Oklahoma hires Washington State’s 29-year-old Ben Arbuckle as offensive coordinator
Advertisement
Read this article for free:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Monthly Digital Subscription
$0 for the first 4 weeks*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*No charge for 4 weeks then price increases to the regular rate of $19.00 plus GST every four weeks. Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.
Monthly Digital Subscription
$4.75/week*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*Billed as $19 plus GST every four weeks. Cancel any time.
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Add Free Press access to your Brandon Sun subscription for only an additional
$1 for the first 4 weeks*
*Your next subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $16.99 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $23.99 plus GST every four weeks.
Read unlimited articles for free today:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 02/12/2024 (368 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
Oklahoma has announced it hired Washington State offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle on Monday to serve in the same capacity for the Sooners.
Arbuckle, just 29, has been the play-caller at Washington State the past two years. The 8-4 Cougars rank 12th nationally with 36.8 points per game this season.
Arbuckle steps in for an Oklahoma offense that struggled to move the ball and couldn’t help an exceptional defense in the school’s first season as a member of the Southeastern Conference. The Sooners rank 15th out of 16 SEC teams in scoring offense and yards per game. The Sooners fired offensive coordinator Seth Littrell in October after a humbling loss to South Carolina. Joe Jon Finley stepped in, and the Sooners improved some as they focused on a more run-based attack. The Sooners finished 6-6 in the regular season.
Arbuckle knows how to get something out of a quarterback — he coached Cam Ward in 2023, and they teamed up to help the Cougars rank fourth nationally in passing offense. Ward is now a Heisman contender at Miami.
Before his stint at Washington State, Arbuckle was co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Western Kentucky in 2022. He was the primary play-caller his first year as a full-time coach, and he helped the Hilltoppers finish second nationally in yards passing per game and seventh in total offense.
“Ben is an extremely passionate and innovative coach who does a great job of finding ways to maximize his personnel,” Oklahoma coach Brent Venables said in a statement. “He has developed dynamic quarterbacks in his young coaching career and sees the QB game through a unique perspective and lens, as he played the position himself.”
Arbuckle is excited about his opportunity.
“We’re going to run an attacking-style offense,” he said. “I want to take the fight to the defense. I want to put our guys in position to be successful at all times and ultimately go out there and be explosive … I’m excited to get to Norman and get to work.”
Oklahoma had great success with a previous young offensive coordinator. Bob Stoops hired 31-year-old Lincoln Riley in 2015 to revive the Sooners offense. After two dynamic seasons, Riley became the head coach. On his watch, Baker Mayfield and Kyler Murray won Heisman Trophies and were No. 1 overall picks in the NFL draft.
___
Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football