Now Weeden is 28 years old and coming off a great season at Oklahoma State where the Cowboys found themselves in the national championship argument before a loss to Iowa State sent them to the Fiesta Bowl where they would beat Stanford.  By most accounts, Weeden was one of the winners at the Senior Bowl week last week, perhaps solidifying himself as a second-round pick — again.

Brandon Weeden joined WCNN in Atlanta with The Rude Awakening to discuss the Senior Bowl experience, what areas of his game people have been critical about, playing baseball first before pursuing a college football career, why he made that decision, why he doesn’t have a bad taste in his mouth over his final college season, the argument that Oklahoma State should have been in the title game, and his 2012 NFL Draft prospects.

On having a successful week of practice leading up to this past Saturday’s Senior Bowl:

“I had three good days. That’s kind of what I heard coming in, that the practices are more crucial than the game. … I think my first three days went good, throwing the ball well, had command of the offense. Of course there’s mistakes — it’s all new to me — but for the most part I thought [it went] pretty good.”

In what areas of your game have people been critical?:

“It might be playing in the spread offense and not being under center. That was one thing coming in, but I think that’s one thing I’ve handled extremely well, going under center and taking a five-step drop, a seven-step drop.”

What was the experience like playing minor league baseball?:

“It was a great experience. I played for five years and ended up at High A. I played in Adelanto, Calif., my last year. I don’t know if you guys have ever heard of it, but the wind blows about 40 out to dead center and the ball just flies out of there. It’s not really a place you want to be if you’re a pitcher. … I always knew that if I didn’t make it to the big leagues, I wanted to go back to college and pursue the dream and play college football. That’s what I did and it looks like I made the right decision.”

Was it a situation where baseball was your first love as a kid and that’s why you went there first?:

“Baseball was kind of my thing growing up as a kid. I started playing when I was three and fortunately I was bigger and a little bit better than everybody growing up. There was an area there where I was not very good and everybody was better than me and I kind of growth-spurted again. I knew my senior year that I’d have an opportunity. Obviously being taken in the second round and being the Yankees first pick was an outstanding opportunity. It’s hard being an 18-year-old and turning down that much money and have the opportunity to pitch for your favorite baseball team and still have school be paid for in your contract. The opportunity was just too good and I think I made the right decision.”

Did the way this past college football season ended leave a bad taste in your mouth?:

“No, we won a conference championship, went on to win a BCS bowl game and a lot of firsts at Oklahoma State and a season that a lot of people will remember. I think everybody was extremely excited about the way things turned out and I think there’s a lot of people that wear orange proudly.”

But what about the argument that you guys should have been in the title game?:

“Yeah, I mean, I think there’s a lot of people that believe that and people that just kind of believe in the system and you’ve got to just let it work. That’s kind of the way you’ve got to handle it. There’s the BCS in place and that’s the way we approached it. Whether you like it, love it or hate it, it’s in place and you’ve got to play by it. We had a great year. We came up 0.009 percentage points from playing in that game and it was unfortunate, but we enjoyed the Fiesta Bowl.”

Is there a particular NFL team that you’d like to play for?:

“I’ll be honest, I’m not just saying it because it’s the politically correct answer, I really didn’t grow up having a team. I followed football and followed players. But in my position right now, whoever wants to give me an opportunity to play and give me a shot to be on their roster, I’m all about it.”

Are your people giving you a range of where you’re expected to be drafted?:

“Not really. It’s a little bit early in the process. … There’s still some work to be done, interviews to be made and all the stuff to kind of handle and get a grasp.”

Listen to Brandon Weeden on WCNN in Atlanta here

Instead, the former Oklahoma State receiver said he’s just looking ahead and seeing what he needs to do to improve on the field — and consequently improve his draft stock. I’d be shocked if he doesn’t become a standout receiver at the next level. What do you think?

