West of Everest: An Oklahoma Football Podcast

Ep. 134 - We Love This Trejan Bridges Defense Story

In the opening take, Grant explains why the Sooners shouldn't be all that concerned with Texas Tech. Then Lee joins to make a pitch to grow the show (3:35) before the guys jump right into the news that Trejan Bridges has been working out with the secondary. We hear from Alex Grinch and Patrick Fields, plus share an updated quote from Lincoln Riley (6:30). Kenneth Mann will be back this Saturday(24:45). Lee wasn't impressed with what he saw from Alan Bowman against Arizona. Will whoever plays QB for Tech this Saturday even be a downgrade (27:00)? Texas Tech's offense made Arizona's poor defense look above average a couple of weeks ago (32:45). Parnell Motley vs. TJ Vasher could be interesting. Outside of Vasher, it doesn't seem like Tech has many notable offensive weapons (39:40). Tech's defense has some pretty good numbers early on -- but is this defense actually as good as the stats suggest (42:35)? The guys say what they *want* (50:00) to see happen when OU plays Tech followed by what *will* (56:20) happen in the game Saturday. We answer some Facebook questions about LSU's high-scoring win over Vanderbilt, D'eriq King's bizarre situation at Houston, and UCLA's crazy win over Wazzu (59:10). TCU may not be very good and we have no idea what's going to happen in this Iowa State-Baylor game this weekend (1:14:10). We finish up by picking Virginia-Notre Dame, USC-Washington, Kansas State-OSU, Ohio State-Nebraska, and Washington State-Utah (1:16:30). | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonNews9

Ep. 133 - Is OU’s Defense Actually the Same as Last Year?

In the opening take, Lee provides some shocking numbers that may make you rethink what you've seen so far from OU's defense. Then Grant joins to debate whether or not what we've seen from the Sooners' defense has been a mirage (4:45). Lee got a chance to ask Alex Grinch about OU's cornerbacks playing almost every single play up near the line of scrimmage so far this season (12:30). As for the safety position, Lee talked with Patrick Fields a bit Monday. You could tell Fields was disappointed with some plays vs UCLA and he'll use the film to get better (18:25). Depth at the safety positions needs to continue to develop. We also wonder what's happened to Robert Barnes (22:50)? Alex Grinch is a "TFL freak" (29:20). We've got a TJ Pledger injury update and Grant thinks it's pretty clear Marcus Major is a player they're looking to redshirt (30:35). Lee asked Lincoln Riley about what he's seen from the H-Back position (32:55). Upon review, yes the offensive line did well against UCLA (35:15). OU hasn't really played anybody yet this year -- at least according to a couple of strength of schedule rankings that are out there. Is this a concern (37:55)? The guys play a haphazard game where Lee gives his take on a team, and Grant tells him if he's right or wrong. We're not sure if it's good or not (43:30). Finally we make picks on Utah-USC, Michigan-Wisconsin, Auburn-A&M, OSU-Texas, and Notre Dame-Georgia (59:40). | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonNews9

Ep. 132 - Hurts Fantastic, Defense Better Than Expected in Win

In the opening take, Grant tells us why Saturday's win over UCLA was the Sooners' best game of the year. Then Lee joins to hear Grant gloat about his college football gambling picks from this weekend (5:50). We toss it over to Lincoln Riley to give us his thoughts on OU's win plus we compare Jalen Hurts and Sam Ehlinger when it comes to running the ball (8:00). Did that game play out the way we thought it would for the Oklahoma defense (13:20)? OU's defensive front had a great game and we're obviously pumped for Jalen Redmond's progression (18:20). Alex Grinch is showing us that he has confidence in a lot of players and we're seeing signs that OU's depth in the first two levels of the defense is much better than we originally thought(23:00). Moving to the secondary where the depth doesn't look as strong -- outside of cornerback. Covering the TE proved to be difficult for the Sooners and it wasn't a good look for the safeties (29:05). Tre Brown gets his first career INT and the defense forces two more turnovers (35:35). We've got to talk about the UCLA chunk plays that were horrific callbacks to the Texas game at the Cotton Bowl last year (38:10). Lincoln Riley was pleased with the play of the offensive line -- and so were we (42:10). Lee says Saturday was Jalen Hurts' best game as a Sooner, and there was one particular play that showed he's developing as a QB and getting more and more comfortable in this offense (47:00). For the first time this year, Lee brings back "Film Time w/Lee" to break down CeeDee Lamb's touchdown catch (51:10). Time to touch on the running backs and the rest of the talented wide receivers (56:35). We finish up with "3-Word Reviews" as we mix in some random Big 12 talk as well. It's good stuff (59:35). | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonNews9

