Oklahoma. They call it the Sooner State.
So named for those early pioneers...
...who jumped the gun in the land rush of the 1880s.
Sooners, as in "too soon."
As in maybe they didn't exactly follow the rules.
I say this certainly not to pass judgment, for my granddaddy was a Sooner...
...but to suggest, my friends, the spirit that is Oklahoma...
...and thereby the heart of its people:
An ambitious bunch of independent, strong-willed survivors...
...who tend to live by the principle of feast or famine.
You see, in Oklahoma, not all legends are about victory.
Some are less obvious.
Some you don't see coming. Some are born out of struggle.
If I don't get that pump fixed, y'all are gonna reside in the bathtub...
...which will not be popular with the owner of that bathtub. I know y'all pee in there.
All right.
Come on.
Hey, look. It's Chetley.
Hey, Chetley. What are you doing, bathing?
You feeling lucky?
I don't know, Barrow.
- Is your mother here? - What the hell does that mean?
Do it with your mom? That's so gross.
Shut up.
My mother?
Pansy.
He's not worth it.
Later, sucker.
Hey, there.
Hey.
Name's Red. Yours?
I'm Cal.
I couldn't help but notice that you had a little trouble here.
Oh, that. Well, you know, it's ...
It happens. I'm kind of an easy target.
Maybe, but you stood up to him.
- Yeah. - Any special place I can drop a line?
Well, the fish bite better on that side.
Good, good. All right, then.
Well, I'm off.
See if I can come face- to-face with one of those nice, fat catfish.
See you again.
All right, see you later.
"Peace, my fearless friend...
...who touched so many with his courage and heart.
You took it far. We'll take it from here.
Harry Newman."
- Hi, darling. - Hi, darling.
- What are you doing? - Just waiting for you.
- What's that? - What?
Did somebody hit you? Tell me who, Calvin.
What are you gonna do, pop a cap in his butt?
- I could. - Then we'd have to move.
Where would you like to move to?
North coast of Ireland, maybe.
Come here.
I bet this never happened to Mike, huh?
I was thinking we might get chicken tonight.
We could. Could a third person come along?
Who?
His name is Larry Edwards.
How come I never heard of this Larry Edwards?
Well, he's on his way over. You can say hi.
What does this Larry Edwards do?
He's the assistant district attorney.
Good, that means this guy will be paying for dinner, right?
You would think. Wanna come?
No. No, then he won't pay.
When you dine with the actual district attorney, let me know.
- There's a few things I'd like to discuss. - That's my boy.
- Hey, Ma, you heard from Mike lately? - No, why?
Just wondering. What's he been doing?
I don't know.
He's on an oil rig somewhere.
Gather up the rest of the guys and meet at the tool shed in 10 minutes.
Chetley. Chetley.
Listen, I'm real sorry, Mike...
...but I gotta let you go when we hit T.D. on this one.
Basin's slow, looks like we're gonna have to idle one of the rigs.
I'll keep your name on file, give you a call when we get back up to speed.
- How long? - I couldn't tell you.
Right.
- Hello? - Hello, Mrs. Chetley.
Hello, Studley Do Right. How's your day?
It sucks.
I have a meeting for the school newspaper and a late lab.
Don't say "sucks." I'll be home when you get there.
- How was dinner last night? - It sucked.
- Thank you for asking. - You're welcome.
- I'll see you later. - Bye.
I'm not sure she bought it.
Well, since you've never actually approximated the inside of a gym...
...I would wager she did.
All right, back to starting positions. Inside pummel, inside pummel.
Everybody ready on my whistle. Let's go, 10 seconds.
Inside pummel. Work it. There you go.
Go, Barrow. Good, good, good.
Hip-over. Do two hip-overs. You guys ready?
This one's 10 seconds. Keep it going, keep it going.
Figure eight, figure eight.
Ready, ready, here we go.
Nice. Locking hands on feet, locking hands on feet.
Everybody ready? Work it, work it, work it.
Hip-overs, full roll. Last three guys, last three.
Full-roll hip-over. Working it, working it.
Good hustle here and we're done, okay?
Nicely done, fellas. Get to the locker room.
Get your studies done tonight, be good boys, see you in the morning.
I told you, don't bunch up.
- Whoa, yeah, dude. - This is exactly like I expected it to be.
Hey, get away from that girl!
I knew that was you.
What'd you do that for?
Everyone knows you grew melons over the summer.
- You don't have to show them. - I got reasons.
- Anyways, they like it. - Well, what's there not to like?
No, don't do that to me. I've known you too long for that.
- Is the catfish pond pump working? - Not good enough.
- I'm gonna lose customers. - How much you got?
Not enough.
Hey, Luli, if I tell you something, you promise you won't laugh?
No.
I wanna join the wrestling team.
- What do you think? - Do you know how?
No, but my dad was a college champion and my brother was an All-American.
So I figure it's in the genes.
Doesn't look like it to me.
- I bet he could show me a lot of things. - Who, your brother?
- You don't even know where he is. - Yeah, I do.
- Yeah? - Yeah.
Well...
...would you wear those little tight-fitting wrestling suits?
Yeah, I guess so.
I'd watch you.
Cal.
- Cal. - Hey.
- Where did you get that scale? - Donald had an extra one.
Well, I'm not getting on.
Ma, you got nothing to worry about.
You do know what to say.
- How much do you weigh? - One thirty-seven.
- Is that good or bad? - It's good, I guess.
- I gotta go. - Yeah, me too.
Good, good, keep working it.
Keep it going, 30 seconds. Work it, work it.
- Hey. - Hey.
What the hell?
You here to watch, or you wanna get on the mat?
I'd like to get on the mat, sir.
Coach Tennent.
Cal. Chetley.
- Chetley? - Yes, sir.
- What's your weight, Cal? - One thirty-five pound class, I guess.
One thirty-five. All right, we're a little thin there.
Put that down, take those off, follow me on the mat.
All right, ups and downs, ups and downs.
Hey, Timmy, work in with coach for me.
- Yes, sir. - Barrow, I want you to work in with...
Cal, was it? ...Cal, here. Half speed, work on the basics.
Cal, down position.
This is about wrestling now, right?
Yeah, sure thing, Chetley.
Hey, hey. Barrow.
What part of "half speed" didn't you understand?
- Sorry, coach. - Come on, help me out here.
Chetley, down again.
Come on, guys, come on.
On my whistle.
- Get off me! - Hey, hey, hey!
- Come on, come on. - Hey, hey, hey. Relax.
You have some kind of history between you?
Yeah, coach. I think Chetley, here, is interested in my mother.
Chetley, are you interested in Barrow's mother?
No, sir. At least not with all her clothes on.
No gravy, Ma.
Mom, no, thank you.
- Joined the wrestling team today. - I knew it. I knew it, damn it.
- Damn it. - What?
The scale, and dieting.
- You're wrestling. - I just said that.
- When did this start? - I just told you, today.
Why are you wrestling, Calvin? Why?
- Because it looks like it's fun. - No, it doesn't.
- Mike wrestled. - Is that why you wanna wrestle?
No, I was just saying Mike wrestled.
Darling, you and Mike are two entirely different people.
What's that supposed to mean?
It was in his blood or whatever you guys call it.
Mike needed to wrestle. It was his thing. You have a lot of other things going on.
Name three things.
Geology, science club, debating, music, catfish pond, news...
- How many more do you want? - If I wrestle, I can't do all that?
- No. - Why, will it make me stupid?
Apparently, because that was a stupid question.
Cal, I know wrestling. It's demanding.
It will take you away from other things. Everything else just...
Why now?
- Because Mike wrestled. - I know. You already said that.
- And Dad wrestled. - And it ate them up.
Mike also got hurt and he was built like a car.
