bounced back with a 10-3 season in 2023.

The Sooners got a massive win over their arch rival the Texas Longhorns but lost two games they shouldn’t have lost to the Kansas Jayhawks and the Oklahoma State Cowboys. You can argue the Arizona Wildcats as well but it was a bowl game with a bunch of new starters in a game that to me, doesn’t matter anyway.

But overall this year was a year fans wanted to see improvement and they got that on both sides of the ball. So, each year USA TODAY Sports gives each team a letter grade for their season. Now, keep in mind the grades are on a relative curve based on preseason expectations weighed against in-season performance, with attention to special circumstances such as injuries or marquee wins.

There were a lot of people who didn’t think they hired the right coach and they were going to turn into the Nebraska Cornhuskers. I mean this was a team that had one preseason All-Big 12 player on the team and he was selected to the second team. Instead, they finished with two who made All-American teams and six on the All-Big 12 team.
We knew coming in the Sooners needed to win 9 or 10 games in 2023. They did that. So, to me, I think they deserved at least an A- for that but with the teams they lost to I don’t have too big of a gripe with a B+ either.

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What does Zac Alley bring to the table as defensive coordinator?

The Sooners are expected to hire Zac Alley as their next defensive coordinator but what can fans expect from the new hire?

On Thursday the Oklahoma Sooners announced they would be mutually parting ways with Ted Roof who had been the defensive coordinator at Oklahoma since 2022. That immediately brought speculation about who the next guy would be for the Sooners.

Would they promote from within with [autotag]Brandon Hall[/autotag], [autotag]Todd Bates[/autotag] or [autotag]Jay Valai[/autotag]? Or would they look for someone outside the program? Reports started surfacing Thursday night the Sooners were expected to hire Jacksonville State defensive coordinator Zac Alley.

Now, it hasn’t been made official yet but let’s take a look at what Oklahoma could be getting from Alley as defensive coordinator.

Alley has a lot of familiarity with [autotag]Brent Venables[/autotag]. He worked for four years (2015-18) under Dabo Swinney as a graduate assistant at Clemson. Alley spent the entire time on the defensive side of the football, where he worked primarily with the defensive tackles and linebackers.

He would leave there and head to Boise State to be the co-special teams coordinator and linebackers coach. His first opportunity as a defensive coordinator came from Louisiana-Monroe.

He turned what was the No. 125 ranked rushing defense in FBS in 2020 into the 69th-ranked rush defense in 2021. The Warhawks improved in 11 of 14 defensive categories from 2020 to 2021.

He took the same position with Jacksonville State in 2022. 2023 was their first season in FBS.

In 2023, they allowed 352.8 yards per game, 111.5 rushing yards per game, 241.3 passing yards per game and teams converted 32% of their third downs. They also ranked No. 8 in the nation in stop rate, in the 96th percentile in run defense success and 67th percentile in pass defense success.

Jacksonville State led Conference USA in almost every statistical defensive category including, total yards, rushing yards, yards per carry, sacks, forced fumbles, total touchdowns allowed and was second in interceptions.

More: Social media reacts to reports that Zac Alley will be the next defensive coordinator

From reports, Alley is a “mini” Venables. In fact, in an interview with the Post and Courier back on Nov. 2, 2023, he talked about the similarities.

“I laugh about it,” said Alley, the JSU defensive coordinator who learned the trade while working as a student assistant and graduate assistant when Venables was defensive coordinator on Clemson’s best teams. “But I talk like Coach V. I coach like him. My parents tell me my mannerisms are like him on the sidelines.” – exceprt from the Post and Courier article

He also requires the services of a “get back coach” just like his new boss used to. You can even see the similarities from practice when he was Mic’d up at ULM.

All signs pointed to this type of move. Bringing in someone Venables had trust in to run the defense and had a similar philosophy. Venables can hand his defense off to someone so he can be more of a “CEO” type of head coach.

That doesn’t mean he won’t have any part in the defense because he will. Every head coach still has a say in everything going on. It just means he can now focus on other things more because he has someone he trusts leading the defensive group.

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Social media reacts to the report that Zac Alley will be Oklahoma’s next defensive coordinator

The Oklahoma Sooners appear set to hire Zac Alley as their next defensive coordinator and here’s how social media reacted.

The Oklahoma Sooners made news on Thursday when it was announced they had mutually agreed to part ways with defensive coordinator Ted Roof. But it didn’t take long for news to surface that the Sooners have found their replacement.

According to a report from 247Sports Matt Zenitz, the Sooners are expected to hire Jacksonville State defensive coordinator Zac Alley.

Alley spent the last two years with the Gamecocks, helping them win nine games in their first season at the FBS level. He’s also spent time with Louisiana-Monroe and Boise State. He also spent time with Brent Venables as a student and grad assistant at Clemson.

It’s yet to be officially announced, but based on reports from several outlets, the Sooners have their next defensive coordinator in Zac Alley.

Here’s how social media reacted.

Zac Alley to be Oklahoma Sooners’ next defensive coordinator per reports

According to reports, the Oklahoma Sooners are set to hire Jacksonville State’s Zac Alley as their next defensive coordinator.

The Oklahoma Sooners mutually parted ways with defensive coordinator and linebackers coach Ted Roof on Thursday afternoon. But it didn’t take long for the Sooners to zero in on his replacement.

According to multiple reports, including one from Matt Zenitz of 247Sports, Oklahoma is set to hire Zac Alley as its next defensive coordinator.

Most recently, Alley was the defensive coordinator with Jacksonville State, which ranked 33rd in the nation in scoring defense (21.2 ppg). Jacksonville State ranked 43rd in total yards allowed, 15th in rushing yards allowed and 96th in passing yards allowed in 2023. Jacksonville State defense ranked ninth in turnovers forced (1.9) per game) and 10th in interceptions (1.2) per game.

2023 was Jacksonville State’s first season in the Football Bowl Subdivision and Alley’s defense helped the Gamecocks win nine games.

From 2011 to 2018, Alley was a part of Clemson’s staff as a student assistant and then as a graduate assistant. From there, he coached Boise State’s linebackers in 2019 and 2020 and also served as the co-special teams coordinator.

Prior to working with former West Virginia head coach Rich Rodriguez at Jacksonville State, the two served under Terry Bowden at Louisiana-Monroe. There, at the age of 27, Alley was the youngest defensive coordinator in FBS in 2021.

Though Alley is young, he has several years of defensive coordinator experience and comes to the Sooners as one of the brightest young talents in the game.

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