Brent Venables knows Saturday will be no ordinary game in Norman. Auburn is making its first ever trip to Oklahoma, and standing under center for the Tigers is a familiar face, former Sooners quarterback Jackson Arnold.
Venables offered both praise for his former quarterback and a clear breakdown of the challenge ahead. “Jackson Arnold is completing 70 percent of his passes and averaging 167 yards a game, four touchdowns, no interceptions, no turnovers at all,” Venables said. “Ran for just under 150 yards against Baylor. So he is playing really really well.”
The transfer to Auburn was not easy for either side, but Venables made clear he harbors no ill will. “I will just keep that between he and I and obviously things worked out well for him and us both,” he said. “Those things are never easy, but it is just the environment that we are in. I am really happy for him that he is having great success.”
1-0 mindset 🔒 pic.twitter.com/w83qfRt5Pa
— Oklahoma Football (@OU_Football) September 16, 2025
Venables credited Arnold’s efficiency not only to his own development but also to Auburn’s depth. “I think he is the same guy,” Venables explained. “I think he has got a healthy football team around him and he is having great success running, throwing, being really efficient. He is taking care of the ball and the people around him are good. You cannot play quarterback by yourself, right. So I think the offense and their defense complement one another and he has really done a great job.”
The Auburn Tigers are currently in the top 20 in both rushing offense and rushing defense. They have already rushed for 10 touchdowns and have yet to allow one on the ground, all while averaging nearly 250 rushing yards per game.
For Venables, defending Arnold means defending the entire Auburn system. “We have got to really stop the Auburn offense,” he said. “They have got great balance both running and throwing and they are very efficient. So you have got to play well in every area. They are good at running the football and good at throwing the ball down the field in the RPO world, staying on schedule, being very efficient. We have got to protect the perimeter, do a great job up front plugging gaps, getting off blocks, having great leverage and playing great team defense.”
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