*inhales sharply*
Yes, I’ve seen the report, as have many of you, that states a deal is done with Ben Arbuckle. I am also more than aware of the Twitter tiff that’s currently taking place. I’m not here to comment on the individual that put out that report, or his credibility. What I will say is that the decision to put out a report of that ilk is irresponsible. And that’s not necessarily because I think he has the wrong guy. Do I think Arbuckle is the eventual hire? Yeah, I’d say so. As we ourselves have reported, the majority of the signs have been pointing in that direction for several days now. If you made me put money on it, I would put money on Arbuckle. But let me take you back to what Brent Venables said in his press conference Tuesday…
“We’ve talked to several people, and we feel like we’re in a good position where we need to be… There’s a lot of layers to it as you can imagine. Very sensitive to what we’re trying to do here to finish out the year, give ourselves a chance to win our last two regular season games and continue to get better. And you know, there’s gotta be a sense of urgency… But there is a real thing called a regular season that’s got to finish up, and if I’m talking to the right people, which I believe I am, then they’re going to be sensitive to finishing what they started and being loyal to their players and the people that they work alongside with, things of that nature. But sooner rather than later is when I want it finished. I want to get it right.”
There is a reason why no credible news has ever been broken prior to Thanksgiving about a sitting coach leaving for another job. It’s because 1) there’s no reason to finalize anything that soon, even if both parties ARE on the same page, and 2) the programs and coaches in question have a task at hand that takes priority. Regardless of where Ben Arbuckle will be employed come Christmastime, he is currently the offensive coordinator at Washington State University.
That report — though it may not have come from someone with a traditional affiliation — is something that does a major disservice to the staff, administration and athletes of both OU and Washington State. It’s something that actively detracts from the focus of both teams and will hang over Arbuckle’s head, as well as the heads of many others, for the next week. If any deal
were done in principle, here’s how this would go (and how things like this have always gone). Any reporters that have sources closely involved with the process — and yes, I’m one of them, but Lord knows I’m not the only one — would be given an embargo by those sources. That basically means, “Hey, yeah, this is done. But you can’t report it publicly until [insert time here].” As of yet, I haven’t been given that type of embargo — nor, it would seem, have other tremendous reporters that I know.
No formal offers have been made for the OC vacancy, no contracts have been sent or signed, and anyone speaking in certainties right now is doing little more than brashly speculating. We'll see what the next week brings. If a deal HAD been struck and finalized (and to be clear, it hasn’t), what are the odds that anyone with knowledge of the situation would leak it to someone with an outlet? Anyone with an iota of respect for Arbuckle — and the successful and
ongoing campaign his Washington State team is enjoying — would keep the news under wraps until the conclusion of the regular season. Putting out a report that Arbuckle is Oklahoma’s next offensive coordinator serves no purpose other than to provide a receipt over which the outlet in question can pound its chest if/when the likely hire is made.
I disagree strongly with that outlet’s method of reporting. It is one thing to tell subscribers on a Discord server that you expect Arbuckle to be the next OC. That’s fine. It’s another thing entirely to blast it out on Twitter, treat it as if it’s a foregone conclusion and create a substantial distraction for both programs involved as they try to finish out their respective seasons. I would have thought the Skip Johnson debacle would have spelled the end of that particular methodology. Alas.
As for the state of the search itself…
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