Brent Venables 'loved the aggressiveness' from Zac Alley's defense in OU football debut

NORMAN — The Zac Alley era for OU football 's defense got off to a rousing start Friday night.

Alley's unit forced six turnovers — its most since 2003 vs. Texas — and had six sacks as Temple managed just 197 yards of total offense in the Sooners' 51-3 win over the Owls at Gaylord Family — Oklahoma Memorial Stadium .

Four of OU's forced turnovers came on fumble recoveries while Kani Walker and Jaydan Hardy added interceptions as the 33 of the Sooners ' points came off turnovers.

"It was great," Sooners coach Brent Venables said of Alley. "Things went like we hoped it would go. I just loved the aggressiveness."

After the game, Alley was presented with a game ball and then Alley spoke publicly for the first time since he was hired in January.

Here are some quick takeaways from Alley's postgame press conference:

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Zac Alley 'proud' of his defense

Alley said he was pleased with the first-game performance of his group.

"Just proud of them," Alley said. "A lot of work goes into this first game. You hit each other for either months ... just the effort that it takes to win a game.

"More than anything, I think we played a game (we could be proud of)," Alley said. "We did a really good job of attacking the ball."

Alley was hoisted up into the locker room after the game.

"They got me up there. I thought I was going to get flipped on my head halfway through," Alley said. "I've never crowdsurfed so that was the first time."

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Zac Alley thrilled to be back with Brent Venables

Alley remembers the first time he met Brent Venables.

Shortly after Venables' arrival at Clemson in 2012, Alley walted into Venables' office to introduce himself.

"He probably thought I was a player," Alley said.

But Alley was a student assistant eager to learn the craft and said he offered to do whatever Venables needed, even if the task was arranging chairs in the meeting room.

The pair quickly developed a strong bond, with Alley first working as a student assistant and then a graduate assistant under Venables until Alley was hired to coach inside linebackers at Boise State in 2019.

Alley said it didn't take him long to settle back in to working with Venables.

"Feels like home," Alley said. "He's like my second dad. ... I love him to death and so appreciative of him."

Alley was happy to get the call from Venables asking if he was interested in the defensive coordinator job.

"It was awesome," Alley said. "Obviously it was kind of a dream-come-true kind of idea."

It wasn't just Venables who Alley was familiar with. He's worked with Todd Bates and Miguel Chavis there as well.

That familiarity helped make the transition much easier.

"We speak the same language fast," Alley said. "I know how they operate on game day."

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'Always want to play defense first'

The Sooners lost the coin toss and Temple elected to receive, putting Alley's unit on the field for the first drive.

Two incompletions and a 2-yard run later, the Owls were punting.

"I always want to play defense first," Alley said. "Let's go out there."

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Zac Alley quickly develops strong bonds

While Alley hadn't spoken publicly, plenty of his new players had, with a high percentage of them highlighting his energy and his ability to relate to his players.

"I grew up in the social media era," Alley said. "I had online classes, so similar to the way they experience things throughout their careers. ... It creates a natural bond and understanding."

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Zac Alley clicks with Danny Stutsman

Alley had high praise for linebacker Danny Stutsman, who led the Sooners with six tackles.

"Oh man, I love Danny," Alley said. "He's so funny. Brings a great light-hearted spirit to the room. ... Keeps it light then you get on the field and he's just an absolute alpha."

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Brent Venables 'loved the aggressiveness' from Zac Alley's defense in OU football debut