Venables did not shy away from his feelings.
Brent Venables Not Excited to Play in Iconic SEC Atmosphere This Season originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
Oklahoma Sooners head coach Brent Venables has only been in the SEC for one season, but understands that the conference is home to some raucous environments.
Venables spoke at the podium on Wednesday during SEC Media Days in Atlanta, Georgia, and was asked if he was looking forward to traveling to Bryant-Denny Stadium after beating the Alabama Crimson Tide 24-3 in Norman last season.
The Oklahoma head coach quickly pointed out how it was not something he was going to enjoy.
Before he became a head coach, Venables traveled to Tuscaloosa in 2003 to face Alabama as the co-defensive coordinator for the Sooners.
"Excited to go to Tuscaloosa?" Venables laughed. "I'm a loyalist. I'm a traditionalist. So, I love that part of it, but I don't love that, there will be nothing loving about going to Bryant-Denny Stadium. Been there before with Oklahoma, a long time ago in the early 2000s. Beautiful venue. It's gonna be a tremendous challenge. Alabama fans are as good as it gets."
Both Alabama and Oklahoma will have new starting quarterbacks this season. The Crimson Tide saw Jalen Milroe exit for the NFL and are going with Ty Simpson in 2025. Simpson has been the backup quarterback since 2022 and brings 16 games of experience to the table.
For Oklahoma, the Sooners went to the transfer portal to bring in former Washington State Cougars quarterback John Mateer. Mateer was the No. 3 overall player and quarterback in the On3 Transfer Portal Industry Rankings this offseason.
When it comes to Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer, he is entering a crucial year after going 9-4. He found himself at No. 7 in the head coach pressure rankings for 2025.
Before facing Oklahoma, Alabama has an opponent who is not afraid to do some trash-talking. The Florida State Seminoles are Alabama's first opponent and quarterback Thomas Castellanos added flames to the fire with his Nick Saban comments.
However, Castellanos appeared to walk back his comments after receiver Isaiah Horton confronted him.
The Sooners and Crimson Tide face off on November 15.
Related: Mother of Recent Alabama 5-Star Commit Shuts Down Nick Saban Rumor
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 16, 2025, where it first appeared.
Category: General Sports
