Brent Venables is Excited for How Jeff Lebby's Offensive Tempo Will Benefit the Entire Team
NORMAN — Jeff Lebby is bringing the tempo back to Oklahoma.
Through three weeks of spring practice, the speed at which the OU offense intends to operate has drawn rave reviews from both sides of the ball.
And while the offensive playmakers in Norman are giddy at the prospect of catching opposing defenses on their heels, head coach Brent Venables is happy the breakneck pace will prepare his defense for any opposition.
"It creates a sense of urgency about all of the pre-snap procedural things from the sideline to the field to the communication to getting lined up with urgency,” Venables said on Friday. “I love it.”
With a new defensive system, the speed of the offense has forced each player to pick up the new playbook even faster since there’s no time to think through things ahead of each snap.
Though it’s certainly been an adjustment, defensive lineman Jordan Kelley thinks there will be a huge benefit for the defense.
“They are snapping the ball in 10-12 seconds,” Kelley said after practice on Monday. “It’s a tempo that I’ve never played against and it’s definitely making the team better.
“… It’s hard to get used to but I feel it’ll benefit so much when we go against other people’s tempo. We’ll just be there waiting for them and they’ll be trying to tempo us. It will definitely benefit us.”
Even when things don’t go according to plan for the defense in practice, Venables thinks the speed at which different things are thrown at his defense in practice have helped the process of getting his unit on the same page this spring.
“I love all of it because it challenges things that are, in some ways, out of your control as a coach,” he said. “The players need to buy into my pre-snap procedures.
“… It’s precision and attention to detail. It's 11 guys playing with purpose, 11 guys being on the same page. You just are forced to do it because you get a lot of snaps of it in practice. If you snap the ball more times, you get more plays in practice. I like it.”
While the defense gets up to speed, Venables also hopes the pace will do something else for the offense.
More than just create mismatches by catching the opposition off guard, Venables said it should instill an aggressive mentality on Lebby’s side of the ball.
“As I challenge both sides of the ball, I challenge the offense,” Venables said. “That's great if they can get to a pace where, next thing you know, they're dragging people up and down the field and making them quick. That's the goal. That's the mindset.
“You want to taste blood. You want to go for the jugular. That's what the game is about.”
Offensive tackle Wanya Morris has enjoyed embracing the new philosophy, as the new goal for the Sooner offense is to make the opposing defense quit.
“Coach Lebby always says have blood in the water,” Morris said on Wednesday. “When you’re on that long drive, you get to 8-9-10 plays, you see the defense putting their hands on their heads, that just means you’ve got to find another zone, lock in and just go.”
Both sides of the ball shouldn’t be gassed in the fourth quarter, either, Venables said.
Practice wears on the offense and the defense, but after spring practice, summer workouts and fall camp, Venables said his team will be in great condition by the time OU kicks off against UTEP.
“It's a great conditioning thing,” Venables said. “We don't have to do additional conditioning to get our team right when transitioning from spring ball to summer workouts. That in itself is a great challenge for our guys and a way for our guys to get in shape.
“But it really challenges you both physically and mentally and develops a toughness that you have to have to play this game when you're practicing at a really tough, challenging pace."
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