Even After a Week 1 Loss, Oklahoma Coach Brent Venables Still Showing Respect for Houston's Willie Fritz

Willie Fritz is 0-1 as Houston's head coach, but based on his lengthy experience, Brent Venables has publicly acknowledged his respect for Fritz as a coach.

Oklahoma head coach Brent Venables / NATHAN J. FISH/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK

An 0-1 start to Willie Fritz’s reign in Houston didn’t result in any lost respect from his next opponent. 

Oklahoma head coach Brent Venables has started every media availability this week giving Fritz his flowers leading up to the Sooners’ matchup matchup with Fritz’s Houston squad at 6:45 p.m. Saturday in Norman. The Cougars started their 2024 season with a 27-7 home loss to UNLV on Saturday in Fritz’s first game since taking over the program. 

Venables’ opening statements at the start of his weekly press conference Tuesday and his time on the SEC coaches teleconference Wednesday both mentioned Fritz and the respect Venables has for him. 

“They’re coming off a tough home opener, which they had over half of their roster’s brand new, their first time at Houston, so going through some of those initial growing pains,” Venables said during the SEC teleconference. “But knowing Coach Fritz and his staff, he’s been a tremendous program builder and developer of people for a long, long time.” 

Fritz was the head coach at Tulane for eight seasons before leaving for Houston this past offseason. At Tulane, Fritz guided the Green Wave to an American Conference title in 2022. He also once led the Green Wave into Memorial Stadium in 2021, the year before Venables took over at OU. The Sooners narrowly notched a season-opening win, 40-35, after Tulane scored a pair of unanswered touchdowns in the fourth quarter. 

Ironically, a week after hosting Fritz’s new team, OU this season will welcome Tulane for its Week 3 game at 2:30 p.m. Sept. 14. 

“The last time Coach Fritz had Tulane here in Norman, we were able to pull out a 40-35 win,” Venables said. “They do a great job of trying to shorten the game and play efficient in all three phases – fantastic in special teams – and get it to the fourth quarter and have a chance to win.”

That was similar to what Venables echoed in his opening statement of his weekly press conference on Tuesday. 

“Coach Willie Fritz and his staff are coming in here this weekend,” Venables said. “They lost a tough opener to UNLV. UNLV played really, really well and controlled the game running the football, possessing the football. Really think Houston has an aggressive, physical, disruptive defense. They've got a couple of former Sooners on their defense as well, and they've brought a couple of – several transfers – but a couple from Tulane, where they played excellent defense.”

Although Venables wasn’t on the other sideline the last time Fritz brought a team into Memorial Stadium, he still knows what to expect from a program Fritz is in charge of, especially considering he’s been coaching college football in some capacity since 1982, 11 years before Venables went into coaching. 

“It's an older team, but it is a new team,” Venables said. “Over half their team is brand new. Coach Fritz's teams the last two years are 10-0 in true road games, so he knows how to get his guys ready. The last time they were here, representing Tulane at the time, obviously it went down to the wire and we were able to pull it out 40-35. 

“Coach Fritz and his staff are really known for being well-coached and incredibly disciplined, patient. Gonna play a tight game, try to get it to the fourth quarter, try to possess the ball, run it a variety of ways and take their shots. And excellent in the kicking game. Really, really good.”