Oklahoma coach Brent Venables agrees to six-year, $46 million deal to stay with Sooners: Report

Oklahoma Sooners lock up long-term leadership: The Sooners have agreed to a six-year contract with head coach Brent Venables, according to ESPN’s Pete Thamel. The deal will be worth just over $46 million, according to multiple reports.

The contract keeps Venables, who was hired by the Sooners in 2021 to replace Lincoln Riley, at Oklahoma through 2029. The 53-year-old coach will also remain at the helm to help Oklahoma move to the SEC .

Under the new contract, Venables will earn $7.225 million next season, with his salary increasing each season and eventually capping at $7.925 million in his senior year. He signed a six-year, $43.5 million contract when he joined the Sooners two seasons ago.

According to ESPN, the deal received board approval, which was the final hurdle to making it official.

Venables was hired in December 2021 after Riley left for USC and went 16-10 in two seasons with the Sooners. The first-time head coach led Oklahoma to a 10-2 record in the 2023 regular season, including big wins over No. 1 Texas. 3, before losing to Arizona in the Alamo Bowl. Oklahoma went 7-3 in the conference and finished third in the Big 12; The Sooners finished the season ranked 15th nationally.

Before becoming a head coach, Venables was co-defensive coordinator and later assistant head coach at Oklahoma from 1999 to 2011 before spending 10 seasons as an assistant at Clemson.