Brent Venables praises OU's offensive versatility after Week 1 win

The Oklahoma Sooners had a strong debut on offense in Friday night’s 51-0 drubbing of the UTEP Miners to open up the 2026 season. OU will certainly play much tougher competition over the course of the rest of the season, but it was a solid start for a unit that the Sooners need to take another step forward this year.

Oklahoma made a commitment to becoming a more effective rushing team this offseason, and one area that showed up on the field was the multiplicity of how the Sooners looked on offense. OU lined up in the shotgun, in the pistol, and under center, using two, three, or even four tight ends at a time. The run game looked more versatile because of it, and the Sooners will look to use that to their advantage.

To be clear, OU offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle is still an Air Raid guy through and through. He’s not going to abandon his entire offensive system and philosophy, and the Sooners will still be running all of their Air Raid staples. However, if Week 1 is any indication, Oklahoma will also be more multiple in their structure and personnel this year, in an effort to improve as an overall offense.

Brent Venables was asked about his offense’s versatility after the game, and he praised the group for the different looks they were able to give UTEP. That even included some I-formation plays, with sophomore tight end Trynae Washington lining up at fullback/h-back for some plays near the goal line.

“Yeah, we got a good group,” Venables said when asked specifically about versatility. “A lot of them can do the same things, and then some of them are really good at, whether it’s blocking or catching and things of that nature. I think that group has an opportunity to become one of the strengths of our football team, if they continue to develop that group as a whole … You saw, you know, Tryane Washington get extensive snaps, and we’ve been bragging on him for a couple of years. I know he was just a freshman last year. He’s a high school wide receiver and DB, and now he’s 260, you know, plus pounds, and he’s playing fullback, h-back, playing in the wing, playing on the ball, and is a tremendous athlete … Really excited about you know that the depth and the versatility of that group.”

Last season, the Sooners played mostly out of 11-personnel (one running back and one tight end), partially out of preference, but mostly out of necessity. However, that desire to become a better rushing attack led to the acquisition of tight ends who were great blockers first.

Now, Oklahoma feels they can play multiple tight ends at the same time and have success on the ground. Whether that’s lining up under center, running wide zone from the pistol formation, putting a fullback on the field, or running the zone and gap schemes from the shotgun formation that Sooner Nation is more familiar with, OU looks committed to being more multiple, all in the effort to improve that ground game.

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