Brent Venables arrives at SEC spring meetings in neck brace, details surgery

The SEC spring meetings brought major injury news for Oklahoma. Coach Brent Venables arrived in Miramar Beach, Fla., in a neck brace following surgery.

Venables told reporters he had four vertebrae fused. He’s still recovering from the procedure, but is in attendance for the SEC’s annual meetings in Florida as preparations continue for the upcoming season.

Venables said he had the surgery five weeks ago and still has a couple more to go before taking the brace off. He also said Missouri athletics director Laird Veatch was among those to joke with him about the injury. The two were teammates at Kansas State, which Venables said is where the nerve issues likely began.

For those wondering about Brent’s neck brace, he had “fusion surgery” for his C4, 5, 6 and 7 vertebrae that he said stemmed from his playing days.

He has a couple of more weeks in the brace. https://t.co/zmP0p26Ej7 pic.twitter.com/rIVZMeeEBb

— George Stoia III (@GeorgeStoia) May 26, 2026

“That’s kind of where it started,” Venables said. “Just a lot of wear-and-tear, 30 years in this profession, being on the field. I stay active and whatnot. I just had some nerve issues that needed to get cleaned up.”

Missouri coach Eli Drinkwitz was the first to publicly point out Venables’ status on Tuesday. He confirmed the Oklahoma coach’s arrival in a neck brace during an interview with The Paul Finebaum Show.

“The only (joke among coaches) right now is, BV walked in with a neck brace,” Drinkwitz said. “I don’t know if you’ve seen that. He had surgery. There may or may not be a lawsuit vs. a couple of former coaches for doing Oklahoma drills back in the day.”

Venables is gearing up for his fifth season as OU head coach after taking the program to the College Football Playoff a year ago. The Sooners saw a lead evaporate against Alabama as the Crimson Tide mounted a comeback to get the victory and advance to the quarterfinals. Oklahoma finished the year with a 10-3 overall record, including a 6-2 mark in conference play, as part of an impressive turnaround.

OU will also have some key pieces back in 2026, headlined by quarterback John Mateer. He got off to a strong start to his time in Norman after transferring from Washington State, but a hand injury impacted his production.

Ahead of Mateer’s second season at Oklahoma, an anonymous SEC coach told Athlon Sports that the Sooners quarterback still has plenty of potential. The coach also praised the way Brent Venables and general manager Jim Nagy built the roster after last year’s College Football Playoff appearance.

“[QB John Mateer] has a ridiculously high ceiling,” the coach said. “That offense has answers for everything. They don’t do a ton, but everything they do complements the other thing. When he just executes and then makes splash plays here and there, they complement their elite defense very well. 

“I was impressed with how [head coach] Brent [Venables] and [general manager] Jim Nagy structured the team, and it feels like they finally hit on what the recipe is to be successful there.”