Brent Venables’ Contract and Salary Details as Oklahoma Football Coach Reportedly Signs Extension
According to ESPN, the third-year coach reportedly signed a new contract extension with the Sooners on Friday. The extension is pending approval from the Oklahoma Board of Regents but is expected to be finalized. After leading the Sooners to a 16-10 record over his first two seasons, Venables is entering Year 3 of his original six-year, $43.5 million fully guaranteed contract.
Venables will guide Oklahoma from the Big 12 to the SEC this season. The Sooners are coming off a 10-win season, which included a victory over their rival Texas. During his tenure, Venables has also secured three top-10 recruiting classes, ensuring the program’s future stability.
Here’s what you need to know about Venables, who will lead the Oklahoma Sooners into the SEC this season:
Brent Venables Contract and Salary Details
According to ESPN, Venables’ new contract extension will keep him with the Sooners through 2029, totaling just over $46 million. In 2024, Venables will earn $7.225 million, an increase from the $7.1 million he made in 2023. His salary will rise to $7.625 million in 2025 and reach $7.925 million by 2029.
According to USA TODAY’s college football coaches database, Venables’ 2024 salary would make him the 13th highest-paid coach in college football, just behind Florida’s Billy Napier ($7.27 million). He would be the seventh highest-paid coach in the SEC, following the retirement of Nick Saban at Alabama and the firing of Jimbo Fisher at Texas A&M. Last season, the highest-paid coach in the SEC was Saban, with a salary of $11.4 million.
Brent Venables Record
Venables was hired from Clemson, where he served as the associate head coach, defensive coordinator, and linebackers coach under Dabo Swinney from 2012 to 2021. He led the Sooners to a 6-7 record in his first season in 2022, which concluded with a Cheez-It Bowl loss to Florida State.
In 2023, Oklahoma bounced back with a 10-3 record, including a win in the Red River Rivalry against Texas, solidifying Venables’ status among OU fans. However, the Sooners lost to Arizona in the Alamo Bowl, making Venables 0-2 in bowl games as a head coach.
Brent Venables Age
Venables is 53 years old and entering his third season as head coach at Oklahoma. He began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Kansas State in 1993 after finishing his playing career as a linebacker for the Wildcats. He then coached linebackers at Kansas State from 1996 to 1998 before joining Oklahoma as co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach in 1999.
He was promoted to associate head coach and defensive coordinator, along with linebackers coach, in 2004, holding these roles until 2012 when he moved to Clemson. At Clemson, he served as defensive coordinator and linebackers coach from 2012 to 2017 and added associate head coach to his responsibilities from 2018 to 2021.
Venables won the 2016 Broyles Award, given annually to the top assistant coach in college football, the same year Clemson won the College Football Playoff national championship. He was also part of Clemson’s staff for their 2018 national championship team.
