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Brent Venables did what not too many college football coaches bother to do.
The Oklahoma head coach addressed a burgeoning narrative before it potentially could get really out of control. Venables took the time at the end of his weekly press conference to tackle the narrative that the program ran off quarterback Dillon Gabriel after his 2 seasons in Norman.
Venables believes Gabriel’s transfer to Oregon centered around Sooners offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby leaving Oklahoma to take the head coaching job at Mississippi State. Venables also mentioned that he thought Gabriel wanted to get closer to his home in Hawaii.
Brent Venables, unprompted, brings up the narrative that Oklahoma chased off QB Dillon Gabriel after last season.
Here's what he said, in part: pic.twitter.com/cyZDo8UtpV
— Tom Green (@Tomas_Verde) September 24, 2024
So, there was no running Gabriel off, as some observers, like sports analyst and diehard Oklahoma fan Skip Bayless, have suggested in the aftermath of the Sooners’ disappointing home loss to Tennessee on Saturday night.
“I’m told Dillon Gabriel wanted to stay at Oklahoma for his final year. I have no idea how much Oregon and Phil Knight offered him, but I’m told Oklahoma said no to Dillon Gabriel because they said yes to Jackson Arnold,” said Bayless.
While Arnold struggled mightily on Saturday night and has now been replaced as the starting QB by Michael Hawkins Jr. for this Saturday’s game against Auburn, Gabriel is lighting it up so far in Eugene in 2024. Gabriel has thrown for 914 yards, 6 touchdown passes and 0 interceptions in leading the Ducks to a 3-0 start and a No. 8 ranking in the latest AP Poll.
Gabriel threw for over 3,000 yards in each of his 2 seasons at Oklahoma before bolting for Oregon.
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
