Venables mum on Murray ban, leans on coaches

Oklahoma coach Brent Venables declined to say Wednesday if running backs coach DeMarco Murray would serve his NCAA-mandated one-game suspension this week for recruiting violations but added “the entire offensive staff will pick up the slack” when he does.

The NCAA announced Tuesday that Murray, who is entering his fifth season at his alma mater, contacted prospects and their families before he was allowed to. The Sooners, now members of the SEC, open the season on Friday at home against Temple and don’t face their first conference opponent until Sept. 21 against Tennessee.

Venables, who addressed the incident for the first time Wednesday during the weekly SEC coaches’ teleconference, said he will lean into a new NCAA rule that was approved this summer removing some restrictions on its previous maximum of 11 “countable” coaches on the field. All football staff members are now allowed to provide coaching instruction during practice and games.

“The new rule that allows additional coaches will come into play here,” Venables said, “but I won’t talk specifics on who that’ll be and so forth. It’s the entire offensive staff will pick up the slack if you will, have some guys step in.”

Oklahoma, Murray and the enforcement staff agreed that the violations in the football program occurred when Murray impermissibly contacted 17 prospects over 16 months, including 65 impermissible phone calls and 36 impermissible text messages. According to the NCAA, Murray indicated he wasn’t aware that a COVID-19 waiver of recruiting contact rules had expired. During the investigation, the enforcement staff determined that the school had properly educated football coaches on the applicable recruiting rules and the timing of changes to them.

“There’s no doubt that I’m incredibly disappointed in what took place,” Venables said, “and I do know our staff works to be mindful of the rules, and we have parameters — very clear, strong parameters — that are in place, and unfortunately and completely unintentionally that wasn’t the case here. DeMarco knows that, he knows all of that, and he’s accepted responsibility. I know who he is. Things will still happen despite strong measures in place that try to protect you.”