Brent Venables Takes Shot At Schools With Bad Spring Game Attendance As OU Celebrates Kyler Murray With A LOT Of Confetti

Oklahoma football's first year with Brent Venables did not go as the Sooners might have hoped. But that chapter is closed and the focus turns to 2023.

Fans got their first taste of what Year 2 might look like on Saturday and the program announced an attendance of 54,409, which is amongst the largest in the country. There is a buzz around Norman and what Oklahoma might be able to do this fall.

Before things got going on the field, a celebration was to be had just outside of Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. Kyler Murray, who won a Heisman Trophy with the Sooners, was honored with a new statue — and a lot of confetti.

Like, an absurd amount of confetti.

Bob Stoops, who recruited Murray to Oklahoma after a stint at Texas A&M, was among those to celebrate 2019's No. 1 overall draft pick. But it was the band in the back right that stole the show with their perfectly-timed photobomb.

To make things even more interesting, the Cardinals brass was also in attendance. Arizona's head coach, offensive coordinator and general manager were in Norman to not only celebrate Murray, but show their support for the franchise quarterback.

And then the game itself got underway with an unusual scoring format.

Venables took the opportunity to address the crowd —which accounted for the fourth-highest spring game attendance of any school this year — in the moments before kickoff. He took a direct shot at the programs "that don't matter" and cannot say the same.

From there, an unusual, high-scoring affair proceeded to unfold at Oklahoma.

166 points were scored between the offense and the defense, and the latter came out victorious.

To make it even better, it was a fan that made the difference. He not only made a field goal to win a full year of Chick-Fil-A, but scored two points for the defense— which won by two.

Spring games ultimately don't matter much in the grand scheme of things, but it's a taste of what's to come. For those in Norman on Saturday, it was also a chance to show appreciation for one of the school's all-time greats in Murray.