Justin Blackmon joined 790 The Zone in Atlanta with Arch and Bell to discuss his decision to leave school early, the Fiesta Bowl, playing for Mike Gundy, what the combine will be like, what quarterbacks he’d like to play for, the training leading up to the draft, why he’s not looking back on his career, if the deaths within the Oklahoma State family affected the team in the loss to Iowa State and how his team would’ve matched up with LSU or Alabama.

How tough was the decision to leave Oklahoma State?:

“It’s very tough. I’ve enjoyed my time here; Oklahoma State’s been real good to me. But I just feel like it’s time for me to see what’s in store for me at the next level.”

Did you feel like you were in a zone during the Fiesta Bowl where you could do anything you wanted?:

“I wouldn’t say that. I was in a zone and I was really locked in, just happened to be really locked in that game and everything seemed to be working my way.”

How intense is Mike Gundy as a coach?:

“He’s a great head coach. He’s a player’s coach. He’s going to sit there and back you like you’re one of his own kids. He’ll take care of you, he’s a player’s coach and I’ve enjoyed playing for him.”

What will you do now leading up to the draft in terms of workouts and combines?:

“I think I will be [doing all of the stuff at the combine]. As it gets closer, I’ll know for sure. I’ve just been enjoying the time working out. I’ve started working out and am trying to stay focused and get in the best shape I can before the combine.”

If you could pick an ideal team to be drafted by, who would it be?:

“Any team that would [draft] me. Obviously a team that had a quarterback and somebody that could kind of balance out the offense.”

Is there a quarterback out there that you see and really want to play with?:

“There’s a lot of guys. Like you said, Drew Brees and Aaron Rodgers. If Peyton comes back, you’ve got him there. There’s a lot of great quarterbacks that I wouldn’t mind being out there and playing with.”

What other kind of training will you be doing?:

“Just a lot of things, working on explosiveness, route-running, coming in and out of breaks, quickness, changing directions. There’s a lot of things I feel like I can work on and try to get better at in this short time.”

Do you go back through your college career and critique yourself?:

“No, I mean, I kind of put all that in the past. To me, it’s ground zero and how can I get better? It’s not looking at my numbers. I’m not going to be satisfied. I try to forget about it, the good and the bad, and just try to improve every day.”

Did the outside factor of the deaths of the women’s basketball coaches play a role in the loss to Iowa State?:

“It affected us. That’s something hard to try and forget about and try to go out there. You can’t go out there and play that game without having it in the back of your head. It was a weird day for us, a very quiet day, nobody was really that vocal. But we don’t use that as an excuse. They came out and played and ended up finishing the game.”

How do you think you guys would have done against LSU or Alabama?:

“I think we would’ve matched up well playing against either. It would have been nice to see our receiving corps against the DBs of LSU or even the Alabama DBs. It would’ve been nice to just see how we would’ve matched up against them.”

Listen to Justin Blackmon on 790 The Zone in Atlanta here

The Cowboys ranked second in the FBS in scoring and passing offense and third in total offense this season and lost just one game but missed out on the BCS national championship game because that loss came to Iowa State. Gundy says he would have pushed the tempo and passed the ball 50 or 60 times just to see what would’ve happened. I imagine many of you would’ve rather seen that than what occurred on Monday.

Mike Gundy joined 790 The Zone in Atlanta with Mayhem in the A.M. to discuss what he would have done in the title game, Oklahoma State’s style of play, if it would have made for a more entertaining game, if university presidents and athletics directors and other officials need to listen more to coaches, the players not having a take and what he would’ve wanted when he was a player.

What would you have done if you were playing in the national championship game Monday night?:

“We throw the ball around quite a bit. A guy asked me what I would’ve done. I watched those two teams play for about a quarter and I was very impressed with what they were doing up front. I said, with us and who we are, we’d probably throw it 50 or 60 times and just see what happens.”