- You're a beanpole. - Thanks for reminding me.
Should we pretend you're something else?
They have a 135-pound weight class, or have you forgotten that?
Why are you so interested in Mike now anyway?
I don't know.
I guess he and Dad probably spent a lot of time together.
What are you thinking?
He's gonna help you? Help you know your father?
He won't. He will just disappoint you.
You have no idea who Mike is.
- He's my brother. - Right.
One you've seen, maybe, what?
Once or twice in 10 years?
Whose fault is that?
Pump, you are a never-ending source of mystery to me.
Who are you talking to?
No one.
- Stupid thing. - What's wrong?
I'm just trying to get this pump fixed. It's driving me crazy.
- I wanna wrestle, Luli. - I thought you were.
- What happened? - I told my mom about it.
- And? - And she just about gave birth.
- You wearing that outfit to school today? - Do you like it?
It's...
- It's different. - Good. I was aiming for different.
So you like it then?
Sure.
I'd love to see you wrestle.
Who you looking for?
- Mike Chetley. - Yeah?
I'm Calvin, his brother. Is he here?
Mike?
Cal.
Calvin.
- How'd you get here? - Bus.
Then I walked.
Can I use your bathroom? It was a long ride.
What brought you here?
I was kind of thinking that maybe you could...
...you know, show me how to wrestle?
Just... Just sometime.
I mean, I was thinking I'd try out at 135 pounds...
...but I don't know much.
- I don't think I'd be much good to you. - I think I could be good...
...with the right kind of training.
Just the basics. I've been studying a bit.
About leverage mostly, seems like.
You know, just getting the right angle and...
I don't know what I'm talking about.
Why do you wanna wrestle all of a sudden?
- I don't know. - Cal, I'm just real busy right now.
Coach can teach you the basics. That's why he's there.
Yeah. Yeah, of course.
Maybe we could... We could just visit once in a while.
There's ain't very much in my life that you're gonna wanna be a part of.
- I just thought because we're brothers... - Not right now.
Hey, Jim.
- Hey. How are you? - Hey. Can I talk to you for a minute?
Okay.
Cal's not interested in wrestling.
I don't know, he seems eager to learn.
He's looking for Mike.
I've already lost one kid to this sport. I don't wanna go through it again.
Sharon, I doubt the sport had anything to do with it one way or the other.
Anyway, it's not really up to me whether Cal wrestles or not.
There are things about Mike you don't know, Cal doesn't know.
It turns out he wasn't as unbreakable as everybody made him out to be.
Nobody is.
You know, if I say no to Cal, you're just asking for a different kind of trouble.
Tell you what. How about I watch him?
Make sure he's out there for the right reasons.
And if another Mike shows up at tomorrow's practice...
...willing to sacrifice everything in his life for this...
...you're gonna tell him to ease off?
- Yes, I will. - At the cost of victories?
Trust me.
I don't really even know you, but you better be telling the truth.
That kid is all I got.
- Sharon? - Yeah?
How is Mike?
I don't know.
- Hey, there. - Hey.
- How's it going? - Catch anything?
Yeah. A nice shoe bass.
Put up a hell of a struggle.
They always do.
Wanna share some of those heavy thoughts you're carrying?
I don't know.
Yeah, I guess so.
You ever wanted something...
...you know, or someone, or wanted to get someplace...
...but just didn't know how?
Yeah.
Wanted to be a Western movie star...
...and ride off into the sunset with the girl, like John Wayne.
- Why didn't you? - Couldn't ride a horse.
Well, yeah.
All right, I'll tell you.
- I wanna wrestle. - Wrestle?
- What's the holdup? - I don't think I can compete.
Well, you ever wrestled before?
- No, never. - Well, that's your problem.
It's foreign to you. It's fear of the unknown, kid.
So who's this someone you're looking for?
Someone?
Yeah. You said something or someone.
Oh, it's... It's my brother.
So this brother has something to do with your wanting to wrestle?