Ep. 131 - Sorry, We Don’t Trust This OU Defense Yet

In the opening take, Lee looks back at the past in order to set the stage for Saturday's contest at UCLA. Then Grant joins as we both become concerned that football season is already coming to an end (4:00). We've got some Kenneth Mann and Marquis Hayes injury updates and what they mean for this week (5:45). Lee was in Norman Tuesday to see Bill Bedenbaugh say some harsh words about the state of the Sooners' offensive line (10:00). We begin previewing UCLA by highlighting the Bruins' ineptitude on offense. I mean, they're really bad (17:30). There's an awkward transition because of technical difficulties, but we get back to talking about UCLA's horrible offense beginning with what's up with Chip Kelly (20:10)? Here's what to expect from UCLA quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson (31:15). Is South Dakota's offensive line better than UCLA (36:10)? UCLA has its starting RB in the lineup again, plus the Bruins have one random guy that scares Grant (38:30). Alex Grinch and Chip Kelly have a history (42:00). We try to go quick on OU's offense against UCLA's defense (43:25). We finish up the UCLA talk by saying what we *want* to see happen Saturday (49:00) followed by what *will happen* (53:25). Time to talk about Texas-LSU as Grant provides his Joe Burrow mea culpa and we try to figure out if Texas' defense is any good (58:00)? TCU at Purdue this week is somewhat intriguing (1:06:20). Grant tries to give away free money in the West Virginia-NC State game (1:08:30). We finish the show by picking Houston-Washington State, KSU-Miss State, Alabama-South Carolina, Iowa-Iowa State, and Stanford-UCF (1:09:15). | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonNews9

Ep. 130 - Young Sooners Shine in Rout of South Dakota

In the opening take, Grant explains why he was underwhelmed by OU's performance Saturday night against South Dakota. Then Lee joins to quickly point out which offensive player stood out most in the win (5:00)? Is Jalen Hurts a robot sent from the future to win the Sooners a national championship (6:40)? Lincoln Riley gives his thoughts on Hurts' Saturday performance and Lee saw a play that provides further evidence that Hurts still has a lot of room to grow as a passer (8:50). Marquis Hays was out Saturday, which meant RJ Proctor started at LG and Erik Swenson started at LT. Grant is pretty worried about the left side of the OL (17:00). What about all those penalties (18:50)? We talk about CeeDee Lamb and what the other talented skill position players showed us vs South Dakota (19:45). Lee thinks is clear Spencer Rattler is a better player than Tanner Mordecai, although both QBs played well Saturday (24:00). Alex Grinch was supremely pleased to see some turnovers against South Dakota (28:00). Brendan Radley-Hiles got the first takeaway of the year for OU (31:45). Lee pushes back on Grant's contention that OU's defense took a step back Saturday night -- although Lee did see one thing from the secondary that may become an issue this year (35:50). Are turnovers lucky? Alex Grinch doesn't think so, but Grant thinks fumbles are totally luck based (43:20). Where was Kenneth Murray (47:35)? Grant acknowledges that OU's defense mostly played well, but he's been burned way too many times to give the defense the benefit of the doubt right now (49:55) and we make sure to mention Jaden Davis' nice game as we head out the door (50:50). | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonNews9

Ep. 129 - Let’s Be Real. We All Want a Shutout, Right?

In the opening take, upon watching back the OU-Houston game a couple more times Lee came across a promising development in the Sooners' secondary. Then Grant joins to provide our initial thoughts on the fact that OU plays a FCS school this week (5:30). Dillon Faamatau and Kenneth Mann are close to returning as Lincoln Riley gives us an injury update. What happens with Marcus Stripling when Mann comes back (15:45)? We found out that RJ Proctor and Erik Swenson are still battling for the full time starting LT job (18:30). Jalen Hurts says OU "left some money on the table" against Houston and Grant goes in on college kickers yet again (21:40). In a game where OU will likely run away and hide, we're both looking forward to seeing Spencer Rattler play this week (26:40). Grant presents a scenario that may lead to the entire state of Oklahoma exploding out of excitement (29:00). Lincoln Riley said some interesting stuff about penalties this week which leads to a discussion over which position group has had the most stupid penalties of late (33:05). Alex Grinch gives us a defensive update, Grant still hates garbage time points, and Lee goes into more details about what he saw from the OU secondary against Houston (38:30). Lee breaks down two plays late in the game that showcased OU's ability to rush the passer, and the DB's ability to play press man(45:40). The guys say what they *want* to see happen Saturday (49:45) and then what *will* happen against South Dakota (54:35). A quick overview of what's going on in the Big 12 this week (58:10) followed by some quick Week 2 picks of Cincinnati-Ohio State, Army-Michigan, Texas A&M-Clemson, Stanford-USC, and Texas-LSU (1:01:00). Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonNews9