Isn’t that what Oklahoma State football is all about at this point?:

“That’s what we do. We’ve got a great quarterback and great receivers and we’ve got running backs that make plays and we get rid of the ball fast. We would have tried to use as much tempo as possible. I think it’s important that everybody realizes, I understand the defenses that were in the game, but for us, we certainly would have tried to throw the ball down the field and move as fast as possible to see what happened.”

The Pac-12 and Big Ten have an agreement to have teams square off in a series starting in 2017. Would you like to see something similar between the Big 12 and the SEC?:

“Boy I don’t know. With the league that we play in and the games that we have, I don’t know if you can take on an opponent in a non-league game and be able to withstand the wear and tear during the schedule. I know there will be talks about that. … But we would really have to look into that to see what’s there. Ultimately, before we do any scheduling, we want to do everything we can to give ourselves the best chance to win our conference and potentially be a national champion.”

You aren’t saying that you would have won the game Monday night, but are you saying it would have at least been a more entertaining game?:

“Somebody else has to make that decision. College football fans obviously have to decide that. … My only comment was that the guy called and said, ‘What did you think?’ I said that I felt like it moved pretty slow and we would’ve used as much up-tempo as possible.”

Do officials need to listen to coaches like you and players and finally decide it’s time to come up with something more beneficial for everybody?:

“I don’t think there’s any question about that. I think that there’s people that are listening right now. I think the plus-one, or what I call the Final Four, is a real possibility, which will give us two more games to allow teams to play to get to the final game. I think that can happen. We’re getting close. You’re just trying to get presidents of universities and athletic directors and people on the same page. And I do believe there needs to be more coaches involved.”

And players, too, don’t you think? I don’t know if a player has ever been asked what they want:

“I agree with that. I don’t know that they’ve ever asked them, either. It’s interesting that you usually want to get the information from the guys that are out there getting their hands dirty on what they should do. That’s probably a good suggestion.”

When you were a player, would you have wanted a playoff?:

“No question, you’re right. There’s not any question about that. Of course, television dictates so many things now, the money from TV. … It’s about the student-athletes. They’re the ones out there paying the price. They’ve paid the price for four or five years. You just want them to have the chance to compete and find out who’s the best in the country and make for an entertaining game.”

Listen to Mike Gundy on 790 The Zone in Atlanta here

Brandon Weeden joined Fox Sports Radio with JT the Brick to talk about all the hype Andrew Luck got prior to the game, what went on with Justin Blackmon earlier in the game last night, whether or not he was surprised that Stanford didn’t really change their coverage against Blackmon, and how it feels to go out a winner.

On the hype Andrew Luck got prior to the game:

“And deservedly so. The guy has been getting a lot of hype all along and rightfully so. He’s probably the best quarterback in the country. You just want to go out and compete. You want to put your team in position to come out on top and fortunately we were able to do that tonight. Spoke with Andrew a little bit and congratulated him. He’s had a heck of a career and will play for a long time.”

What went on with Justin Blackmon earlier in the game:

“Yeah he was just frustrated because we weren’t clicking on offense. We did some things that were kinda uncharacteristic. I started slow and he wanted the ball in his hands. He’s a competitive dude and we were able to get it to him late in the game and he made some big plays for us.”

Whether or not he was surprised that Stanford didn’t really change their coverage against Blackmon:

“I thought they would. It’s all about one-on-one matchups. We knew that coming in. They were going to play some man coverage and they were gonna play zero. That’s what they kept doing. Thankfully they did. They didn’t make any adjustments and he was able to win that matchup and was able to make some explosive plays for us.”

How it feels to win the last game of his Oklahoma State career:

“It feels amazing. This is kind of the icing on the cake. We’ve had a tremendous season, tremendous career here – the senior class. You always want to win the last one. The last one is always the one you will remember and to win it the way we did it and in that fashion against a great football team in Stanford. It feels good and it’s just crazy that it’s all said and done and I won’t play another game at Oklahoma State.”

