Bob Stoops credits Brent Venables for the rise of Clemson football

Longtime OU coach Bob Stoops gave a speech at the Oklahoma House of Representatives on Tuesday, and the Sooners’ recent head coaching change was a major topic.

Stoops was quick to hype up former Clemson defensive coordinator Brent Venables, who replaced Lincoln Riley in December.

However, the Hall-of-Fame coach got a little aggressive when praising the Sooners’ new head coach. He gave Venables much of the credit for Clemson’s run over the last decade, saying the program came “from nowhere.”

“Brent was a major part of [Oklahoma’s undefeated 2000 season],” Stoops said, via ESPN

. “He was with us 13 years and then went 10 years to Clemson where they’ve had as big a resurgence — not resurgence they’ve come from nowhere — to be one of the premier teams in the country.”

While this is undoubtedly the most successful era in Clemson football history — 6 straight ACC titles, 6 College Football Playoff appearances and 2 National Championships from 2015-20 — the Tigers hardly came from “nowhere.”

Prior to Venables’ arrival in 2012, Clemson had already won 13 ACC Championships, 653 games and a national title in 1981. The Tigers also won 10+ games in 8 seasons before Venables arrived, including once under Dabo Swinney in 2011.

Here’s video of Stoops’ comments at the House of Representatives. His remarks on Venables begin at the 1:09 mark:

Swinney promoted Wes Goodwin and Mickey Conn to serve as co-defensive coordinators in Venables’ place. Clemson opens the 2022 season with Georgia Tech on Sept. 5.