Ep. 128 - Hurts Shines, ”Speed D” Shows Promise as OU Tops Houston

In the opening take, Grant provides his quick thoughts on what he saw Sunday night. Then Lee joins to wonder aloud if we're all jaded by Oklahoma quarterback play (5:35)? OU's defense had a perfect start to the game and we let Kenneth Murray give his overall thoughts on how his guys played (11:15). Alex Grinch played a bunch of guys Sunday night and we briefly talk about Bookie's performance (15:10). Let's talk about the defensive line rotation, their play, and the lack of pre-snap movement (20:20). Ronnie Perkins was fantastic (25:40), as was Kenneth Murray (28:40). A listener wants to know the guys' thoughts on how Pat Fields and DTY played, which leads to a way too long discussion about pass interference penalties (34:40). Lee doesn't think we learned a lot about the secondary's ability to cover, while Grant disagrees (39:25). Is OU's defense going to look more like the first half version moving forward, or the 2nd half version (43:30)? OU didn't force any turnovers and Alex Grinch was devastated by that, plus we rate the defense's performance on a scale of 1-10 (46:15). It looked like OU spied D'Eriq King at times, but then chose not to spy him at other times (52:20). Would the front seven have played better against a less elusive QB (56:25)? Compared to last season, shouldn't we all be ecstatic about the way the defense played vs Houston? Plus we talk about depth, who played, who didn't play, and random players and plays that stood out to us in the game (58:00). Over to the offense where the guys argue over all three of Jalen Hurts' incompletions. This is why you listen to this show (1:08:00). Lee's worried that Hurts will get hurt because he's going to be running a bunch all season (1:13:05). A listener thought Hurts may not have gone through his progressions enough Sunday night (1:15:30). The offensive line looked good, and Grant has a random conspiracy theory surrounding Erik Swenson (1:20:05). Only three running backs dressed for OU, which ended up being okay because Sermon, Brooks, and Stevenson all looked good (1:22:20). 10 different players caught a pass from Jalen Hurts as we go over the wide receiver play (1:26:40). Lincoln Riley took responsibility for OU's first missed FG and Grant pleads Riley to never use kickers ever again (1:28:55). It was just another ho hum dominant offensive performance by OU (1:31:10). We finish up the offense talk with a soundbite from what seemed to be an annoyed Jalen Hurts (1:33:40). The rest of the podcast is the guys talking OSU, Texas, Oregon-Auburn, the terrible SEC East, FSU blowing it, and a hilarious story about Hugh Freeze that Lee had no idea about (1:37:00). Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonNews9

Ep. 127 - Confidence is High as Grinch Has Us Pumped for Week 1

In the opening take, Lee takes you on a trip down memory lane now that football is finally back. Then Grant joins to briefly discuss how there wasn't a depth chart at OU's Monday press conference (7:15). Lincoln Riley made sure to remind people that everybody will overreact to whatever they see Sunday night (10:00). Is Houston a true threat to OU, or are we getting ready to watch another game similar to OU-FAU from 2018 (11:50)? Houston returns almost everybody on offense including D'Eriq King who's pretty awesome and a bunch of talented WRs (17:15). Did you know Houston has a RB who used to play for Texas (23:40)? Houston's offensive line has some experience back, but there's an obvious weakness (26:00). Chanse Sylvie says OU's defense is super confident heading into Sunday (28:35). Patrick Fields said something about a screen pass Monday that Lee really enjoyed (33:55). How many turnovers does Alex Grinch expect per game? Well, listen to this impressive piece of audio (35:50). We've got your weekly Jalen Redmond update and it keeps sounding better and better (40:05). Lee asked Alex Grinch if he sets goals for Game 1 even though he hasn't seen his team play an opponent yet and it led to a pretty sweet response (44:55). Jaquayln Crawford is now playing cornerback which makes is think "wow, how good is this WR room?" (50:40). How should OU's offense attack Houston (54:15)? Riley says the RB depth is maybe the best its been since he's been at OU, plus the guys talk a little more about the WRs (1:01:00). It's time for each of us to say what we *want* to see happen Sunday (1:04:00) and then what *will* happen against Houston, which includes our final predictions (1:11:40). We talk a little OSU vs Oregon State and Texas-La Tech before chiding most of the Big 12 for playing FCS teams in Week 1 (1:17:10). Jeez, this is one of the worst Week 1 slates in years (1:23:05). Let's make picks for Week 1 which are sure to be wrong. Games include: Utah-BYU, Wisconsin-USF, Northwestern-Stanford, Boise State-FSU, and Oregon-Auburn (1:28:25). Before we go, Grant -- who's a Colts fan -- has some heartfelt comments about Andrew Luck's unexpected retirement and he also has some nuanced takes on the "fans booing" situation that you probably haven't heard from "blue checkmark Twitter sports journalists" (1:40:30). Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonNews9

