Brent Venables is on a tightrope walk for the whole of the 2025 season. After the nightmare of last season, the HC is on high alert to keep anything like that from happening this year. Chief among them will be to be on the lookout for his new QB1, after Jackson Arnold suffered at Norman. He returns to Oklahoma as an opponent in Week 4, as the QB1 of Auburn. Venables opened up about the spilt between him and his former star recruit.

Jackson Arnold was a 5-star QB and was one of the best in the 2023 recruiting cycle. He ended up having the worst possible start for a true freshman at Oklahoma. Last year’s tough handling of the season ultimately forced the QB to move out, who is now at Auburn. The move is proving to be the right decision for the QB, but Venables turned wistful when asked about Arnold. “Those are things that are never easy,” he told the press about their struggles in the past year. “But it’s just the environment that we’re in, and I’m really happy for him that he’s having a great success,” he added.

Arnold started at Norman after sitting out for Heisman-finalist Dillon Gabriel. The latter was a star at Oregon in 2024, but Arnold ended up disappointing majorly taking over after him. Part of his downfall was because of the inexcusable, poor offensive coaching. Injuries plagued the offense, leaving Arnold to stick it out for the year. He ended up hauling in 1,421 passing yards, 12 TDs, and 3 interceptions. 2024 was a dark chapter for him and Brent Venables both. Had it not been so, the HC wouldn’t have been on a hot seat this year. Oklahoma is going through one of the most difficult schedules in the FBS, and so far, Venables is still safe at Norman.

Norman was never meant to be Arnold. At Auburn, the QB has shown a massive improvement. He has a total of 501 yards through the air, and 192 made on the ground. Arnold also has 4 passing and 4 rushing TDs. Venables, too, is faring exceptionally well with Arnold’s replacement, John Mateer.  But just because Arnold was struggling at Noman didn’t mean Venables was unhappy with him. “We wanted to keep him, we tried to keep him, but I think he just needed a fresh start. I don’t want to speak for him, but he was wonderful. Never once was I disappointed in him,” he said during the SEC Media Days.

Arnold returns to Norman this weekend, as Auburn visit the Sooners to begin SEC play. His father added more details about the kind of environment he face here, and the challenges that forced him to bid the Sooners goodbye.

Jackson Arnold’s father throws light on the QB’s struggles at Oklahoma

Arnold was among the elite in high school football. He came to Norman having won the Gatorade National Player of the Year award. Halfway through his first major season as a starter, Arnold ended up getting sacked 34 times. He became a victim in an offense that just wasn’t working. Fans and experts rained down criticism over the rookie QB who’s performance was impacted by surrounding factors as well. That was definitely not what he had hoped for, after signing with such a reputed program.

Todd Arnold revealed the dark reality that Arnold dealt last year at Oklahoma. “The culmination of everything that happened — the injuries, the offensive struggles. The fact you’re going to have your fourth offensive coordinator in three years, whether you stay or whether you go. And also some of the toxic things that were said to him, mostly by students on campus, and that’s kind of hard to brush aside,” he told SoonerScoop. Arnold was also benched for some time for backup QB Micah Hawkins Jr. to take over. A year as a starter at a major stage like Oklahoma ended up being the most difficult time in the QB’s career.

Brent Venables was tasked with reinvigorating the blueblood-status at Oklahoma. By 2024, that was turning out to be a difficult job. It ended in a disaster for both him and Jackson Arnold. But the duo seems to have recovered in the current season, based on their turnout so far. Will past wounds end up haunting both the coach and the Arnold when Auburn visits? Or have both moved on from this dark past for good?