Brent Venables Shares Details of Dillon Gabriel's Departure from Oklahoma

Dillon Gabriel transferred from Oklahoma to Oregon this past offseason after starting at quarterback for the Sooners in 2022 and 2023.

Former Oklahoma QB Dillon Gabriel / NATHAN J. FISH/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK

Oklahoma coach Brent Venables took time to clear the air Tuesday at his weekly press conference. 

Venables, without questioning, brought up a column that was written on Monday about former OU quarterback Dillon Gabriel and his departure from the program after last season. The column insinuated that the Sooners pushed Gabriel out the door to make way for 5-star recruit Jackson Arnold. Gabriel transferred to Oregon after starting for the Sooners in 2022 and 2023. 

Venables, who just made a quarterback switch between Arnold and freshman backup Michael Hawkins this week, detailed the situation of Gabriel parting ways with OU. 

“Somebody brought it to my attention, there was a story that was written, not that it really matters, but at the same time,” Venables said unprompted at the end of his press conference, “at the end of the (2023) year, had a meeting after a few weeks, at the end of the season, where Dillon Gabriel came to visit with me. He wanted to have a meeting and let me know that he wasn't gonna play in the bowl game. And so I had already caught wind, and he knew some other guys were opting out on the offensive line and things like that, and I did not know that, at that time, that he wasn't going to go to the NFL. 

“We had a great conversation with him, disappointed that he wasn't going to go play in the bowl game. And with the circumstances, coach (former offensive coordinator Jeff) Lebby leaving and thought he wanted to get closer to home to Hawaii. I was like, ‘I didn't know I had to fight this fight. I didn’t realize that you were even considering coming back.’ And he says, ‘Yeah, but I just really want to get closer to home.’ We hugged and shook hands. He was a little emotional and I was, but it was all really good and positive.”

At the time, details of Gabriel’s departure were not revealed. Many speculated OU was ready to hand the reins over to Arnold, who started the Alamo Bowl in place of Gabriel. Arnold, now a sophomore, was the Sooners’ QB1 going into this season. But after a rough first five starts, Arnold was benched in the second quarter of OU’s first SEC game against Tennessee on Saturday. 

Arnold was replaced by true freshman Michael Hawkins Jr., who Venables announced Monday night on his weekly coach’s show will start at quarterback for the Sooners’ first road trip of the season to Auburn on Saturday. 

“I made that announcement for lots of reasons,” Venables said Tuesday. “Certainly didn't want a decision like that to hang over anyone's head. And we got to get better. And sometimes maybe change is good. And as I expressed to Jackson, this is a moment. Jackson's going to have an amazing future and career – he’s going to play this game a long time, and all of that will work itself out in due time. That might be pulling the trigger even on Saturday night (at Auburn), just, we know how the game of football is sometimes. So he's got to stay ready, and he understands where he has fallen short and his responsibility, but anything that he puts on tape, to me, starts with us as a coaching staff, and so you're either coaching it or you're allowing it. So we got to get better there, and I think that maybe Mike will come in, and he's a very talented guy, not a really experienced guy, but he has certainly shown that he's got the right stuff to do it at different times since he's been here.”

Meanwhile, Gabriel has emerged as a Heisman Trophy candidate in his sixth year of college football at Oregon, which is his third destination after starting his career at UCF. He’s passed for 914 yards and six touchdowns compared to no interceptions through three wins this season. Gabriel’s success as OU struggles at the position with a pair inexperienced players has sparked lots of “What ifs” on social media and local radio, as many assumed Gabriel left the program at OU’s request. 

“You can't make a guy stay – the guy’s trying to find the next thing, the next chapter for him,” Venables said. “I'm sure there was probably some disappointment that he wasn't more highly thought of in the NFL. (He) had an amazing year and is a fantastic quarterback. But there was nobody running nobody off or things like that. I've always – the veterans are good – I think I've always said that the experienced player can do a little more than sometimes the young guys. But that's neither here nor there. But I did want to make sure we cleared that up.”