West of Everest: An Oklahoma Football Podcast

Ep. 74 - Texas Sucks, But That Doesn’t Mean Anything in This Game

In the opening take, Grant sets the stage for one of the bigger OU-Texas games in recent memory. Then Lee joins to talk about Grant's cat he named "Baker Meowfield". Looking back at last year’s game where OU dominated most of the first half and also what’s the deal with Baylor’s Matt Rhule (9:15)? Breaking down OU’s defense vs. Texas’ offense (16:00) and Grant is concerned about the Sooners’ run defense (25:00). This is the best defense OU’s offense will have seen so far this year (34:20). Should we be worried about Kyler Murray in this game? Plus who’s going to step up at RB after Trey Sermon (40:10)? OU’s got some injuries concerns (42:45). The guys talk about what they want to see happen Saturday (46:10) and give there predictions for the game (50:00). Finally the guys make their weekly picks against the spread (55:20). | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonNews9

Special Guest Ep. 1: Dean Blevins

KWTV/News 9 Sports Director Dean Blevins joins Lee to talk about Dean's history with OU-Texas as a player and a broadcaster, Kyler Murray's chances of actually returning to OU to play football in 2019, what to watch for in Saturday's game, and Baker Mayfield's first NFL start. | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonNews9

Ep. 73 - OU is 5-0. But How Excited Are You, Really?

In the opening take, Lee admits his current excitement level surrounding the OU football team is not as high as it could be. Then Grant joins to express his happiness over the Sooners' win over Baylor (4:50) and he helps Lee better understand why OU's defense is better than last year (8:30). The Sooners' D is not giving up as many big plays this year (14:30). OU's defense seems to make nice players look like great players (17:50). Is it actually a smart strategy for OU to continue this defensive philosophy into the heart of Big 12 play (25:30)? Once again tackling was a problem and it seems like every team falls forward to gain an extra yard or two against OU (29:30). Caleb Kelly had a hell of a game (37:20), it was good to have Marquise Overton back (40:45). Grant calls for Tre Brown to start -- and Lee complains about the secondary's antics (41:30). Army blew out Buffalo on Saturday, which shows Army is not a terrible team (44:40). Did Baylor sell out to take away the run game? It certainly seemed like it (46:50). OU's offense is the most explosive in the country -- but can the Sooners do this against a good defense (51:30)? Kyler Murray has been incredible so far this year and it's shocking how much success he's had (54:30). Lee Morris vs Grant Calcaterra (1:00:00), Kennedy Brooks was impressive (1:01:20). OU was missing significant players Saturday and their status for OU-Texas is concerning (1:05:45). | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonNews9

Ep. 72 - Will OU’s Defense Have the Last Laugh Saturday?

In the opening take, Grant's really let that OU-Army game get to his head and he's got no idea what kind of defense the Sooners will play this Saturday. Then Lee joins to push back against Grant's opening take (5:55). Looking back at the 2017 debacle in Waco where OU's defense got lit up by a QB who's currently flipping burgers (10:15). Charlie Brewer looks like he's taken over the starting QB job for Baylor and his arm strength is not great - but he's got above average accuracy (15:35). Baylor's got some talented skill players -- but man, the Bears struggle to run the football (19:30). Lee tells you exactly how OU can limit Baylor's offense this Saturday -- which means we probably won't see the Sooners do any of it (26:10). Grant reminds us that Mike Stoops' didn't have a bad game plan against Iowa State (32:05) and Lee makes sure everybody knows that Duke has once again given OU a blue print on how to limit an opposing team (33:50) because the Blue Devils dominated Baylor a couple of weeks ago (36:30). OU's offense shoudln't have problems moving the ball against Baylor's defense (40:00). The guys explain what they *want to see* from the Sooners against the Bears (43:20). OU-Baylor game predictions plus we pick a winner against the spread (48:20). Chatting briefly about the Big 12 games this week (52:15) including Lee's super homer take on the Texas-TCU game (55:30). Grant wonders if OU could be caught looking ahead to Texas (58:30)? We've got a ground breaking first in "Cross 'em off" (1:00:30). Finally the guys make their weekly picks ATS, and Grant likes a decent amount of games this weekend (1:06:20). | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonNews9

Ep. 71 - Seriously, This OU Defense is Super Frustrating

In the opening take, Lee tells you what he was thinking the second Parnell Motley intercepted that final pass in overtime. Then Grant joins to talk about that weird game against Army where the Sooners clearly showed that they weren't prepared to defend the triple option (3:00). Lee explains why OU could not get Army's offense off the field (9:10). Grant thinks OU went into this game just trying to "get by" and that's really frustrating (13:15). Lee doesn't think OU's players truly understood their assignments for defending the option, and Grant makes it clear that OU should have been more aggressive defensively (16:15). At one point it seemed like the Sooners had figured out how to stop Army -- and then they didn't (27:00). Mike Stoops certainly deserves criticism over this one -- and you could tell after the game he's expecting it (31:15). Could the Sooners' offense have made things easier for the OU defense (38:30)? Lee is beginning to have concerns about the running back group, while Grant is not worried about the offense at all (41:20). Lee's got some quick nitpicks on Kyler Murray's performance (47:05) and should we have concerns with the offensive line (49:00)? Grant lets Austin Seibert off the hook for missing that potential game-winning field goal (52:40). Listeners from Facebook provide their biggest takeaways from Saturday's game (58:20). | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonNews9

Ep. 70 - Lee’s Got Something to Say

In the opening take, Grant puts into perspective the superb start by Kyler Murray. Then Lee joins to explain his strategy to covering OU football while also providing honest content to the listeners (7:45). Lee looks back at a pair of plays from the Iowa State game that he got wrong -- and also correct (17:15). Army and OU haven't played since the 60's and the last time the two teams played the Sooners used a revolutionary trick play to win the game (20:10). Getting into Army's option offense going against OU's defense (26:20). There's not much to say about OU's offense against Army's defense. The Sooners should be able to move the ball at will (38:40). The guys explain what they want to see from OU in this game with Army (44:45) and then make some predictions (48:10). Shifting to the biggest Big 12 games of the week. Is Kansas State bad, and what the heck do we make of TCU-Texas (51:30)? Time to "Cross 'em Off" as Grant and Lee eliminate a few teams from National Championship contention (1:01:40). Finally, the guys complain about their horrible gambling Week 3 and pick Week 4 games against the spread (1:08:00). | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonNews9

Ep. 69 - OU’s Defense Has Us Questioning Everything. Again.

In the opening take, Lee takes issue with a bizarre comment from Joel Klatt and recommends that people stop living in the moment so much. Then Grant joins to give the people what they want, which is a discussion about OU's defensive shortcomings against Iowa State on Saturday. Should we be thinking "here we go again" (8:20)? After a lot of negative stuff, Grant brings some perspective and adds positive spin to the defense (21:00). A particular play in the 3rd quarter really annoyed Lee because it was a blown coverage on what should have been a very simple read (27:25). Grant is not happy about drive extending penalties (33:00) and the guys give their weekly Bookie update (35:45). Things start to perk up when the guys switch to the offense. Kyler Murray played his best game as a college quarterback (38:15) and Lee goes over a handful of fantastic throws Kyler made during the contest (42:40). Grant really thinks the Sooners missed Rodney Anderson on Saturday (46:25). Austin Seibert had a great game -- but Grant really hates field goals. And Grant calls Lee out for his thoughts on RBs (50:10). "Film Time w/Lee" breaks down Murray's long 75-yard TD pass to Marquise Brown (56:40). Carson Meier makes his first career catch (1:01:50), everybody hated Grant Calcaterra's fumble (1:03:00), and the guys briefly touch on the weekend of college football (1:04:20). | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonNews9

Ep. 68 - Sizing Up the Cyclones

In the opening take, Grant says Rodney Anderson's injury devastates the Sooners' chances of a winning a national championship. Then Lee joins to explain that he's taking a wait and see approach to the severity of the loss of Anderson (7:45). For the third straight game in a row OU doesn't know which QB they'll be facing, which guy would you rather face (20:45)? The Cyclones' offense was atrocious last Saturday against Iowa, but does that mean ISU is not capable on offensively (26:15)? OU needs to tackle David Montgomery -- and the guys provide other ways ISU could present problems for the Sooner defense (37:30) before explaining how OU's defense should attack the Cyclones (39:40). What's the deal with Iowa State's defense being really good (42:00)? Baker Mayfield handled the unique ISU defense well in 2017. Does Kyler Murray have the patience and discipline to make plays against the Cyclones (49:00)? Besides an OU win, what do the guys *want* to see happen against ISU(54:50)? The guys tell us what *will* happen Saturday along with their predictions for the game (59:35). A listener question from Facebook asks what makes this OU defense different from others in the past (1:04:00)? Another listener wants to know if OU's offensive line should be concerned about ISU's DL (1:10:30)? The final listener question wants to know about the continuing battle between Creed Humphrey and Jonathan Alvarez (1:12:30)? The guys touch on the interesting Big 12 games upcoming and Lee wants to talk about how everything seems to be going well for Texas A&M (1:14:15). Grant destroys one team's National Title hopes as the guys "Cross 'Em Off" (1:20:55). Finally, the guys pick 5 of the biggest games of the week against the spread (1:24:45). | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonNews9

Ep. 67 - Boat Racing the Bruins Feels Bittersweet

In the opening take, Lee has high praise for OU's wide receiving duo -- and disdain for Sports Illustrated. Then, Grant joins to discuss the ramifications of the Rodney Anderson injury (4:55). Despite scoring 49 points on Saturday, didn't the OU offense look a little off against UCLA (15:00)? Lee thinks you could really sense the absence of Baker Mayfield on Saturday and Kyler Murray was off at times (18:00). At the same time, Kyler made some plays that only a high level QB could make (22:30). Grant wants to give credit to a few UCLA defenders that stood out to him (26:30). It's clear that CeeDee Lamb and Marquise Brown are the best WR duo in college football (29:15). OU's defense was very good against UCLA -- outside of one huge play (33:20). Mike Stoops called another really good game on Saturday (36:30). Bookie didn't jump off the screen as much as FAU, but he still played well (41:25). Lee loved one Curtis Bolton sack in particular because of the design of the defense (44:10). Kenneth Murray took a huge step forward Saturday (47:10). Hello special teams (49:45)! Grant has noticed the Sooners have had devastating injuries on a consistent basis, plus more special teams talk (51:00). | Email the show: westofeverest@gmail.com | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonNews9

Ep. 66 - It’s Tough to Find Nice Stuff About UCLA

In the opening take, Grant provides his full mea culpa in regards to his OU-FAU prediction. Then Lee joins to briefly discuss the transfer of Addison Gumbs (4:45). The guys hold off on OU talk for about 10 minutes while they discuss the most surprising/least surprising things they saw in Week 1 of the college football season (6:50). We watched UCLA-Cincinnati from last Saturday, and Chip Kelly's UCLA offense looked nothing like Chip Kelly's Oregon offenses from years ago. Plus, the Bruins' offensive line looks pretty bad (16:05). Where's the up-tempo Chip Kelly offense we're used to seeing (20:35)? Does it matter who starts at QB for UCLA (26:10)? UCLA's defense looks improved from last year, but we're not sure that means the Bruins will be able to slow down OU (33:05). The guys state what they *want* to see happen on Saturday (40:00) and also what *will* happen (44:00). A listener wants to know if there's a downside to OU blowing out a lot of teams early in the season (45:10)? Running through the Big 12 games to watch this week (51:05). The guys introduce a new segment called "Cross 'em Off" (55:45). Checking in on some other games worth paying attention to this weekend (1:01:10) before we make our picks against the spread (1:09:00). | Email the show: westofeverest@gmail.com | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonNews9