West of Everest: An Oklahoma Football Podcast

Ep. 151 - OU Wins Bedlam With True Complementary Football

In the opening take, Lee thinks Lincoln Riley's done a remarkable job over the past 10 quarters of OU football. Then Grant joins to briefly talk about his trip to Las Vegas (5:35). The guys jump right into their Bedlam reactions beginning in chronological order with the Sooners' opening drive of the game (7:10). OU converted a 3rd & 12 by completing a pass to a split out wide Rhamondre Stevenson (14:30). Parnell Motley straight up took the ball away from Dillon Stoner, and he was assisted by Brendan Radley-Hiles (16:45). OU's offense takes advantage of the Motley INT and goes down and makes it a 10 point game (21:25). It looked like Motley had another interception, but it was overturned after replay review. Grant was super mad (24:20). More good play from Bookie and will karma help OU's defense in the turnover department down the stretch (29:55)? Grant wanted OU to run the football pretty much on every single play in that game (34:35). RJ Proctor stood out Saturday night (36:25). Kenneth Murray made an underrated great play late in the 2nd quarter, followed up by a nice play by Ronnie Perkins (37:20). The 2nd half discussion begins and leads to another instance of OU's defense holding OSU to a FG in the red zone (40:00). After the Cowboys cut it to 4, the Sooners went on a long, time consuming drive that included a big 3rd down conversion by Jalen Hurts and was capped off by a Kennedy Brook TD run (44:30). Pat Fields, David Ugwoegbu, Kenneth Murray, and company were fantastic on a 4th & 3 stop (48:10). Tre Sterling is ejected for targeting. Lee thought it was tough, Grant thought it was an easy call (49:55). Grant really wanted OU to run the football more (53:05). OU displayed some phenomenal short yardage rush defense on two consecutive plays in the 4th quarter (56:10). Motley caps the game with another takeaway (58:20). It's annoying that OU wasn't able to punch in one final TD (59:15). Grant thinks OU's offense looks like something Wisconsin would run (1:01:10). Lincoln Riley talked about Mike Gundy's "wishbone" comments after the game (1:07:10). Let's recap who we all thought had good games in Bedlam (1:08:10). A listener may have predicted Jalen Hurts' TD rush/catch/throw game (1:09:35). We start on Facebook for your "3-word reviews" (1:12:00), and then move over to Twitter (1:15:15). Jalen Redmond wasn't availalbe for Bedlam and he's "questionable" for the Big 12 Championship (1:29:50). We finish up the show with Lee's surprising "Black Friday" story and Grant's experience at "ESPN's College Gameday" in Minneapolis (1:32:00). Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonNews9

Ep. 150 - Is Limiting Chuba the Key to a Bedlam Blowout?

In the opening take, Lee thinks the Playoff committee sent a message to OU with their latest rankings. Then Lee dives into the matchup between OU's offense vs OSU's defense (5:20). Is Mike Gundy right that OU's offense is a triple option team disguised as a spread team (21:10)? Grant has some thoughts on Grant Calcaterra retiring from football (24:50). What can you expect to see from Dru Brown (30:05)? Everybody knows Chuba Hubbard is awesome, so OU's probably going to need to limit him (32:05). With Tylan Wallace out, Dillon Stoner has become the main focal point of OSU's throwing game (35:40). Lee heard something from Alex Grinch this week that he really liked (39:00). Lee tells you what he wants to see happen Saturday (43:30). Lee tells you what will happen with the help of a something he heard on a recent podcast (48:40). Time to get Grant's thoughts on Bedlam (59:00). Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonNews9

Ep. 149 - Sooners Barely Beat TCU... And That’s Okay

In the opening take, Lee talks about his own "24 hour rule" when it comes to Oklahoma football. Grant's not in today, but he left some audio clips for Lee to play, so we begin with Grant's general thoughts on OU's close win over TCU and Lee reacts to Grant's audio (5:20). Lee looks to a particular series in the 1st half that provided evidence that Hurts is still limited in this offense (16:10). Grant was disappointed to see the passing game largely shut down and (22:45). Meanwhile, the Sooners ran the football really well, it was just annoying they couldn't pay off a lot of drives with points (29:25). What was Lincoln Riley's thought process on that 4th-and-1 late in the 4th quarter (33:10)? Is Jalen Hurts everybody's main concern about the offense (35:30)? It's not quite "Film Time w/Lee"... but Lee did see one play where it was clear Riley was trying to scheme up an easy throw for Hurts, and it was a beauty (36:35). Grant kicks off the defensive discussion (39:40) before Lee fills in the blanks by shouting out some great plays in the early portion of the game (42:20). Lee continues with the defense by going over some of the lows (Duggan's success running) and the highs (sudden change defense) as the game led up to Brendan Radley-Hiles' fateful interception. Plus Caleb Kelly is back (45:35)! Grant's got some updated thoughts on OU's playoff chances. Lee also gives his immediate reaction to what the Playoff Committee may be thinking this week (51:00). Grant provides his final thoughts before signing off for today (56:50). Lee's being too loud, so we're going to blow through "3-word reviews" to end the show (1:00:45). Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonNews9