Yeah, maybe.
Why would you ask that?
Old man intuition.
Listen. Follow your instincts. You'll be fine.
Yeah.
You know, if you use crappie instead of worms, you might have better luck.
Thank you. Advice taken.
What's the matter with you?
- Hold on. - Injury time-out.
I'm Timmy's backup.
I'm the same weight class.
I'm next in line four nights from now.
Ridgecrest wins by injury default.
Hundred thirty-five pounds right on.
- It's fate, Cal. I can't wait. - Let's hear it for Timmy Hughes.
Hello?
- Hi, is Mike home? - No.
- Is this Jill? - No.
Well, do you know when Mike's gonna be home?
No.
All right, well, could you leave him a message for me?
Yeah.
Could you tell him that his brother Cal is gonna be wrestling Friday night?
Okay, thanks. Hello?
Nice girl.
Okay, guys, let's settle down. Listen up. Listen up, everybody.
Please, can I have your attention? We're gonna be starting with...
...135 weight class.
Visitors' 135-pound, step up on the scale, please.
Mark Hayes, come up. Get on the scale.
One thirty-five even.
- Attaboy, Mark. - Home team 135, step up, please.
Riverdale, that's Cal Chetley. Cal Chetley. C-H-E-T-L-E-Y, coach.
Also 135 even.
Okay, 140.
Drawing the first match of the night is the 135-pound class.
First name calls Mark Hayes.
And for Riverdale, in his very first match ever, Cal Chetley.
Riverdale in red, St. Paul's, the green.
Attaboy, Mark.
Winner by fall, first period, Mark Hayes of St. Paul's.
Come on, don't sweat it. They get easier after this, all right?
You did fine. You never quit.
- Go have that looked at. - Okay.
Good job.
What?
I gotta go.
I'll call you.
Forgot to tell you, your brother called.
He said he was wrestling or something this week.
I saw Luli at the match last night.
I say she's all the girl you can handle.
Luli's not my girl.
- Does she know that? - Ma, come on.
- It's Luli. - And how is Luli?
She's going through an interesting phase right now.
She needs a woman in her life.
Yeah.
Her mom never comes to see her anymore.
She has four brothers.
Yeah.
What fun for her. Tell her to come see me sometime.
Are you all right?
You mean am I gonna keep wrestling?
Yeah, I guess that's what I mean.
I don't know.
Yeah.
I mean, I can't really quit. I'm the only 135-pounder on the team.
And that kid was about the best 135-pounder in the state...
...so I figure it can't get much worse.
There it is, there it is.
Hey, Mike.
Watch yourself, boss.
Problem?
- What? - I said, do we have a problem?
Hey, Donald. Do you think I'm the worst 135-pounder in the region?
You haven't wrestled in enough matches to be considered the worst in the region...
...according to the State Athletic Commission.
Do I think there's anyone in the region you can defeat before the year's over?
It's mathematically possible.
Oh, well, thanks for not saying no.
Hey, dingleberries.
I heard your brother used to be the man. Didn't help you too much, did it?
So?
So now he's a punk. Losers.
- Muskogee County. - I didn't know Barrow could read.
"Mike Chetley, 28 year old, was arrested and charged with major assault.
Repeat offender, $5000 bail."
Hello, young fella.
- Hello. - Hey.
- I haven't seen you in a bit. - Yeah.
How'd that wrestling thing turn out?
Yeah, I'm quitting. Wasn't right for it.
According to whom?
Well, I haven't won a single match.
Well, not surprising seeing as how a month ago...
...you didn't know a wrestling mat from a bath mat.
How's that brother of yours?
He's not really interested.
Well, I know a little something about brothers.
Had eight of them. If you need your brother...
...I can promise you that he needs you.
Now, he may not know it like you know it, but he does.
Don't give up on that wrestling thing.
Yeah. I have a good feeling about you.
Hey.
- What are you doing? - I need to borrow your scooter.
I'll bring it back tonight.
- Are you in trouble? - No.
I need you to give this to Coach Tennent.
Yeah. Wow, this is exciting. I feel like we're eloping.
Yeah, except you ain't coming.
At least kiss me goodbye.
All right.
Thank you. I owe you one.
I'll be collecting too. And it won't be on the cheek.
All right.
Your Honor, my client's altercation with Mr. Brock...
...was a reaction to both physical and verbal taunts.
I believe Mr. Chetley felt that he was fighting for his life.
In addition, he has made arrangements to enter into alcohol rehab...
...and personal therapy to address his issues with anger management.
I would ask, at this time, that the court allow my client to pursue this...
...under the state's supervision.
Thank you, counsel. Mr. Chetley.
Anything you care to add, sir?
Your Honor, I don't go looking for trouble.
I got put in a situation, and, well, I reacted the only way I know how.
You seem to have a history of that, Mr. Chetley.
Your Honor, ma'am?
Hi.
May I say something on his behalf?
Tell the court your name, please.
Calvin Chetley, Mike Chetley's brother.
Step forward, please.
My dad died when I was young and my mom works a lot...
...but Mike sort of took the place of my dad after he passed on.
And he teaches me a lot of things. A lot of things that my mom can't.
Your brother is in a lot of trouble. You do realize that, don't you?
Yes. Yes, ma'am, I do.
But I think that sometimes guys come after Mike...
...because they see him as some kind of a target.
And he and I have this deal, right, where I'll go out with him...
...and I'll always step in if any kind of trouble starts so he can just walk away.
I just... I wasn't there this time.
Your Honor, I'm gonna give you my word that you won't see either one of us...
...in your courtroom ever again.
I need Mike.
We kind of carry each other.
That's all I got.
- You hungry? - Yes.
I'm really hungry. Yeah.
What do you want?
I don't know. It's just been a lot of years.
I meant what do you wanna eat?
Okay. Sorry.
I don't know. I'm kind of having trouble with my weight.
You know, keeping it down.
Thanks. Actually, I'm starving.
You know, Mike, I don't want anything from you.
I just wanna know you.
Cal, I've been alive 28 years.
I just couldn't tell you much about the last 8 or so.
- What happened? - I don't know.
One day dad was there and we had a plan, and then...
Well, then he wasn't.
Luli. Hey.
I was hoping to catch you.
- Hey, Mrs. Chetley. - Your old scooter finally quit?
Well, it ain't been running too good, that's for sure.
You wouldn't happen to know where Cal is, would you?
- Wrestling practice, I imagine. - No.
No, I went by the gym on my way home.
Yeah. He got up awful early this morning.
Too early.
- He does like to study. - Yes, he does...
...and you're not a very good liar, darling.
Well, ma'am, I only had two ways to go.
Lie to you, or break a promise to my best friend.
Fair enough. I'm just worried about him.
One thing I know about Cal is he'll be all right, if that helps.
Okay. I appreciate that.
Come by sometime.
We'II, you know, do girl things.
I'd like that, ma'am.
So I won the geology essay competition...
...and used the winnings to build a catfish farm.
It makes me a little bit of money when I can actually keep it running.
Mostly I just like to go out there and think.
Does Mom know you're here?
No. No, she doesn't know I'm here. I should probably go.
How is she?
Oh, she's... She's okay.
Think she wishes she had girls.
She misses you.
Can I stayed away...
...because...
You want me to teach you how to wrestle?
No. No, Mike, you got a lot going on.
It's not that important.
Yes, I would love it if you'd teach me to wrestle.
- I'll do the best I can. - Me too.
Where have you been?
Nowhere.
Just hanging out with friends.
What is this place?
Church.
You ready?
- Hey. - Okay.
Three parts to becoming a complete wrestler.
Offense, defense and psychology.
We'll talk psychology later. Today...
...we're gonna work on speed, leverage, knowledge and strength.
Okay.
We're gonna have to build yours.
Oh, he's back. Drinks all around.
- Did you take a little vacation, Chetley? - You wish.
- Funny, didn't seem to notice you missing. - Why'd you bring it up then?
Cal, I need you right now. The rest of you, circle up, get started on your own.
Hey, circle up, let's go.
Cal, we had to forfeit a match because of you.
Now, I give each one of my wrestlers one shot to save their ass...
...before I toss them from the team.
This is your shot.
I had to help my brother with something.
Screw up again and you're done. Do we understand each other?
- Yes, sir. - All right, now get out there.
Thank you, sir.
Lumbrowski, I see you.
It's called a watch. Get one.
Cal, get up.
Back straight. You go in with your back straight.
That's where you get your strength. When you circle...
...look at my left leg.
Don't take your eyes off it. Look at it.
And when you're ready to make your move...
...halfway through, switch to the right. Tie me up with the right.
Your right leg on mine, keep me from panning out, take me down.
- You understand? - Yeah.
Here.
So the next time, you actually shoot for the leg you're looking at.
Or maybe you don't.
Maybe you don't look at all. You just keep coming and juking.
Knowledge.
- You learn quick. - Well, you teach quick.
Hey, I read you once pinned a guy with a reverse cradle in a close match.
Yeah, reverse cradle.
It's not a move you wanna shoot for, especially against a wrestler who's good.
It's an easy way to get pinned if you don't know what you're doing.
- How does it work? - Easy, bud.
Let's learn to walk before we can run, okay?
Yeah.
Hey, did you get a job yet?
- No. - I got you one.
Through my geology class. I know some guys at Sooner Pipe Works.
They can get you off the rigs, put you in a truck...
...servicing the online wells.
Money ain't bad. It's pretty steady.
I ain't out of line about that, am I?
No.
No, I just... I ain't used to getting that kind of help.
What was it like working with Dad?
I tell you, man, it wasn't work.
It just seemed like Dad always knew what to do with me.
Yeah.
- You finish your homework? - Yep.
- Wanna do mine? - Nope.
Nice heinie.
Thank you. Speaking of heinies, my mom wants you to stop by.
- Your mom wants to see my heinie? - She didn't say.
All right, tell me about your opponent for tomorrow.
He's five and five.
I've never seen him before, but he lost to a kid who beat me 11 to 2.
All right.
You know, Mom's probably gonna be there tomorrow.
Good.
You gonna talk to her?
Cal, I never said anything about going to meets.
- You understand. - No, I don't understand.
There's gonna be a lot of folks in that gym.
They're gonna wanna talk to me about what I've been doing lately...
...instead of those trophies I won 10 years ago.
That's including Mom.
Tomorrow's about you. I'm not gonna get in the way of your match.
- Well, when are you gonna talk to Mom? - That's not why we're here.
No, I... I know.
Psychology.
One twenty-nine and a half. Step down, please.
First time you see your opponent is the weigh-in.
One thirty-five, Claremore. Step on, please.
Look right through him. He doesn't exist.
It's a confidence game.
Somehow, you are gonna instill fear.
One thirty-four and a half. Step down, please.
- Riverdale. - Chetley.
You're thinking one thing.
That your girlfriend is in the front seat of his car.
And if you lose, she's going home with him.
And you think that over and over again.
You let it burn, because it'll show in your eyes.
Chetley.
Step on, please.
You do it right, sometimes they pee themselves.
Yeah.
There's one more thing.
You gotta weigh in naked.
Naked?
It's... Trust me, it's uncomfortable, but it makes them more uncomfortable.
Because it shows you're proud and it shows you got nothing to fear.
One thirty-five even. Step down, please.
One forty.
After that, you find a spot in that gym.
That's your spot. Your space.
You can go there. Bring music with you. Music you love.
Music that gets into your soul.
You do all those things and that's gonna give you the edge.
- Okay. - All right.
Do it, Cal.