"We’ve only got 3.5 million people": Oklahoma legend admits Longhorns' 35M dominance in NIL battle against Sooners

Syndication: The Oklahoman - Source: Imagn
Syndication: The Oklahoman - Source: Imagn

The Oklahoma Sooners are amid a difficult debut in the SEC. Following their Week 8 loss to South Carolina, Brent Venables and his team are on a two-game losing streak. They have only won four of the seven games they've played so far.

Amid these difficulties, legendary Oklahoma coach Barry Switzer came forward to talk about the shortcomings of the teams and how there is still a lot of room to develop. On "The Paul Finebaum Show" on Tuesday, Switzer compared Oklahoma's population with that of Texas and discussed how this difference affects NIL.

Switzer also shared his concerns about how the modern game of college football and the influence of NIL could affect the Sooners in recruitment.

"We're short in a lot of areas," Switzer said, as per On3. "We're short, offensive line, with running backs, receivers, quarterbacks — every area of the offense needs help. And it's gonna take a while to get there. But I think that they can.
"I question, sometimes, with NIL whether we can or not, whether we can compete against Texas every year. We've only got 3.5 million people, and it's gonna be more difficult than it is for the University of Texas, where they've got 35 million people — a wealthier state and people to be able to support the programs. We'll have to wait and see."

Switzer served as the head coach of the Sooners for 16 seasons (1973-88). During his tenure, the Sooners won three national championships and 12 Big Eight Conference titles. He was also one of the co-founders of 10Oklahoma in 2022.

10Oklahoma then collaborated with Crimson & Cream to form The Sooner Nation Collective. After this move, 10Oklahoma was recognized as OU's official NIL collective.


Oklahoma fires offensive coordinator Seth Littrell

After an underwhelming performance by the Sooners offense in the past seven games, the program decided to move on from offensive coordinator Seth Littrell. He had taken over last year after Jeff Lebby left for Mississippi State.

Head coach Brent Venables released a statement about Littrell's firing, saying:

"Seth is an all-time great Sooner. He has a deep love for this university and football program, and has poured his heart and soul into it. Despite that, our performance as an offense this season has not at all lived up to the OU standard, and I felt a change was necessary now."

The Sooners are replacing Littrell by promoting co-offensive coordinator Joe Jon Finley. Furthermore, senior offensive analyst Kevin Johns has also been promoted as the co-offensive coordinator.

The Sooners are scheduled to take on Ole Miss in Week 9. It will be interesting to see if their offense can put up an improved performance under Finley.

Oklahoma Sooners Fan? Check out the latest Sooners depth chart, schedule, and roster updates all in one place.

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Edited by Piyush Bisht
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