Listen to Brandon Weeden on Fox Sports Radio here (Audio begins 23:00 into podcast)

Another way that the Cowboys could have played for the national championship after the regular season was over would be to have a four-team playoff, which is what Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy, not surprisingly, argues for in the following interview before he says that his team could beat unbeaten LSU.

Mike Gundy joined The Dan Patrick Show to discuss not being in the title game, if Oklahoma would have made it in if it were in the same situation, a possible four-team playoff, preparing to face Andrew Luck, the performance this season of Baylor’s Robert Griffin III and if Oklahoma State could beat LSU.

Why aren’t you in the national championship game?:

“Obviously we fell short in some area in the voting. I don’t really understand all that. I’m really not smart enough to figure out all the percentages. I guess the loss at Iowa State in double-overtime must have weighed in a huge way and kept us out of the game. We were really disappointed because we felt like we had a great matchup. We wanted to take advantage of what people had said was the great defenses in the SEC versus the Big 12 offenses. … We thought it would be an awesome matchup and everyone in the country would want to see it.”

Do you think if we were talking about Oklahoma, that they would be in the title game if they were in your shoes?:

“You’re right, Dan. Most people in my situation would say no and that you should never admit something like that, but I don’t think there’s any question that tradition plays a part. People recognize Alabama and their history and the national championships. … The truth of the matter is that they know who Alabama is, they recognize their tradition, [Nick Saban] was on television for two hours the day before. All those things, they worked to their advantage. There’s not anything we can do about it now, but I don’t think there’s any question that what you’re saying is true.”

Why can’t we have a Final Four?:

“I agree. The way to do it, in my opinion, is you take the next game, which one would be LSU versus Stanford and it would be Alabama versus Oklahoma State and that game has to take place in one week, this coming Saturday. We play those games and if you’re the higher ranked team, you get to play at home. … We play that game this week and then we go play the championship game at the same time because, I kind of joke about it, but the championship game’s not basically until March Madness anyway. … People say, ‘Well then the team that’s fifth in the poll will complain.’ But, for the most part, if you’ve gotten into the top four, if you look back over the history of the BCS, people across the country would be OK with it.”

Who did you face this year that prepared you for Andrew Luck?:

“I don’t know anybody. A lot of people think he’s going to be the first player picked in the draft, so obviously he’s got a great future. We played very well against Landry Jones and I’m not trying to put him in the same category as Luck, but Landry had put up some big numbers. … He’ll be the closest thing that we’ve competed against since Bradford, who played at Oklahoma.”

Who would get your Heisman vote?:

“As of right now, and again I haven’t watched a lot of tape — it’s really unfair for me to make that comment — but Robert Griffin III has been very impressive.”

Is it because we’re old enough to remember Baylor as a punchline and what he’s meant to that program?:

“What’s impressive is last year he ran big numbers up in the preseason, and then as he got into the meat of the Big 12 schedule, his numbers fell off the table. This season, in every game he’s played, and I may be a little strong there … but with the exception of playing Oklahoma State, he’s run up big-time numbers. And he had 400 yards passing against us, but we forced him into three turnovers and didn’t let him run the ball.”

Do you think you could beat LSU?:

“Yes. Yes. … What I was really looking forward to, and this is just my opinion, this is nothing personal — and my media guys here are holding their breath whenever I talk — … but my honest opinion is, the best way to beat a team of the caliber of LSU … you need to have a big-time quarterback to beat a team like that. And we’re fortunate that we have a guy on our team … that most people would consider a big-time quarterback. … That’s a long answer for yes, I think that we certainly had a chance to win that game.”

Listen to Mike Gundy on The Dan Patrick Show here

Gundy says in the following interview that he can’t believe he was even hired as a head coach by Oklahoma State when Les Miles left Stillwater in 2005. Oklahoma State has flirted with being nationally relevant on the field, but most fans associate Gundy and the Cowboys program with Gundy’s famous rant. That’s on the verge of changing as well. The Cowboys are now a legitimate national title threat, and can prove they are that caliber at Texas A&M on Saturday.

