Oklahoma’s Board of Regents on Friday, approved a contract extension and raise for head football coach Brent Venables ahead of his third year as Sooners coach. Venables received a new six-year deal worth $51.6 million that will keep him at OU through the 2029 season. He will earn an average of $8.6 million annually for the duration of the contract, including a salary of $8.15 million in 2024 ($7,225,000 this year, plus an annual base salary of $325,000 and an annual installment of $600,000 that goes toward retirement).
Venables was originally hired as Oklahoma’s coach in December 2021, when he was signed to a six-year, $43.5 million deal to take over the program following Lincoln Riley’s departure for USC. Venables earned $7 million in his first season at OU, and that salary increased to $7.1 million last season, when he was the 17th-highest paid head coach in college football.
Running backs coach DeMarco Murray and defensive ends coach Miiguel Chavis also received a bump in pay. Murray’s new deal runs through Jan. 31, 2027, and while he will maintain a base salary of $285,000, his total compensation over the duration of his contract will increase considerably, to $2,525,000 through the end of his deal.
Murray will earn $800,000 for the upcoming season, which will be Oklahoma’s first in the SEC. That’s a singleseason raise of $225,000 from the $575,000 in total compensation that was originally approved in January. Murray’s outside income, on top of the $285,000 base salary, will increase from $290,000 for the upcoming season to $515,000. Murray’s outside income will increase to $565,000 in 2025, bringing his total compensation for that year to $850,000. The final year of his deal is worth $875,000 in total compensation, with his outside income growing to $590,000.
Chavis’ new contract runs through Jan. 31, 2027, with a base salary of $285,000. His total compensation over the next three seasons comes to $2.17 million. He will earn $690,000 in total compensation this season, with $405,000 of that coming from outside income. That’s a $40,000 increase from the previously approved raise he received in January.
Chavis’ total compensation will increase to $740,000 on Feb. 1, 2025, and remain there through the end of his contract. In addition to the $285,000 base salary, he will receive $455,000 in outside income in each the 2025 and 2026 seasons.
