It’s no secret that Pro Football Hall of Famer and first-year Colorado Buffaloes head coach Deion Sanders has already put his stamp on the program with his roster overhaul. That decision by Sanders upon arrival in Boulder generated flak and plenty of pushback.
Not too long ago it was Pittsburgh Panthers head coach Pat Narduzzi. Now it’s Oklahoma Sooners head coach Brent Venables who’s taking issue with how Sanders is moving within his program.
During a recent appearance on REF Sports Radio for Sooners sports, Venables didn’t hold back on how’s he handled things in Norman, which is the complete opposite of how Sanders has done things down in Boulder.
“I gave guys 12 months of grace,” Venables said via the REF. “I was unlike Deion Sanders. I give guys 12 months of grace to figure it out.”
Sounds good, but the situation that Coach Prime inherited is totally different than the one Coach Venables inherited at Oklahoma.
Sanders’ Team Was 1–11, Venables’ Team Was 11-2
The team that Sanders inherited in 2022, went 1-11 that season, and 5-19 the two previous seasons combined. While, Venables inherited an 11-2 team with an embarrassment of riches left by former head coach Lincoln Riley who left for USC. Yes, the Sooners had some transfers leave, mainly reigning Heisman Trophy winning quarterback Caleb Williams, but the cupboard in Norman was hardly bare, like it was in Boulder.
We’re talking two totally different situations, at the two schools, so Venables could afford to give players time, that’s not the case with Sanders where he had to make wholesale changes from a culture standpoint more than anything.
Sanders recently discussed the roster overhaul with Carl Reed of 247Sports.
“You are talking about a situation in which we inherited a team that was 1-11,” Sanders said. “And everyone knows there’s gonna be some changes. I don’t understand how you would think the coaching staff was the only thing that deserved a change. Now when you rid yourself of the entire coaching staff, you think you’re going to keep all the kids? That doesn’t make sense to me. And that just doesn’t make sense whatsoever when the previous staff was responsible for securing those kids. That’s no the way the game is played with us.”
Venables Has Valid Points, But So Does Sanders
Oklahoma’s roster makeup afforded Venables the opportunity to give players time. And while the team went just 6-7 in his first season, they were highly competitive. As for Sanders, he inherited a terrible roster and team, meaning wholesale changes needed to be made.
What needs to happen is they need to settle this on the field. Makes you miss the days of the Big 8 conference when these two programs had epic battles yearly.