Steve Curtis July 28th, 2026
Oklahoma enters 2026 needing to replace proven production from one of the nation’s best defenses, but head coach Brent Venables believes the next wave of contributors has already been developed inside the program
Asked about replacing that production at SEC Media Days, Venables pointed to defensive tackle David Stone as an example.
“I don’t take anything for granted. We lost three, four really good players up front, two at defensive end and two at defensive tackle a year ago at this time. David Stone… many people… wrote stories about he might be a bust and things of that nature.”
Rather than letting those expectations define him, Venables said Stone focused on his development.
“He didn’t listen to any of that. He just put his head down and worked and had an outstanding sophomore year.”
He pointed to another player whose rise came from a very different starting point.
“Taylor Wein is a guy that going into the summer, he comes to see me, one of the lowest paid guys on our roster. A guy that we offered his senior year in high school in the playoffs. And he asked me if he could get some incentives.”
Venables recalled telling Wein to focus on earning a role first.
“I said, ‘Why don’t you worry about playing first before we worry about incentives?’ And so all Taylor did was become an All-SEC player, lead our team.””
To Venables, neither story was unusual. He believes every season produces unexpected contributors who earn larger roles through development, a philosophy he says has become a cornerstone of Oklahoma’s program.
“I say that just to remind certainly myself, but everybody that every year there’s a new storyline when it comes to players emerging, players coming out of nowhere.”
That philosophy has become a cornerstone of Oklahoma’s program. Asked how the Sooners sustain success from year to year, Venables repeatedly returned to the same formula: recruit well, establish clear standards and develop players.
“I think, again, you focus on programmatically your standards, what your non-negotiables are as a program. You recruit the right kind of people. You got the right kind of staff. There’s a development component.”
He pointed to Oklahoma’s defense from last season as an example.
“I think if you look at defensively speaking, for example, and you saw a lot of it last year, but you see a program that’s a developmental program. I think we had nine starters on defense that were all high school guys that were year four for us a year ago and guys that were homegrown and developed, went through some hard times and ability to get better from those hard times.”
The examples reflect a broader trend inside Oklahoma’s program. Of the Sooners’ 11 projected defensive starters in 2026, 10 signed with Oklahoma out of high school. The lone exception is former walk-on middle linebacker Owen Heinecke, who transferred to Oklahoma in June 2022 and developed into a starter despite never being on another college football roster.
Venables believes that same developmental model now extends throughout much of the roster, though he acknowledged the next challenge is building the same proven depth beyond the starting lineup.
“I think a year ago, and particularly on defense, there were more proven players in that middle half of our roster that we had, not theory, but we actually had evidence that we could build on. I think the challenge for this year’s team is how fast can we raise that level up?”
He rattled off several names he expects to take larger roles.
“So whether that’s a Nigel Smith, or a Trent Wilson, or a Bishop Thomas, or a Danny Okoye, get PJ Adebawore to play a season where he’s healthy, Reggie Powers emerging, things of that nature. Courtland Guillory is another name, again, a year ago that nobody really knew who he was other than a true freshman from Houston. And he comes out and has a freshman All-American type year.”
The names may change, but Venables believes Oklahoma’s developmental model can keep the defense from slipping. After watching Stone, Wein and Heinecke emerge through different paths, the next challenge is identifying which players are ready to become the Sooners’ next wave of contributors and strengthen the depth behind the projected starting 11.
