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Oklahoma's Brent Venables Reveals Good News On and Off Field Ahead of Spring Practice

The Sooners will open spring football practice on Monday and have a plethora of new coaches and support staff to go with some 34 newcomers.

John E. Hoover

Oklahoma's Brent Venables Reveals Good News On and Off Field Ahead of Spring Practice
Oklahoma's Brent Venables Reveals Good News On and Off Field Ahead of Spring Practice /
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NORMAN -- Oklahoma coach Brent Venables opened Wednesday's spring practice press conference with some good news.

Senior safety/linebacker Justin Harrington's appeal to the NCAA for a medical hardship season has been granted, Venables said.

The Sooners open spring practice on Monday and wrap up with annual Red/White Game on April 20.

Harrington, a former junior college All-American who has played cornerback, safety and the nickel linebacker spot, will practice this spring after a knee injury early last season.

"It's big," Venables said. "He's a highly invested guy. He's talented. He can do a lot of diff things. You are always looking for big, long, fast, aggressive, physical guys and he's those things."

The Venables family also revealed some good news beyond the football field earlier in the day: Julie Venables told the Oklahoman that she had "zero cancer" after being diagnosed with breast cancer last June. 

"Praise Jesus," Venables said. "She's cancer free. ... She's tough s all get out." 

Venables also confirmed the hiring of Zac Alley as defensive coordinator as well as numerous other support staff and aides, including offensive analyst Kevin Johns and special teams analyst Doug Deakin.

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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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