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COLUMN: Family or Not, Art Briles Has No Place On Oklahoma's Sidelines

When the disgraced former Baylor coach showed up to the Sooners' win over SMU, Brent Venables was surprised and Joe Castiglione was "disappointed."

John E. Hoover

In this story:

NORMAN — Art Briles made an unexpected visit to the Oklahoma sideline on Saturday night.

Yes, that Art Briles, the former head football coach and central figure in the Baylor rape scandal, was at OU’s game against SMU at Owen Field.

Wearing a long-sleeve officially licensed OU-logo T-shirt.

Head coach Brent Venables says he wasn’t even aware.

“I was made aware just before I came in here (for postgame interviews) that he was, and I think that’s being dealt with — and already has been,” Venables said.

Art Briles, Jeff Lebby
Art Briles and Jeff Lebby :: Parker Thune/OU Insider (used with permission)

Presumably, Briles was a guest of OU offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby. In a postgame photo taken of Briles by OU Insider’s Parker Thune, Briles is chatting with Lebby following the Sooners’ 28-11 victory over the Mustangs.

Lebby is married to Briles' daughter, Staley.

“That’s my father in law. He’s my father in law,” Lebby explained in his postgame press conference. “That’s the grandfather to my two kids. So he was down with our entire family after the game, well after the game. He was down there with the entire family.”

Let’s face it. Briles is a toxic figure. He attended a University of Tulsa practice a few years back to catch up with his old offensive coordinator, former TU head coach Philip Montgomery, who left Baylor before things went from bad to worse.

Montgomery found himself answering questions about his choices and how he wanted to represent his employer.

“I was just as disappointed as many of our fans when I learned of the postgame situation tonight,” Castiglione said. “It shouldn’t have happened and it was my expectation it never would, based on boundaries we previously set. I’ve addressed it with the appropriate staff.”

To that end, Venables took some early criticism for hiring Lebby due to his familial proximity to Briles. Lebby was also at Baylor during the dark times. But for whatever reason, that criticism quickly died down.

Now, with Briles on the OU pass list (it’s possible he bought a ticket) and wearing OU apparel (maybe he brought it from home), it’s understandable that nearly 100 percent of the replies to Thune’s Twitter post were negative or even rebuked OU for having Briles as a guest.

“Well, again,” Lebby said, “he’s with his entire family. He’s the grandfather to my two kids.”

Sorry, but that's not an area Lebby gets to make decisions.

Asked what he would say to OU fans who were speaking out against Briles’ appearance, Venables seemed taken aback.

“I don’t really — I have had no time to think about any of that,” he said.

Here’s what should have happened.

Lebby should have asked Venables if having Briles on the field after the game was OK. And Venables should have said no.

There’s plenty of room in the world for forgiveness. Also, family is family.

But in the multimillion dollar, image-conscious world of Oklahoma football world, Art Briles remains toxic. OU fans spoke loud and clear: for those who love the game, his name and image are forever stained and irredeemable.

Perhaps it was just an assumption. Maybe it was just an oversight.

Either way, it was a mistake, and OU should do whatever it can to distance itself from Briles — not welcome him onto Owen Field for postgame family celebrations.

Published
John E. Hoover
JOHN E. HOOVER

John is an award-winning journalist whose work spans five decades in Oklahoma, with multiple state, regional and national awards as a sportswriter at various newspapers. During his newspaper career, John covered the Dallas Cowboys, the Kansas City Chiefs, the Oklahoma Sooners, the Oklahoma State Cowboys, the Arkansas Razorbacks and much more. In 2016, John changed careers, migrating into radio and launching a YouTube channel, and has built a successful independent media company, DanCam Media. From there, John has written under the banners of Sporting News, Sports Illustrated, Fan Nation and a handful of local and national magazines while hosting daily sports talk radio shows in Oklahoma City, Tulsa and statewide. John has also spoken on Capitol Hill in Oklahoma City in a successful effort to put more certified athletic trainers in Oklahoma public high schools. Among the dozens of awards he has won, John most cherishes his national "Beat Writer of the Year" from the Associated Press Sports Editors, Oklahoma's "Best Sports Column" from the Society of Professional Journalists, and Two "Excellence in Sports Medicine Reporting" Awards from the National Athletic Trainers Association. John holds a bachelor's degree in Mass Communications from East Central University in Ada, OK. Born and raised in North Pole, Alaska, John played football and wrote for the school paper at Ada High School in Ada, OK. He enjoys books, movies and travel, and lives in Broken Arrow, OK, with his wife and two kids.

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