Mike Gundy joined ESPN Radio Dallas with Galloway and Company to discuss how he’s gone about changing the culture of the Oklahoma State football program since his hiring, how he thinks he’s evolved as a head coach and leader since his first year in 2005, how he can’t even believe that he was hired in the first place over six years ago, the personality of Dez Bryant based on his experience coaching him, how good the Dallas Cowboys’ receiver can be, and the hot topic of realignment in college sports.

How have you changed the culture at Oklahoma State?:

“Well we’ve been fortunate that we’ve had some really good players come through here. We’ve had a strong administration that’s really funded our facilities here and changed the way people look at us at Oklahoma State. And our coaching staff has been really good. … We’ve lost two guys outside of coordinators and head coaches. … I just think it’s a philosophy. We started here and said we wanted to do it with class. We want to have a lot of morals and character with our team and we’re going to do it the right way. And it wasn’t easy early. … But we’ve stayed with our foundation.”

How have you evolved as a head coach in that time?:

“I’m considerably different. I look back at myself and I don’t know why anybody would’ve even hired me as a head coach. … Patience has really helped me understand that if you just have a plan and you stick with it and you’re patient and you do everything you can for your players … in the long run it’ll pay great dividends for you .”

What was it like to work with Dez Bryant when he was there compared to what the public perception seems to be?:

“People really don’t know Dez. He is a kid at heart. The best example for Dez is, when we asked him to do something here, outside of football, he did everything we asked him to do. People knew there were times that he’d oversleep and he may be late to a class, but it wasn’t in a detrimental way. That was just kind of Dez’s personality. … Dez has some issues that he needs to clean up. And as I’ve watched him over the last six months, I think he’s done considerably better. But he is a good person at heart.”

How good can he be?:

“I don’t think there’s any question Dez can take a game over now. As a receiver, yes, but if you just watch him return punts, then you’ll see the difference in him athletically from the other men that are playing that game. … We’re very proud of Dez and we’ve got his picture hanging in our hallways.”

Do you expect to be in the Pac-12, or 16, next year?:

“I heard last night there’s a chance that the Big 12 can survive. They don’t give me a lot of information. People know that I’m a big proponent of the Big 12. My honest opinion is I don’t really know why we can’t make this thing work. You hear about the Longhorn Network and you hear about A&M not liking that, but if you just sit down and look at what the Big 12′s done — the athletic department budgets of the schools that are in this league have gone through the roof; we’ve had national champions; we’ve been in BCS bowls, sometimes two in a year; we’ve had the television; we’ve had teams consistently in the top 10 and top 25. I don’t understand why this league may not survive. … The coaches and the players, we’re going to buy into whatever. Someone else is making the decisions.”

Is all of this good or bad for college football?:

“I don’t know. It’s confusing, because a lot of it’s way over my head. … Is it good for the student-athletes that are competing right now in college football? I’m going to say probably not, because some of these young men came to Oklahoma State, or came to Baylor, or came to Texas Tech, to play in the Big 12 for those schools. They may not have that future now. Is that really fair to them? … The travel that could be involved with schools being in one part of the country and playing in a different part of the country … when the standards are being raised every year and the APR’s being raised every year, I don’t know if that’s best for the student-athlete.”

Listen to Mike Gundy on ESPN Radio Dallas here

Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy has one of the nation’s top teams heading into the 2011 season. He’s also a man, and he’s 40, and he’s got some pretty strong opinions. Gundy says the NCAA needs to stiffen penalties against coaches who violate NCAA rules, a move he feels would convince coaches and the numerous individuals in their programs that the risk is no longer worth the reward. He’s also one of few coaches that seem to be in favor of the Big 12′s nine-game conference schedule.