Ep. 126 - Rejoice! The 2019 Big Season Preview is Here

In the opening take, Grant essentially crosses off two teams from the list of 2019 contenders. Then Lee joins and makes the mistake of asking Grant about the Miami-Florida game (3:45). We begin with predicting who will be the 3rd running back behind Kennedy Brooks and Trey Sermon -- even though Grant didn't understand the question (7:15). We both think CeeDee Lamb is going to be the top WR, so we predict which true freshman pass catcher will have the most impact (10:55)? Grant takes a flyer on who's going to lead the Sooners in tackles this season (15:05). Who's going to have the most sacks in 2019 (19:45)? Back to the offense selecting the most important player besides Jalen Hurts, plus Bill Bedenbaugh had an Erik Swenson update last week (22:00). We each choose a pass catcher for our sleeper impact player on offense (26:50). The guys go to the defensive line for their sleeper impact players on defense (29:15). Which true freshman will have the most impact on offense (33:00)? Grant goes to the secondary and Lee chooses a linemen for true freshman defensive impact player (37:15). It's actually difficult to determine a "trap game" for the Sooners and the guys each have different selections (40:40). Let's get creative as we describe OU's worst case scenario (48:00) and best case scenario for the 2019 season (53:40). Time to predict the Sooners' final regular season record (59:00). Switching to Big 12 topics. Which team is underrated heading into the season (1:00:45)? Lee picks the same overrated Big 12 team that he picked last year at this time, while Grant goes with a crowd pleaser (1:03:00). Grant's got a somewhat bold Big 12 Championship Game prediction (1:07:00). Grant takes over hosting the pod as we move to the national scene. The guys bring up some interesting schools when talking about overrated teams (1:07:50). Grant's got a Big Ten team as his most underrated team (1:14:30). The guys agree on the Heisman winner, although they throw out almost every QB in the nation with a pulse and do our best to throw cold water on Justin Herbert (1:18:40). Let's pick each Power 5 conference champion (1:25:45). Lee's Playoff picks are boring, while Grant takes a big swing with one of his four teams (1:30:10). It's time to pick a national champion and you know who we're going to take (1:34:00). Finishing off with some preseason storyline that we may or may not agree with (1:35:55) and picking between Fowler/Herbstreit or Johnson/Klatt broadcast teams (1:37:40). Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonNews9

Ep. 125 - Hurts is QB1, But The Defense is More Interesting

In the opening take, Lee believes Baker Mayfield is one of the most authentic athletes in the world right now and Mayfield was just staying on brand in the recent GQ article. Those that are new to the show will enjoy this announcement (7:10). Then Grant joins to talk about one year of being married and that time he recorded a podcast from Greece (7:45). Jalen Hurts is your starting QB for Week 1 and we make quick predictions on how many touchdowns he'll account for in 2019 (9:00). Tanner Mordecai is the backup, although Lee thinks Spencer Rattler will eventually be the true backup for the Sooners (11:45). Lee's seen the first episode of that "Netflix" QB1 show that features Spencer Rattler. Grant hasn't seen it at all (18:45). We can't wait for the books that come out 20 years from now about Baker Mayfield and Kyler Murray being in the same QB room together (20:05). "TFB" has reported some negative news about Erik Swenson (22:00). It looks like Jalen Redmond is going to play defensive line, at least according to what Dusty Dvoracek has seen (25:15). Perhaps the biggest news to come out of Tuesday's media availability is that Redmond is a full go and is taking contact in practice (29:25). Alex Grinch said a lot of positive things about LaRon Stokes Tuesday. Is this guy gonna be good or what (39:00)? Grant wants to know about Marcus Stripling and Nik Bonitto, which leads to what Grinch said recently about the rush linebackers (42:45). Lee is getting the sense that there's not much confidence in the linebackers group (45:50). Reading between the lines, it looks like Chanse Sylvie has emerged as the favorite to play Nickel (48:30). The newest member of the Sooners' secondary is on scout team right now (51:20). Let's talk about Kyler Murray's poor preseason Game No. 2 and all those ridiculous false start penalties (53:15). Baker Mayfield clarified his GQ magazine quotes on Instagram (1:02:20). Lee's happy that Mayfield went public about being forced to apologize for the Ohio State flag plant (1:04:00). Grant's getting worried about the Browns (1:08:10). Lee goes in on Hue Jackson for the millionith time (1:10:25). Grant once again reminds us that he doesn't care about what happens in NFL preseason football (1:12:30). Florida plays Miami this Saturday and Grant gives us some reasons to watch (1:14:40). We finish up by plugging another podcast that college football fans will probably enjoy (1:18:15). Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonNews9