It’s full steam ahead in Norman for Year 4 of the Brent Venables era, which on Friday included setting salaries for a number of the Sooners’ returning assistants, as well as new tight ends coach Jason Witten.<\/p>\n
Judging by the money awarded on Friday, Venables was highly pleased with his defensive line room after a season that saw the resurgent Sooners win 10 games and reach the College Football Playoff. Defensive tackles coach Todd Bates netted a $200,000 raise to $1.15 million, while defensive ends coach Miguel Chavis earned a $265,000 raise to an even $1 million. Both men joined Venables from Clemson; Oklahoma was (and still is) Chavis’s first on-field role after working in player development with the Tigers. (All figures via George Stoia<\/a> of Sooner Scoop.)<\/p>\n Offensive line coach Bill Bedenbaugh remains the highest-paid position coach, but his $1.25 million salary represents a $50,000 cut from his previously-reported deal signed back in 2024<\/a>. Oklahoma’s longest-tenured coach, Bedenbaugh will coach his 14th season with the Sooners this fall.\u00a0<\/p>\n Oklahoma ranked 113th in rushing offense and 118th in yards per carry in 2025, and third and second in the equivalent categories on defense.\u00a0<\/p>\n Elsewhere, Witten will earn $675,000, which represents a significant cost savings from Joe Jon Finley’s $900,000 (Finley was previously OU’s co-offensive coordinator) and also assuredly a massive raise from Witten’s salary as the head coach at Liberty Christian School in Texas. (For what it’s worth, Witten earned nearly $82 million across 17 NFL seasons<\/a>, with a high of $16.4 million.)<\/p>\n