Mike Gundy joined 790 The Zone in Atlanta with Barnhart and Durham to discuss how the preseason has gone so far for the Cowboys, the heightened expectations for the program after last year’s successful campaign, the return of receiver Justin Blackmon, adjusting to more national attention, the rocky state of college football, why coaches should be punished more harshly when their programs are guilty of major rules infractions, and his thoughts on the Big 12′s nine-game conference schedule.

After a strong season a year ago, are the expectations raised for this program?:

“We’ve been very fortunate the last few years and obviously won 29 games over the last three seasons. We have a number of returning starters and, more importantly, a good number of returning players that have won or lost football games here in the last few years. … The practices have gone very well up to this point. The team chemistry is in place.”

On the return of prolific wide receiver Justin Blackmon:

“He’s got a chance to finish here with some big time numbers and maybe the best that’s ever played here. We’ve had some really good ones … but he’s got a chance this year. What’s most impressive about Justin was in spring ball he worked extremely hard and then had a great summer. And then up through the number of practices that we’ve had … he’s been the best practice player that we’ve had on the field. When your best player is your best practice player, it sure makes for great team chemistry.”

How has your program adjusted to getting more national attention?:

“Our approach early in the spring, when there was a lot of talk about us being a preseason top-10 team, I think what’s out there with communication and social networks … I don’t think you can deny that to the players and keep that from them. Our approach has been, ‘Look, people think you’re a good football team. Now you need to live up to the expectations.’ … Expectations are really high around here, which is the way we want it.”

On the tough offseason for college football:

“It’s been a tough offseason for all of us. It’s been unfortunate for whatever reason. There’s so much going on out there right now it’s hard to keep up with it. It disappoints me for college football that we have so many things going on out there. I’m sure there’s different people to blame in different areas. At some point, we have to get it cleaned up. Everybody’s got to start playing by the rules. The penalties have to be so severe for coaches who break the rules that they’re not willing to take that chance. … Hopefully we can get this thing cleaned up to where it’ll make it better for who it’s supposed to be good for which is the players. I think at times we’re losing perspective.”

Where did you stand on the nine-game Big 12 schedule?:

“Several years ago I had mentioned that I thought, in order to strengthen the Big 12 Conference, that we should do away with the divisions. I felt like we were losing some inter-team rivals, for example Oklahoma State against Missouri or Oklahoma State against Kansas State or Oklahoma State against Nebraska. … I didn’t think the fans were as interested in the game. And, I think at the end of the season, the team with the best record should be the conference champion. There were a number of years where we had a championship game and we didn’t have the two teams with the best record playing in the championship game, so I felt like that may weaken our league. I understand the disadvantage of playing nine league games, but I think, ultimately, for the fans … they’re going to like it.”

Listen to Mike Gundy on 790 The Zone in Atlanta here

Mike Gundy is most known for his post-game meltdown a few years ago where he stood up for one of his players that was called out by a member of the media for not being tough enough to play.  While Mike has stated that his famous rant has reaped his team recruiting benefits, he wants to be known for being a great coach and having won a National Championship.  Coach Gundy and the Oklahoma State Cowboys are set to square off against the Georgia Bulldogs in Stillwater, Oklahoma, this Saturday afternoon.  This is one of the most talked about games in Oklahoma State history. This is a game of two powerhouse conferences, SEC vs. Big 12.  This is also the debut of Oklahoma State’s newly renovated state-of-the-art football facility.

Needless to say, this is a huge game for both teams as Georgia hands the reigns over to fifth-year senior, Joe Cox, and Oklahoma State opens the season ranked #9 in the AP Poll.  Mike Gundy joined The Sports Animal with Jim Traber in Oklahoma City to talk about rumors of players being injured, about the excitement to start the season against Georgia, whether it is hard to sleep right now, and the pre-game handshake.

Are you mad about the rumors of players being injured?

“If you had a rule in place like the NFL does, then it makes it much easier for all of us. (Host: You would like that?) Yes, because there is not a lot out there for the most part. There are two reasons. The first reason is, at any time a parent could come back on us about the mention or possibility of their son’s injury to the extreme whether he is hurt or not and whether it affects gambling. Lastly, could it affect his pro career? So that’s the first thing. The second thing is that at times we live in a society that is so driven from information. Unfortunately, much of it is being gossip. Our players get tired of hearing about it. It’s hard for them now Jim. When you and I used to walk across campus to class everybody in campus didn’t know what was going on in our life. These guys now, thank god they didn’t know, right Jim? Now when a Zac Robinson and other players everybody knows what is going on in their life. I think there is some wear and tear on them. So we are not for hiding anything now in playing poker you never want to show your cards. If there is something that would affect the gameplan that would maybe work against us then we would try to do the best we could to work within the system to make is happen but really what happens is that you’ve got information seekers out there in all areas. It just gets old. There is not really anything you can do about it. You just got to go with the flow. You know we had a couple of unfortunate injuries this week and essentially non-contact injuries that just don’t happen very often. And so one thing that is not going to ever happen around here is we are never going to talk about injuries or excuses because it will always be that way in college football. Unfortunately this is a tough sport and a tough game and there will be nobody that will be more worried about it than our coaching staff and my self. There is nothing worse than when you see an athlete that works hard and gets injured. It just breaks your heart.”

On being excited for the big game against Georgia:

“We are very excited. There is more excitement than there ever has been and we have told the team because it is because of their hard work and what they have put into this the last three years. They have developed and built this program and gotten it to a very high level where they have received national attention where everybody is talking about them. To get through the last eight or ten teams or however many it might be. It will be more difficult because they’re very tradition rich and good football teams and to maintain a high level of play. There are going to be some ups and downs. There will be good things that happen and bad things that happen. There is a tremendous amount of excitement here. Last Saturday, I ran over to catch the first half of one of my son’s football games around town before I had to go to another function for work and there is people trying to buy tickets at the gas stations on the corners here. We couldn’t give them away a long time ago. And now they are trying to buy them 7 days before the kickoff. I think it’s all a positive. The people are excited and I know the players are ready to play. When you get to this point you are just ready to get this thing off.”

On having a hard time sleeping:

“You know everybody is. I don’t sleep very much during the season. You certainly don’t now because of everything going on but you have to wait the thing out. It’s important that you get rest and fluids and eat good food. It’s just, everything that can factor into them performing well individually and then helping the team perform well. There is a lot of things moving. We are in this new west end zone. There is a lot of moving parts coming out of a different side of the field and the walk is a little different. People don’t realize all the things that factor into that.”

Listen to Mike Gundy on The Sports Animal in Oklahoma City with Jim Traber

Over the years, I’ve grown to appreciate him more and the great 2-3 defense his teams often play.  However, not making the tournament in 2007 and 2008 just four and five years removed from a national title is unacceptable.  One year is ok, but not two.  The problem I often have with him is that his teams lack discipline.

This Syracuse team is loaded.  They have good outside shooters, a great point guard, bigs down low, and a sublime athlete in Paul Harris.  They blew out their first two opponents, but they have this nasty habit (see lack of discipline) of keeping teams around longer than need be. They’re a 3 seed just like 2003 and truly can match up with any team in the country.  I’m hopeful it will lead to same results as 2003.

Jim Boeheim joined The Axeman on ESPN Radio Syracuse on Monday  to discuss his team, Blake Griffin, and Johnny Flynn’s future.  Also, make sure you listen for all his strange noises during the interview.  Sniffs, snorts, grunts, and groans.  He’s a beauty.

On stopping Blake Griffin:

“We try to play good team defense and be active and obviously you have to know where their best players are and you have to make it as difficult as you can for their best players.  You can’t let anybody have shots in college because anybody in college at this level at the Sweet 16 can make shots and hurt you.  So you just have to play good team defense and rebound the ball.”

More on Blake Griffin:

“He’s the best rebounder in the country.  He’s averaging over 14 rebounds a game.  Almost nobody averages that many rebounds in the history of college basketball if you look back at it.  A tremendous, tremendous rebounder.  He can shoot the ball, he can finish around the basket. He’s just a great, great player.  He’s clearly the best player in college basketball this year and has been really from opening day.”

After the break more quotes from Coach Boeheim including ripping the media for asking Johnny Flynn if he’s going pro and the full interview.

On how Johnny Flynn has improved:

“Well I think he gets the ball to the right better now than he might have done at the beginning of the year, he looks for people.  He can still score when he needs to.  He’s got tremendous stamina and can play at a high level for the whole game.  He doesn’t have to come out of the game.”

On Johnny Flynn announcing that he’s coming back for his junior year:

“I don’t talk about that and I think it’s foolish for the media to ask people questions like that now because nobody’s going to want to answer that question. You’re not going to get an in-depth answer…you’re going to get something thrown out at the spur of the moment.   I don’t know why the media continues to ask that question.  The time to ask that question is when the year is over with and the decision has to be made.  Why would you ask a kid that question when he’s playing in the NCAA Tournament?  To me that’s just ridiculous.  No kid is going to be thinking about and shouldn’t be thinking about what he’s going to next year at this stage.”

Listen to Syracuse (#3 South Region) Head Coach Jim Boeheim on ESPN Radio Syracuse

View South Region coverage on CBS Sportsline

View highlights of Syracuse vs. Arizona State

This should be a good one. Odds to win the region can be found after the interviews, compliments of Bodog, www.BodogLife.com.

Reason why #1 seed doesn’t make it to the Final Four:   If Levance Fields still isn’t recovered from his groin problems or DeJuan Blair is in foul trouble, Pitt can be beat.

Best bet in the first round:   Over 157 1/2 in the Oklahoma State/Tennessee game

Player I’m most looking forward to playing in the NBA:  Tie between Sam Young of Pitt and Eric Maynor of VCU.  In terms of Young, I can’t wait to see if that ridiculously exaggerated pump fake actually works in the NBA.  I remember watching Maynor two years ago when they upset Duke.  Ice in his veins and should become a nice pro.

Prediction for this bracket: Pittsburgh.  I know they haven’t had great success in the tourney in the past, but I love Blair and Young.  Sleeper pick would be Florida State

Listen to Pittsburgh (#1) head coach Jamie Dixon with Mike & Mike on ESPN Radio (19 minutes into podcast)

Listen to Duke (#2) guard Jon Scheyer and assistant coach Chris Collins on WGN Radio in Chicago with Dave Kaplan

Listen to Villanova (#3) head coach Jay Wright with Cuz and Prof on WIP in Philadelphia

Listen to Xavier (#4) Head Coach Sean Miller on WQXI in Atlanta with the Two Live Stews

Listen to Florida State (#5) leading scorer Toney Douglas and his brother Falcons wide receiver Harry Douglas on WQXI in Atlanta with Morning Mayhem

Listen to Oklahoma State (#8) Head Coach Travis Ford on The Sports Animal in Oklahoma City with Jim Traber, Al Eschbach, and Dean Blevins

Listen to Tennessee (#9) Head Coach Bruce Pearl on WQXI in Atlanta on Morning Mayhem

Listen to Minnesota (#10) head coach Tubby Smith on KFAN in Minneapolis with Dan Barreiro

Listen here to VCU (#11) head coach Anthony Grant with Jeff Aaron on KRKO in Seattle

Listen to Portland State (#13) head coach Ken Bone on KKFX in Portland 

Listen to ETSU (#16) Head Coach Murray Bartow on KGOW in Houston with John and Lance