West of Everest: An Oklahoma Football Podcast

Fresh off a crazy Labor Day Weekend full of hot college football action, the Benson Bros are back to preview the biggest game of Brent Venables' tenure so far. But first, we talk about leftover thoughts from Illinois State, #FilmTimeWithLee is back, and what on earth is going on with Jaydn Ott and the OU backfield? Friends and countrymen, please lend us your ears.   Subscribe to the show on YouTube: @WestofEverest | Like show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter/X: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter/X: @LeeBensonTweets   (0:00) Intro: Lee Hates College Football History (7:40) #FilmTimeWithLee Makes Its Triumphant Return (20:55) Lee's Offensive Line Diatribe (39:42) Jaydn Ott is in a Great Headspace (52:00) OU Opponent Superlative (54:00) Oklahoma vs Michigan (1:32:00) National Landscape and Picks of the Week      

The guys discuss Oklahoma's 35-3 season opening win over Illinois State. John Mateer breaks Baker Mayfield's passing record in an OU debut, Keontez Lewis delights, and the RB room confounds, as the defense keeps the Redbirds at arms length. Plus, we read your "3 -Word Reviews." College Football is back. Let's rejoice.   Subscribe to the show on Youtube: @WestofEverest | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter/X: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter/X: @LeeBensonTweets

We're only 2 days away from the kickoff of the 2025 season and Lee & Grant are back - this time in crystal clear high definition! The guys begin with a football meat sandwich - nearly an hour of depth chart talk, followed by the inaugural voyage of the OU Opponent Superlative (suggestions on rebranding very encouraged), Lee being aggravated by the sheer amount of Illinois State info, and finish up with the Picks of the Week.   We're on YouTube now: @WestofEverest | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter/X: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter/X: @LeeBensonTweets   (0:00) Intro - Showbiz Baby! (3:40) The Initial Depth Chart of the 2025 Season - 'tsup with the RBs? (23:29) Pass Catchers - We Hope Jaren Kanak is Good (36:00) Offensive Line - Lots o' ORs (45:30) Less Controversy on the Defensive Side of the Ball (53:20) Arbuckle and Veny Meet the Media (1:08:00) OU Opponent Superlative - Illinois State: Lee is Not a Fan (1:11:28) Illinois State Preview - Lee Prefers to Know Nothing About His Kills (1:22:25) What We Want to See Happen - OU Offense vs Illinois State Defense (1:27:35) What We Want to See Happen - OU Defense vs Illinois State Offense (1:29:35) What Will Happen - Game Predictions (1:32:40) National CFB Talk (1:39:38) Picks of the Week        

We're only 9 days away from kickoff and the Benson Bros are back to discuss the end of Fall Camp in Norman. With Illinois State on deck, position coaches Todd Bates, Jay Valai, and Emmett Jones spoke with the media, and Grant has thoughts on how OU players look like with their shirts off. In the second hour, we discuss how the national media is looking at OU as the season begins, and we use Lee's pal Josh Pate for a fun hypothetical.   Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter/X: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter/X: @LeeBensonTweets   (0:00) Intro - Grant Is The New Producer Slash Host; Dow Drops 5,000 Points (8:45) Todd Bates Speaks to the Media: Meaty D-Line Talk (14:18) Markus Strong (19:38) Damonic Williams (25:02) David Stone: Film Junkie (30:08) Jayden Jackson & David Stone Are Cooking With Grease (37:18) - Jay Valai Speaks to the Media: He's Got Nicknames for Everyone (43:45) - Courtland Guillory and Devon Jordan Are Violent Within the Scheme (49:00) - Is Eli Bowen Cooked? (56:00) - Elijah Thomas is Malik Neighbors - Buy Your Tickets to Miami (1:03:05) - Danny Okoye - Be Still My Beating Heart (1:11:10) - The Solid Verbal's 5 Burning Questions for Oklahoma (1:30:00) - Cover 3 Podcast (1:36:45) - Josh Pate Has a Cool Take that Doesn't Make Sense (1:42:35) - Week 0 Picks                      