Ep. 148 - Sooners Search For Statement Win Over TCU

In the opening take, Grant tells you why we're going to find out a lot about this OU team this Saturday against TCU. Then Lee joins to go over the news and notes of the week including CeeDee Lamb's status, the offensive line, and how the Patriots' 25-point come from behind Super Bowl victory is relevant (4:20). Lee was a bit irked by something Alex Grinch said Monday, plus Grinch all but confirms something that happened from the game (10:15). Lee asked Grinch if they practice playing with a "backs against the wall" mentality and we also got to speak with Delarrin Turner-Yell (19:25). Let's talk TCU's offense and it all begins with QB Max Duggan (27:00). The Frogs have a pair of solid running backs (29:55). Does Jalen Reagor wish he would have gone to OU instead (34:00)? OU gets a bit of a break because TCU's best cornerback will miss the first half Saturday (37:50). Grant doesn't think TCU's defense is as impressive as the Frogs have been in the past. Lee thinks TCU's defense looks pretty solid (40:15). Lee thinks OU could have some success using its RBs out of the backfield against TCU's defense (46:55) and both guys have seen that TCU's defense has had massive problems slowing the QB run game (49:50). Lee tells you all the things he wants to see happen Saturday (52:05) followed by what Grant wants to see in the game (55:35). Lee gives you a half-hearted game prediction (58:45) before Grant gives you a super positive prediction (1:00:20). Time for Grant to get super mad about the latest College Football Playoff rankings while Lee kind of shrugs his shoulders (1:01:30). We do a little Big 12 talk (1:23:10) before making our picks for the week (1:24:30). Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonNews9

Ep. 147 - The Greatest Comeback in School History

In the opening take, Lee tells you why Saturday's win over Baylor played out perfectly for OU. Then Grant joins to talk generally about that crazy game (3:30). Lincoln Riley talked about the locker room at halftime (6:05). Does Grant agree with Lee's opening take (10:10)? CeeDee Lamb didn't play. What's up with that (14:50)? Does Baylor have one of the best defenses in college football (18:20)? We're going to go in chronological order as we try to figure out what happened in the first half (21:15)? Let's get Jalen Hurts' postgame thoughts (33:35). We take a deep dive into the events of the 2nd half going over all the most important plays that led up to OU's biggest comeback in school history (35:55). We finish up with your "3-word reviews" (1:16:25). | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonNews9

Ep. 146 - Which Version of the Sooners Will Show in Waco? (Part 2)

(Part 2 of 2) Along with CeeDee Lamb, Chuba Hubbard is a prime candidate for Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year. And Mel Kiper doesn't seem too high on Hubbard (00:00). Let's make some picks beginning with Penn State-Indiana (3:20). Michigan and Michigan State face off in the battle of teams we picked to make the Playoff this year (5:45). Clemson is nearly a 5 touchdown favorite over Wake Forest (8:25). Aside from OU-Baylor, Georiga at Auburn is the biggest game of the week (11:25). Grant has some random CFP ranking thoughts before detailing what it was like to experience that Minnesota-Penn State game in person (14:15). Let's make a pick in this Minnesota-Iowa game (22:50). The latest College Football Playoff rankings are out. Grant is super annoyed, while Lee still doesn't see the point to get too worked up about these rankings just yet (28:50). | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonNews9

Ep. 146 - Which Version of the Sooners Will Show in Waco? (Part 1)

(Part 1 of 2) In the opening take, Grant puts his happy face on and gives you reasons why you shouldn't be worried about OU losing to Baylor this Saturday. Then, Grant joins to talk about losing Trey Sermon and Kenneth Mann for the rest of the season (6:05). Lincoln Riley didn't provide a clear update on Adrian Ealy's status for the Baylor game, although Grant thinks Riley may have given us some good news (11:40). Before we continue, Grant's annoyed with the narrative this week surrounding that close win against Iowa State (14:45). Could Grant Calcaterra be sitting out the rest of the season to get ready for the NFL (19:35)? Lincoln Riley was asked about fans leaving early, and Riley's response was perfect (23:20). It sounding more and more like we might see Caleb Kelly at some point this season (31:25). Baylor's offense is very solid statistically, but are the Bears as good on offense as the numbers suggest? Also, what do we make of Charlie Brewer's recent performances (33:10)? Denzel Mims is still around and is super scary, plus Lee's noticed that Baylor leans on its RBs in crunch time (40:50). Grant explains what he believes is OU's biggest advantage when Baylor has the ball (45:10). Could OU's defense be catching Baylor's offense at the right time (47:15)? We hope OU spies Brewer in big spots Saturday, plus the Bears could easily have three losses this year (49:30). Baylor's defense has been horrible in recent years, but now it might be the best defense in the Big 12. Why is that (52:00)? Grant wants OU to go after Baylor's new starting MLB Terrel Bernard (55:45). Lee asked Lincoln Riley what he's seen from this much improved Bears defense (57:15). Upon rewatching the ISU game Lee didn't find as many issues with Jalen Hurts' play as he thought he would (1:01:10). Lee's actually pretty optimistic about Hurts right now (1:04:25). Grant tells us what he *wants* to see happen Saturday when OU plays Baylor (1:05:55) followed by what Lee *wants* to see, which includes takeaway talk, Parnell Motley, and some more random Iowa State stuff (1:08:00). Lee provides his half-hearted prediction for OU-Baylor (1:14:10) followed by Grant's prediction (1:19:15). | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonNews9

Ep. 145 - Flaws Abound as OU Limps Away With a Win

In the opening take, Lee points out what we all already know about this OU football team... but at least there's a bright side to take into account. Then Grant joins to talk about that final 2-point conversion attempt that went in the Sooners' favor (3:20). OU's defense has regressed the past two games and it's our job to figure out why (8:05)? We're done making excuses for the lack of takeaways(10:50). Grant does have some good things to say about the defense, before getting back to the bad (15:40). That was easily the worst tackling of the season (17:00). The run defense was problematic again. Was it more Iowa State's game plan, or mostly on OU (20:05)? Yeah, OU's performance was not great. But man, Iowa State has a lot of weapons on offense (22:20). Grant hates all the penalties and Lee has a rant about the awareness of some of the guys on defense (28:35). Over to the offense where Grant's campaign to get CeeDee Lamb the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year is heating up (33:05). Kennedy Brooks was featured in the game and Lee asked Brooks about a funny moment during that long TD run he had (37:20). We both don't have good feelings about Trey Sermon, and is Rhamondre Stevenson okay (39:55)? Let's talk Jalen Hurts. Lee was impressed with his postgame press conference (44:30). We finish up the show with your "3-word reviews" (51:20). | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonNews9

Ep. 144 - Final K-State Thoughts And What to Make of Iowa State? (Part 2)

(Part 2 of 2) We're back ready to talk Iowa State as we begin with ISU's offense vs. OU's defense. We both really like Brock Purdy (0:00). The Cyclones found a running back in Breece Hall very recently (5:40). ISU's offense looks good on paper (7:35). What are we going to see from OU's defensive line after we saw K-State control the line of scrimmage more often than not? Plus more K-State talk because we bring up spying quarterbacks (10:20). After re-watching the K-State game, Lee is concerned about OU's secondary giving up free yards (13:10). Iowa State will be without one of their best defensive players on Saturday, and their best secondary player may not be at full strength (16:00). Lee doesn't think this Iowa State defense looks as good on tape as it's been the past couple of seasons (18:45). Grant says this needs to be a running back game. You must run the ball against this Cyclones' defense (21:20). How did Baylor have success against this ISU defense (24:00)? Grant tells us what he wants to see happen Saturday (29:50) before Lee tells us what he wants to see, which includes a bit of a challenge to Jalen Hurts (31:30). We're not confident enough to say what *will* happen Saturday, however we'll make some half-hearted predictions (37:15). The Big 12 has provided some really good matchups lately and Grant admits to being wrong about the conference (43:40). We aren't doing very well this season making picks against the spread, but we still want to talk about the biggest games of the week. So let's handicap Baylor-TCU (46:10). Grant's going to the Minnesota-Penn State game this weekend and he's got plenty of information that may or may not help you bet this game (49:15). Should Texas be laying 7 points to K-State (1:01:35)? Let's get this Iowa-Wisconsin pick over with quick (1:06:20). Finally, it's required that we talk about the upcoming Alabama-LSU game (1:07:25). | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonNews9

Ep. 144 - Final K-State Thoughts And What to Make of Iowa State? (Part 1)

(Part 1 of 2) In the opening take, Grant is still trying to figure out what OU's loss to K-State means for the rest of the season. Then Lee joins to talk about how we have no idea what's going to happen when the Sooners play Iowa State this Saturday (4:30). Does Jalen Hurts carry the ball too much? Lincoln Riley and Hurts certainly sounded annoyed with those questions this week (8:00). After another re-watch of the game, we explain why it's not a big deal that Kennedy Brooks and Trey Sermon combined for just 6 carries against K-State and Lee has the stats to back it up. That's right Lee breaks down every single pertinent Jalen Hurts carry (12:35). Lee thought he was going to be unimpressed with Jalen Hurts when he watched back the K-State game, but that wasn't the case (24:20). Lee got some information from an ESPN rules expert explaining what should have been called on that onside kick. We're betting you haven't heard this side of the onside kick story and let's just say this segment gets super heated (27:00). We've got an injury update on Grant Calcaterra and DTY -- and it's not much of an update. Plus Jordan Kelley and Caleb Kelly are both back at practice (39:10). We're recording this before the CFP rankings have come out (42:00). Kenneth Murray says there's a sense of urgency right now and they're doing something different in practice when it comes to takeaways. Plus, Lee asked Lincoln Riley if OU is forcing turnovers in practice (43:10)? | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonNews9