The Aporia · Oklahoma fires OC Ben Arbuckle with Sooners struggling on offense a year after making CFP

Oklahoma fires OC Ben Arbuckle with Sooners struggling on offense a year after making CFP

Read the original at Toronto Star ↗

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Willert, T. (2026, November 2). Oklahoma fires OC Ben Arbuckle with Sooners struggling on offense a year after making CFP. Toronto Star. https://www.thestar.com/sports/football/oklahoma-fires-oc-ben-arbuckle-with-sooners-struggling-on-offense-a-year-after-making-cfp/article_fce94deb-f426-5b54-9d84-ad09e1ea4cab.html

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Quick Summary

Oklahoma fired offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle after a poor performance in their home loss to South Carolina, where they managed only 118 yards and no touchdowns through three quarters. This decision comes despite Arbuckle leading the team to the College Football Playoff last year. Interim offensive coordinator Jason Witten will take over; he previously played for the Dallas Cowboys and was an 11-time Pro Bowl tight end. Oklahoma’s offense has significantly declined this season, ranking 111th in total yards per game and 108th in scoring compared to a 10-win season last year.

Written by AI on 2026-11-03, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

On November 2, 2026, Oklahoma fired Ben Arbuckle, their second-year offensive coordinator, due to poor performance by the team's offense. The Sooners (4-4, 2-3 in the Southeastern Conference) recently lost a home game against South Carolina with only 118 yards of total offense through three quarters. Head coach Brent Venables stated that he is making this change to benefit the whole team. Tight ends coach Jason Witten, an 11-time Pro Bowl tight end, will serve as interim offensive coordinator. Oklahoma's offensive numbers have significantly declined; they currently rank 111th out of 138 FBS teams in total yards per game and 108th in points scored per game.

Written for “Oklahoma Fires Offensive Coordinator” on 2026-11-03, grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.

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0 of 18 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")

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not political

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64/100

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Who wrote this

Tim Willert

12 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction

🔮 The school said tight ends coach Jason Witten will take over as interim OC and play caller.

2026-11-03 · assertive framing · Oklahoma fires OC Ben Arbuckle with Sooners struggling on offense a year after making CFP

🔮 The Sooners’ defense, among the best in the country coming in, couldn’t contain Sellers or the Gamecocks, who rolled up 521 yards of total offense.

2026-11-01 · assertive framing · LaNorris Sellers leads South Carolina past Oklahoma 42-25 for a third straight win

🔮 Isaiah Hartenstein added 12 points and 12 rebounds for Oklahoma City, which won its third straight to start the season but lost three players to injury, including All-Star guard Jalen Williams, who went down hard on a drive to the basket with 1:14 left.

2026-10-26 · assertive framing · Thunder stay undefeated with a 108-101 victory over the Clippers

🔮 Mestemaker countered with 264 yards and two touchdowns but Oklahoma State couldn’t finish drives and settled for Keltner field goals of 47, 30 and 41 yards.

2026-10-25 · assertive framing · Oklahoma State scores 34 points in the 2nd half to storm past Colorado 57-24

🔮 Jalen Williams scored 21 points, Chet Holmgren had 12 points and 17 rebounds, and the Oklahoma City Thunder withstood a poor shooting night from Shai-Gilgeous-Alexander in their home opener to beat the Denver Nuggets 96-84 on Thursday. Gilgeous-Alexander, who scored 32 points in a convincing win over San Antonio on Tuesday night, finished with 17 points on 6-of-19 shooting against Denver.

2026-10-23 · assertive framing · Thunder overcome SGA's shooting woes to beat Nuggets 96-84 in home opener

🔮 Following the pick, Minchey took the Wildcats 44 yards in seven plays, finding tight end Willie Hernandez for a 12-yard touchdown.

2026-10-18 · assertive framing · No. 15 Kentucky rallies to beat Oklahoma 21-13 and move into a tie for the SEC lead

🔮 The Oklahoma defensive back shared a locker room with Jackson Arnold, who played his way out of Norman two season ago, and John Mateer, who may have played his way out of the Sooners’ starting lineup with No. 1 Texas coming up this weekend.

2026-10-04 · assertive framing · Oklahoma facing QB questions heading into rivalry week against No. 1 Texas

🔮 “And that will never change.

2026-09-29 · assertive framing · Gilgeous-Alexander, Thunder still confident that they'll be a contender, despite roster changes

🔮 Sam Presti knows there is no dancing around the fact the Thunder will have a different makeup this season though that doesn’t make OKC’s longtime general manager nervous.

2026-09-25 · assertive framing · Thunder GM Sam Presti expects OKC to be 'exceptional' team even after major offseason moves

🔮 No. 10 Oklahoma NORMAN, Okla. (AP) — 2025 record: 10-3 Expectations The Sooners could challenge for the national championship if they can duplicate their dominance on defense, run the ball more effectively and survive a brutal stretch of early-season games on the road.

2026-08-20 · assertive framing · No. 10 Oklahoma has another stout defense and its QB back. The run game is a question mark

Also by Tim Willert

LaNorris Sellers leads South Carolina past Oklahoma 42-25 for a third straight win

2026-11-01 · Toronto Star

Thunder stay undefeated with a 108-101 victory over the Clippers

2026-10-26 · Toronto Star

Oklahoma State scores 34 points in the 2nd half to storm past Colorado 57-24

2026-10-25 · Toronto Star

Thunder overcome SGA's shooting woes to beat Nuggets 96-84 in home opener

2026-10-23 · Toronto Star

Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.

All 12 articles by Tim Willert →

Topics

NORMAN Oklahoma SEC Sooners Washington State

Subjects

Oklahoma GPE · 4× Sooners ORG · 4× Arbuckle PERSON · 3× Venables PERSON · 3× SEC ORG · 2× Washington State GPE · 2× Ben Arbuckle PERSON · 1× NORMAN GPE · 1× Okla. ( GPE · 1× Southeastern Conference ORG · 1×

Narrative

NORMAN, Okla. (AP) — Oklahoma fired second-year offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle on Monday, with the Sooners struggling on offense a year after making the College Football Playoff in his debut season with the team. The Sooners (4-4, 2-3 Southeastern Conference) are coming off a 42-25 home loss to South Carolina when they had only 118 yards and no offensive touchdowns through three quarters before John Mateer, the quarterback who came with Arbuckle from Washington State, threw two TD passes.

framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-11-03

🔮 The school said tight ends coach Jason Witten will take over as interim OC and play caller.

2026-11-03 · Toronto Star

Oklahoma fires OC Ben Arbuckle with Sooners struggling on offense a year after making CFP · assertive framing

Claims (18 extracted, 0 hedged)

who → fire → passes

The school said tight ends coach Jason Witten will take over as interim OC and play caller. asserted

Witten → say → OC

Witten was an 11-time Pro Bowl tight end with the Dallas Cowboys and was a high school head coach before Oklahoma coach Brent Venables hired him in January. asserted

Venables → hire → January

“I have decided to make a change at offensive coordinator,” Venables said in a statement. asserted

Venables → decide → statement

“My responsibility is to the whole team and what I believe is best for us right now. asserted

I → believe → us

We need a change.” The Sooners’ offensive numbers have slipped this season. asserted

numbers → need → change

They rank 111th out of 138 FBS teams at 336.9 total yards per game, and are 108th with 22.0 points a game — down from 354.3 yards and 26.2 points in a 10-win season last year. asserted

They → rank → season

Since opening the season with a 51-0 win over UTEP, their highest-scoring game was a 27-24 win over then-No. 1 Texas in the Red River rivalry on a game-ending field goal. asserted

game → open → goal

They have scored 14 points or less four times, including one of their wins. asserted

They → score → wins

“I believe we still have meaningful opportunities ahead and a responsibility to maximize them,” Venables said. asserted

Venables → believe → them

“Our expectations remain high and our commitment to meeting them is unwavering.” asserted

commitment → remain → them

The 31-year-old Arbuckle came to Oklahoma from Washington State, where he had been the offensive coordinator and play caller for two seasons. asserted

he → come → seasons

The Cougars in 2024, with Mateer at quarterback, ranked sixth nationally with 36.6 points a game, and were 17th with 442.8 yards per game. asserted

Mateer → rank → game

Arbuckle took over an Oklahoma team that in 2024 had an exceptional defense, but ranked 15th out of 16 SEC teams in school offense and yards in its first SEC season. asserted

that → take → season

“I want to thank Ben and all he contributed to us over the last two years,” Venables said. asserted

Venables → want → years

It didn’t work out like we all wanted it to, but I deeply appreciate the investment, love and passion he poured into our program. asserted

he → work → program

We wish his family nothing but the best. asserted

We → wish → best

The Sooners play at No. 25 Florida on Saturday. asserted

Sooners → play → Saturday