Lee and Grant discuss the absurd John Mateer/Venmo incident that was the biggest story in college football for one day in August of 2025. Then, they discuss the latest Fall Camp superlatives and throw a bunch of cold water on hype in the defensive secondary (sorry) before joining in on the hype over the defensive line. 16 days.... Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter/X: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter/X: @LeeBensonTweets   (0:00) Intro - The Theory of Relativity (8:22) Moneyline Mateer (30:20) First Fall Scrimmage (37:00) Follow-up on Injuries/Corner Talk (53:00) Bill Bedenbaugh and the Offensive Line (1:06:00) Jim Nagy, the Transfer Portal, and Recruiting (1:12:37) Cornerback Hype-Train and Lee & Grant Are No Fun (1:23:00) The D-Line: Hell Yeah (1:31:55) AP Top 25 and General College Football Talk    

Lee and Grant are back and begin the show talking about the gaggle of minor injuries that have broken out at the beginning of Fall Camp, and somehow, Gentry Williams is not one of the infected. Are we worried about Jaydn Ott's shoulder injury? How concerning is Eli Bowen and Gracen Halton's absence nearly a week into Camp? Later, the guys discuss the emergence of Taylor Wein and Reggie Powers on the defensive side of the ball, and wonder what it means that Zion Kearney has started to rise to the top of the WR room. Come for the hot OU Football Talk, stay for the Independence Day references. Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant of Twitter/X: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter/X: @LeeBensonTweets

The guys are back and open the show talking some nonsense before diving into what you're really here for: hot OU Football talk. What's happened since our last episode? We've got you covered. And OU's season win total is set at 6.5 (3:20). SEC Media Days happened. It's over. Not much came out of it. Brent Venables talked for a long time. He mentioned some young players we may get to see play this fall. We couldn't get through much of the players so we're just gonna assume they didn't say anything of note. Plus some guy asked a really weird question about Navy (13:30). How are we feeling about Javonnie Gibson's injury (36:55)? Jackson Arnold made his second SEC Media Days appearance, but this time for a new team (40:45). Where do we think the SEC media will pick the Sooners to finish? Grant is putting a lot of stock in OU-Michigan (50:00). Thoughts on Joe Castiglione's upcoming retirement (1:04:35). The recruiting for 2026 doesn't sound like it's going very well, but a good 2025 season can easily reverse that trend. Are you pumped to tailgate on the North Oval (1:21:30)? Grant thinks this upcoming college football season is going to be pretty interesting. He doesn't see any obvious picks to win the National Championship (1:25:30). We read some comments from the WoE Facebook page and Lee admits he recently suffered a really stupid major injury (1:29:00). Some updates on the future of the podcast and how it may change in the coming weeks and months (1:34:00). | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonTweets

After a brief intro the guys jump into talking about Gavin Sawchuk entering the transfer portal (2:15). The Sooners pick up a new wide receiver out of the portal and we have no idea if he will be a relevant player in 2025. Grant wishes OU would have paid a lot of money for the Cal transfer tight end (12:50). The Sooners picked up a new kicker out of the portal and we hope he makes field goals when asked to do so (22:40). We wanted OU to pick up a new corner out of the portal, but that didn't happen. The Sooners also lost a quarterback to the portal. Does this mean Hawkins has improved (31:10)? Danny Stutsman and Billy Bowman got drafted over the weekend plus the guys deal with some technical difficulties. Is it a problem that OU only had 2 players drafted in 2025 (38:30)? A shocking Dillon Gabriel draft position. Grant was bored by Shedeur Sanders taking up all the oxygen over the weekend (51:00). | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonTweets

The show opens with random NFL Draft and sports time zone talk before jumping into the David Stone situation. The guys had two very different reactions when the news broke last Friday. There's a lot to get into here (5:20). How did David Stone's freshman season compare to some recent other 5-star defensive linemen? Some guys are good right away, some aren't. Grant just wants more information about how these things happen, while Lee feels bad for Stone's situation. Where does the SOUL Mission come in here (26:30)? Breaking down John Mateer and Washington State's late-season 38-35 loss to New Mexico. It was a tale of two halves for Mateer and Ben Arbuckle shoulders some blame for this loss (47:45). Grant does not want OU to accept being a lesser tier program (1:11:10). You get Lee's live reaction to the Bears taking Colston Loveland at No. 10 for some reason. And Taylor Tatum is still on OU's roster (1:15:00). | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonTweets

OU gets a big-time running back out of the transfer portal. Grant's super excited, while Lee is taking a more cautious approach (1:30). Jim Nagy has done an excellent job so far-- will he be able to bring in a tight end that actually helps (19:10)? Sam Franklin has entered the transfer portal. Grant thinks some other RBs will be out of here this spring (24:20). OU also brought in a solid interior offensive linemen who could challenge Troy Everett for the starting center job. What's the next position Jim Nagy is looking to fill from the portal (27:45)? Not much to take from the Crimson Combine. Is there any way to make a spring event, that's not the spring game, interesting (40:00)? Do you buy that Javonnie Gibson may be back for the start of the season (47:40)? We read some listener comments that are positive, pessimistic, and critical (52:35). The Nico Iamaleava saga (1:06:30). | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonTweets

We don't waste any time as Grant jumps into the news that Javonnie Gibson has been injured (1:15). Trejan Bridges (13:00)?! Davon Mitchell has entered the transfer portal. Grant is not surprised in the least bit, while Lee finally watched Mitchell's HS senior highlight tape and was not impressed (19:10). So, the Crimson Combine is this weekend (29:45). Grant absolutely hated watching Washington State-Utah State from November 2024. This game showcased perhaps the best Mateer high-level quarterback moment so far, but also included some head-scratching mistakes and decisions. Stay tuned for a cameo from DJ Graham (34:10)! Grant wants to talk about OU men's basketball picking up a terrific guard out of the transfer portal (1:01:50). | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonTweets

Grant's feeling a bit more hopeful about the 2025 season lately, while Lee talks about having reasonable hope compared to blind hope. Nevertheless the vibes coming out of spring ball have been pretty good, particularly surrounding the WRs. Grant says it's reasonable to be excited about many parts of the roster, but there are 3-4 position groups with serious questions (2:05). We watched practice video of pass catchers taking on DBs in 1-on-1s and we've got a lot of thoughts. Probably the most we've talked about the tight ends in a long time (18:20). We also got 1-on-1s of the O-Line taking on the D-Line. Several practice thoughts commence. It seems reasonable to expect David Stone to make a jump based on the evidence on hand (37:35). It appears Lee's conspiracy theory about Gentry Williams was wrong (50:05). Brent Venables appeared with Josh Pate in a recent interview. Lee has many thoughts-- most of them negative, but we did learn at least a couple of things (53:40). Trae Young is now the assistant GM for men's basketball, but what does that mean? Rants about players transferring all the time (1:10:20). Lamenting the death of the traditional spring game (1:19:30). | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonTweets

The show announces a new presenting sponsor, Lee gets bleeped, and then we finally start talking about OU football. The guys are back on the practice field following spring break. Is anybody else getting a clear Dillon Gabriel/Jeff Lebby 2022 feeling with Mateer/Arbuckle? Is the Mayfield/Riley 2015 analogy more fitting? Plus fun nostalgic MTV Spring Break thoughts (2:50)! OU released a mic'd up video of Arbuckle and Mateer. There's a couple of interesting takeaways, mainly regarding two apparently key WRs (14:00). Lee doesn't understand the unnecessary expectations that was thrusted on two promising young offensive linemen. Grant doesn't find it to be that big of a deal (21:00). More reactions to the Oklahoma Breakdown Podcast as they recently talked about OU's running back room. Why does that position group not have any difference makers at the moment (32:40)? Mike Gundy's Bedlam spring proposal (42:40). Breaking down John Mateer's play in Washington State's 29-26 win over SDSU in Week 9. This game showed us something about Mateer that hopefully is a very positive sign for the future (46:00). For basketball fans, we talk about OU's first round exit to UConn in the NCAA Tournament (1:13:55).

After some brief basketball talk the guys get to talking about the ramifications of Jayden Gibson suffering a small setback in his recovery from his knee injury (1:50). Javonnie Gibson has a lot of people talking early in spring practice. Is this real (16:00)? We're all rooting for Jaren Kanak to be a good tight end (21:20). Who knows what's going to happen with the running back room (28:15)? Grant's excited about what he's heard about Troy Everett. Lee wants to know if it's okay to be positive about the offensive line again (32:50)? Let's talk about David Stone and what the defensive line could look like, but we must remind everybody that OU's secondary is a problem. And Grant wants to talk about Taylor Heim (41:15). Breaking down John Mateer's performance against Hawaii in Week 8 of the 2024 season. The stats were terrific (47:50). We give some love to the OU men's basketball team who looks to be on their way to the NCAA Tournament (57:45). | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonTweets

The guys are back and jump right into what Brent Venables said Wednesday at his pre-spring press conference. Venables had another incredibly long opening statement. He also announced players who will not be active during spring practice (2:05). Venables also confirmed that he did not call OU's defense in 2024 (16:30). OU will not have a spring game in 2025. Grant is not happy about college football slowly transitioning to more of a pro football model. Can the "Crimson Combine" be successful (19:10)? Thoughts on Jim Nagy being named OU's GM. What do we hope he's good at? Is the NFL front office model the future? Grant's open to this being a good hire, but the OU football program has not earned the benefit of the doubt the past three years (32:40). Grant takes a look at the preseason SP+ rankings. Let's all nervously laugh at OU's super hard schedule (50:45). Lee goes over some of the things John Mateer said at his first OU press conference. We finish up by breaking down Mateer's performance against Fresno St. during the 2024 season. Mateer did not play well (57:45). Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonTweets

We open the show with some brief talk about the upcoming segment breaking down Washington State's Week 5 game against Boise State. After that they jump into the news that Kevin Wilson has reportedly been added to the staff as an offensive analyst (2:50). The Washington State-Boise State game was a good watch and super interesting. John Mateer played pretty well against the best team he saw all season. He made one horrible mistake, but him and Ben Arbuckle continue to raise Washington State's offense (15:25). We take a look at OU's 2025 schedule and try to predict what OU's Vegas win total will be. What should be the expectation for number of wins in 2025 (50:40)? Grant jinxed the basketball team months ago. Yes, we finish up the show with our half-baked thoughts on the men's team being bad. Lee also has a quick plug for a separate podcast (1:00:55). Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonTweets

The guys jump right into the news that DeMarco Murray was a candidate for the Penn State running backs coach job, but will stay at OU after all. Lock in for another DeMarco Murray/OU running backs discussion (1:30). Lee did not quite realize how lowly ranked OU's 2025 signing class is. This takes us on a journey of OU's previous recruiting classes. The 2017 class was incredible (28:05). Over to the John Mateer/Ben Arbuckle 2024 watch as Washington State won a 54-52 2OT shootout against San Jose State. Mateer and Arbuckle continued to show a lot of promise, while Mateer also provided two massive lowlights. Through 4 games we are still very much pleased about what we've seen from both Mateer and Arbuckle (41:20). Jalen Hurts and the Eagles dominated the Chiefs in the Super Bowl. Unfortunately, it was a very poor game (1:14:00). The guys inexplicably close the show with thoughts on the OU men's basketball team (1:23:35). | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonTweets

Grant opens the show by reminding everybody that DeMarco Murray and Joe Jon Finley continue to be on staff and presents a new conspiracy theory. We transition smoothly to OU bringing on Nate Dreiling and Wes Goodwin to coach linebackers. Brent Venables also announced that he will be calling plays in 2025 (7:45). Ben Arbuckle is going to make $1.5M per year (25:05). Thoughts on John Mateer and Ben Arbuckle in Washington State's win in Week 3 over Washington. There's a lot of good with this duo through three games (28:10). Brian Hartline is going to be the next OC at Ohio State. Grant really likes this guy (1:04:45). Obligatory thoughts on the upcoming Super Bowl matchup (1:07:05). | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonTweets

The guys are back to talk about Jim Knowles leaving Ohio State, but not taking the OU job. Grant's not happy that OU may have lost a head-to-head battle with Penn State. Could OU have matched Penn State's offer and chose not to? Was this all about Knowles getting closer to home? We think the ceiling for 2025 could have been much higher with Jim Knowles on staff. Plus more comparisons to the 90s (1:15). We continue our breakdown of John Mateer's 2024 season at Washington State by providing our thoughts on Wazzu's 37-16 win over Texas Tech in Week 2. Mateer was not very sharp through the air, but was dazzling with his legs running the football. We saw some good from Ben Arbuckle... and some bad (36:45). | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonTweets

The guys are back to talk about the latest Jim Knowles rumors (2:00). Curtis Lofton stepped down as OU's GM recently (27:10). We begin our season-long watch of John Mateer and Ben Arbuckle at Washington State. First up is Wazzu's Week 1 win over Portland State (36:00). The guys give their thoughts on Ohio State winning the National Championship and Grant is still not enjoying the expanded playoff now that we're through the first year (57:40). | Like the show on Facebook: @westofeverest | Follow Grant on Twitter: @GrantBenson25 | Follow Lee on Twitter: @LeeBensonTweets